Five students killed in 25 street brawls
Five students killed in 25 street brawls
JAKARTA (JP): Five students have been killed and 30 others
injured in at least 25 street brawls recorded in the first two
months of this year, an official said on Saturday.
Raya Siahaan of the city's Social Disturbance Control Center
said this figure was quite alarming as in the whole of 1998 there
were only 14 students killed and 26 injured in 197 street brawls.
"I don't understand what the capital's future is," Raya said.
He said that to prevent warring groups of students from
recognizing each other, schools were urged last year to encourage
their students to change from school uniform into casual clothes.
This method apparently did not work as well as expected as
warring groups of students were able to recognize one another.
"What cannot be understood is why the brawls happen so
frequently," he said.
Raya reiterated that it was now time for the police to take
really stern measures against students involved in brawling in
order to help reduce fatalities.
"With stern measures students should learn their lessons," he
said.
City councilor Nitra Arsyad said the main problem was that
students today have "absolutely no fear" of the police and the
military.
In previous years the city administration effected the Wijaya
Kusuma operation to rid the city of students involved in street
brawls.
"The students caught during the operation were sent to
special schools run by district commands of the military," Nitra
said.
He said that recalcitrant students used also to be taken to
police stations to have their heads shaved.
"After some time, however, the Wijaya Kusuma operation was
stopped as the city administration had no spare funds."
Nitra expressed concern over the inability on the part of
police and the military to locate any student brawling.
"Both the military and the police can actually use
intelligence officers to locate the student leaders," he said.
Secret list
Raya explained that a total of 32 institutions have been
listed at his center as the capital's "warring schools."
"However, I cannot reveal the names... for fear of ruining the
reputation of the schools," Raya said.
The center's data revealed that of the 197 brawls that took
place last year, 68 happened in South Jakarta, 37 in Central and
West Jakarta each, 29 in East Jakarta and 26 in North Jakarta.
"A number of South Jakarta areas remain the most prone to
student brawls," Raya said.
Areas most prone to brawls in South Jakarta, according to the
data, include Blok A, the Blok M bus terminal and market, Jl.
Fatmawati, Tebet, Pasar Minggu, Kebayoran Lama, Pondok Pinang,
Jl. Ciledug Raya and CSW-Bulungan.
In West Jakarta the areas most prone to student brawls include
Jl. Gadjah Mada, the Glodok area, Kyai Tapa in Grogol, Roxy,
Tomang, Jl. Mangga Besar, the Slipi and Palmerah areas, Jl. Daan
Mogot, Cengkareng and Jelambar.
North Jakarta has Jl. Yos Sudarso, Jl. Kelapa Gadung,
Cilincing, Jl. RE Martadinata, Jl. Pademangan, Jl. Perintis
Kemerdekaan, Mangga Dua, Semper, Sunter Agung and Tanjung Priok
among other areas prone to brawls.
In Central Jakarta they include Senen, Kramat Raya, Pasar
Baru, Cikini, Cempaka Putih, Salemba Raya, Gunung Sahari, Hayam
Wuruk-Gadjah Mada, Lapangan Banteng, Petojo-Roxy and Pegangsaan.
In East Jakarta they include the area in front of the
Indonesian Christian University (UKI), Rawamangun, Jl. DI
Panjaitan, Jl. Otista, Jl. Dewi Sartika, Jatinegara market,
Matraman Raya, Kampung Melayu, Klender market, Jl. Pemuda and Jl.
Pramuka. (ylt)