Hotel Sultan Guests Caught in the Middle of Execution Process

Bagus and his family were trapped while checking out of Hotel Sultan due to the chaos that occurred during the execution process on Thursday (18/6). Fortunately, Bagus and his family were immediately evacuated by policewomen deployed in the execution. “Alhamdulillah, we were kept safe by the police. We were evacuated to a secure place,” said Bagus. Bagus explained that he and his family had been staying at Hotel Sultan since Sunday (14/6) for business purposes. He admitted choosing Hotel Sultan because of its central Jakarta location. “This is a city-centre hotel with quite good facilities. That’s why we’ve stayed here several times,” he said. Bagus revealed that Hotel Sultan had actually warned guests about the planned execution today. He also admitted he had already planned to check out on this day. “Actually, we had been warned by the hotel. We did intend to check out today, but it seems we were a bit late,” he said. “So when we came down, it was already crowded. Then there was stone-throwing too, it seems,” he continued. Bagus also responded to the execution process and the government’s takeover of Hotel Sultan. He hopes that in the future, the government can manage the land and buildings of the former Hotel Sultan better and provide benefits to the community. “For me, whichever function and use is more profitable for the country, let it be used. The state is essentially the winner of the court ruling. If it returns to GBK, then please use it,” he said. A number of guests were trapped inside Hotel Sultan during the execution process. They were only able to leave the hotel after officers successfully took over the land. Chaos marked the execution process. Masses opposing the execution threw stones and mineral water bottles at officers. Officers responded by spraying the crowd with a water cannon. As a result of the chaos, police arrested 119 people. Police confirmed that the hundred or so people arrested were not Hotel Sultan employees. Additionally, 29 people were reported injured due to the chaos, including personnel from the National Police, the Indonesian National Armed Forces, and civilians.