Fare protests fail to die down in Ujungpandang
UJUNGPANDANG, South Sulawesi (JP): Student protests against a public transport fare increase which have swept the city for the past four days and have led to three deaths and scores of injuries, continued yesterday.
Armed Forces (ABRI) Commander Gen. Feisal Tanjung, who is currently in Saudi Arabia on haj pilgrimage, told The Jakarta Post by telephone on Wednesday that he regretted the incident.
"The students may hold demonstrations against the fare hike, but they shouldn't have disturbed public order," Feisal said.
As of yesterday afternoon, order had yet to be fully reestablished in the city. Roadblocks were still set up so that traffic stood still in many parts of the city.
The students also continued with their rallies, including one outside the office of the Fajar daily, during which they carried the body of Sultan Iskandar, a student of the Indonesian Moslem University who drowned in a river while trying to avoid police.
The other fatalities were Syaiful and Adnan -- also students of the Moslem university -- who later died of injuries after nearly drowning in the nearby river when security officers raided the campus. Syaiful died on Wednesday, while Adnan died yesterday.
The local military headquarters' spokesperson, Lt. Col. Mochtar Darise, said in a release yesterday that the security entered the campus "only as a precaution".
"What really happened was that the anti-riot troops took a preventive measure, escorting the students to their campus so that they wouldn't block traffic," he said.
Eight students of the Indonesian Moslem University, who are currently in Jakarta, yesterday lodged a protest over the incident with the National Commission of Human Rights.
The Secretary-General of the commission, Baharuddin Lopa, said his office would investigate the incident, and called on both students and the security officers to exercise self-restraint and not resort to further violence.
The riots began on Monday when thousands of university students took to the streets to protest a local decree raising public transport fares by 62 percent, from Rp 300 (US$13 cents) to Rp 500 (21 cents).
The protests soon turned into clashes with security forces. On Wednesday, security forces used tear gas against the protesters and made dozens of arrests. About 60 students were injured during the confrontation.
Antara quoted Lt. Col. Mochtar as saying that the student protests were "still normal and under control".
"ABRI is willing to accommodate the students' aspirations, but ... will not tolerate suggestions which are destructive in nature," he said.
He called on the students not to be provoked into committing brutal actions which disturb public order. "What worries us is whether the students are being encouraged by irresponsible people."
Mochtar denied reports about a student who was shot to death by police and about security officers "taking over" the campus. (20/16/swe)