Eviction of squatters turns ugly in Batam, rioting erupts

Fadli, Batam

A riot erupted on Thursday when police and public order officers tried to evict more than 400 illegal houses on the industrial island of Batam, Riau province.

At least two people were shot by police and seven others were beaten, while several cars including two belonging to television stations, were burned or damaged during the unrest.

The violence forced local traders to close their stores for fear they would be attacked.

The clashes started after public order officers assisted by police personnel arrived at around 9 a.m. to bulldoze the illegally constructed shanties in Tanah Longsor, Lubuk Baja subdistrict.

However, hundreds of squatters violently resisted the attempt to evict them from their shacks, which were built on a 10-hectare site belonging to housing developer PT Cikitsu.

The local administration promised to pay the squatters Rp 2 million each, but they refused to move.

Instead, the squatters pelted stones at the security officers, wrecked one of their trucks and set ablaze a car belonging to the Batam Authority's security directorate.

The rioters also damaged two cars belonging to two private television stations, SCTV and Metro TV.

In response, police officers fired shots at the rioters, wounding two of them, who were later identified as Freedy, 28, and Safredi, 20.

Seven other people were also slightly injured in the clash. However, all nine victims were allowed to leave the two local hospitals where they were being treated some hours later.

SCTV and Metro TV cameramen said they tried to flee the violence in their cars, but the enraged rioters stoned their vehicles.

Toni, a squatter, said the local residents refused to accept the compensation from the Batam municipal administration, labeling the amount on offer as derisory.

The riot ended after around three hours when Batam legislative council speaker Soeryo Respationo intervened and asked the representatives of the squatters to restart negotiations at the council building in Batam Center.

The talks, which were convened later in the day, decided to delay indefinitely the planned eviction of the squatters.

Barelang deputy police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Heru Winarko told The Jakarta Post that at least two persons were being questioned for allegedly inciting the unrest.

"We are questioning two persons. We have not yet determined whether they will be treated as suspects or witnesses," he said.

The security situation in Tanah Longsor returned to normal in the afternoon, though dozens of automotive repair and spare parts shops had to close.

The building of illegal shelters, now numbering more than 40,000, has been a long-standing problem in Batam, which is located some 20 kilometers away from neighboring Singapore.

The squatters, mostly from other provinces, began to establish their settlements illegally when the island was made an industrial zone during the administration of former president Soeharto.