Jobless plunder bamboo fields

BANDUNG: Hundreds of people, mostly those who lost their jobs after their companies went bankrupt, have plundered a bamboo plantation on Mt. Manglayang, Bandung regency, a report said yesterday.

Plantation rangers said they could not do anything to stop the banditry because it involved great numbers of people from nearby villages who claimed they need the bamboo to sell so they could survive after being dismissed.

Antara reported that the state-owned plantation company, Perhutani, and residents had lost dozens of hectares of bamboo plants. The thieves left only the shoots.

Enggit Kusdani, a ranger, said the plunderers ignored warnings, apparently because they realized they greatly outnumbered the officers.

Some people involved in the looting said they hoped the upcoming independence Day on Aug. 17 would bring them a windfall because people would need a pole to raise the red-white flag.

They said they would sell each bamboo pole for between Rp 500 and Rp 1,000. (pan)