Jakarta Police call 2000 the year of headaches
By Joko E.H. Anwar
JAKARTA (JP): Deadly bomb attacks and high-profile political cases dominated the scene of the year 2000 in the capital along with other common crimes, such as murders, robberies, and drugs abuse.
It has been a tough year for police particularly since they have vowed to make some significant improvements to their institution -- after making some changes to their uniforms and rank titles -- to improve the poor image they have had for years.
The police's seemingly earnest intentions were hampered by extra problems this year since they also had to deal with some crimes which became the political cases and quickly turned into a media circus.
These cases include the Rp 35 billion State Logistics Agency (Bulog) scandal which is closely linked to President Abdurrahman Wahid and the disappearance of former president Soeharto's son, Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra, after being sentenced by a court to 18 months in jail for a graft case in a land swap deal with the same agency.
Drug cases have also been particularly interesting since several well-known figures and many foreigners have been arrested in drug related crimes, with shabu-shabu (crystal methampetamine), marijuana and heroin, continuing to be the popular drugs.
In June, the wife of a grandson of former president Soeharto, Gusti Maya Firandi Noor, was arrested in her car for possessing shabu-shabu.
Police also arrested two well-known comedians, namely Sudharmaji or Doyok and Barata Nugroho or Polo, for possessing the same drug.
The war against drugs was highlighted by the police's fatal shooting of five African men during a drug raid at a rented house in South Jakarta in January.
A Pakistani national was also shot dead after he attempted to flee during a drug raid in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, in December.
The attempted murder of National Awakening Party Chairman Matori Abdul Djalil at his South Jakarta residence in March also became media headlines.
However, these cases were overshadowed by several bomb and grenade attacks, which slapped the capital with the new title "the city of terror".
In the wee hours of Feb. 11, a strong blast caused by a hand- grenade rocked the Boker red-light district in East Jakarta, injuring at least 12 people, including Army and police officers.
The grenade was believed to have been thrown by one of five security personnel who had been arguing over distribution of "protection fees" which they collected from the management of the prostitution dens in the area.
On March 18, an explosion occurred at the U-turn of Jl. Juanda, next to Hotel Merdeka, in Bekasi severely injuring one of two victims.
Bekasi police announced that a bottle of motor oil had accidentally caught fire and had caused the blast while residents insisted that the explosion had come from a homemade bomb which resulted in a 20 centimeter-deep and 50 centimeter-wide hole in the road.
On July 4, a home-made bomb exploded and caused minor damage to a bathroom of the "Round Building" at the Attorney General's office compound.
The following day, police found another powerful explosive device hidden right above the lavatory where the first bomb which exploded was placed.
Police later said that the first bomb was a medium explosive device made from substances including nitrate and kerosene and had been detonated by the suspect on the spot.
However, then National Police chief Gen. Rusdihardjo later identified the second bomb as an M-1 (Military-One) explosive manufactured by the state-owned weapons and ammunition producer PT Pindad which could have caused a huge blast had its timer not been dislodged by the first explosion.
So far, nobody has been named a suspect. The blast took place several minutes after Tommy was grilled at the General Attorney's complex over the purchasing of 144 hectares of land in Citereup, Bogor, for the establishment of the vast Sentul racing circuit.
Nine bodyguards of Tommy had been questioned as witnesses in connection with the blast.
On Aug. 30, the night before the long-waited trial of former president Soeharto for an alleged corruption case, a strong blast went off in an empty minibus near the Ministry of Agriculture, set to be the venue for the hearing.
There were no injuries resulting from the blast which police said came from a large amount of firecrackers planted under a yellow Koantas Bima city bus parked adjacent to the trial venue.
Jakarta was at its busiest when a devastating blast occurred in daylight hours in front of the residence of the Philippine Ambassador on Jl. Imam Bonjol, Central Jakarta, on Aug. 1.
When radio stations reported the incident shortly after it occurred, few people would have thought that it was so powerful as it killed two people and seriously injured 21 others, including Manila envoy Leonides T. Caday.
The bomb blast audible at a radius of three kilometers damaged several buildings surrounding the scene, immediately turning the capital into a city of terror.
On the same day, President Abdurrahman Wahid known for his controversial statements immediately linked the bomb attack to the MNLF but the organization later denied their involvement.
Rusdihardjo later assigned his Jakarta personnel to check guests, especially Filipinos, in every hotel in Jakarta to find those responsible for the deadly bomb blast.
So far, police have only managed to distribute sketches of two possible suspects in the case.
On Aug. 27 the Malaysian Embassy in Kuningan, South Jakarta, experienced an explosion when a grenade was thrown into its parking lot leaving a 30-centimeter wide and five-centimeter deep hole. No injuries were reported from the blast.
A few days later, Rusdihardjo publicly apologized for the police's inability to solve the bombing and grenade attacks in Jakarta and to arrest the perpetrators.
"I must express our regret at having not been able to make any arrests in connection with the bombings," he said.
Just when people thought that things could not get any worse, another deadly explosion occurred at midday on Sept. 13 at the P2 basement parking lot of the Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX) building on Jl. Sudirman, South Jakarta.
The bomb which was later found to have been planted in a Toyota Mark II sedan killed at least 11 people, mostly drivers who were taking a break in the basement level parking lot of the 34-story building, seriously injured dozens of others and damaged some 200 vehicles.
The explosion occurred the day before the scheduled second session of the trial of Soeharto's alleged corruption case.
Again, the public speculated that the attack was an attempt to pressure the government during the hearing of former president Soeharto's graft case and this time, the police seem to agree with this view.
"(It) could be part of a terror campaign (against the government) prior to the (second) hearing of Soeharto's corruption case." Rusdihardjo said, a comment echoed by several senior city officials.
However, after a series of arrests of possible suspects on Sept. 23, police announced that their investigation showed indications of the role of the separatist Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in the JSX bombing.
Twenty-two suspects, mostly Acehnese, were then arrested from the Krung Baro Motor auto repair shop in Ciganjur, South Jakarta, some 200 meters from President Abdurrahman's residence.
Some arrests were also made in Jakarta and in Bandung, West Java, including two military personnel.
However, the detention of the 20 suspects from the auto repair shop was later suspended by the police saying that they had been only charged with a minor violation of the law for failing to report a crime to the police.
Four men were then named prime suspects in the bombing but the case has yet to be tried.
Nearing the end of the year 2000 on Nov. 16, a hand grenade slightly shattered the roof of the garage of the official gubernatorial residence in the Menteng area, Central Jakarta.
No casualties were reported but a household technician staff named Budi suffered light injuries.
Less than 16 hours after the explosion another blast occurred at the Omni Batavia hotel in West Jakarta.
No fatalities were recorded in the blast which police said was caused by large-sized firecrackers which had been placed in a standing ashtray in front of an elevator on the fifth floor of the four-star hotel.
The explosion shattered several windows and damaged doors, guest rooms and elevators.
As in many of the other bomb cases, police are still unable to haul anyone to the courts.