Journalists angry over police inaction

MEDAN, North Sumatra: Hundreds of Medan journalists staged a protest on Thursday in the city, demanding that police officers work harder to quickly capture the perpetrators who abducted Ellyudin Telambanua, a journalist from Berita Sore daily newspaper.

The 50-year-old journalist went missing on Aug. 24 after he covered a story in South Nias regency where he was based, and since then, his whereabouts remain unknown.

He was allegedly kidnapped by a group of thugs after covering a murder story in Teluk Dalam district in the regency. The abductions was deplored as it was not the first case in North Sumatra. Earlier, a group of thugs attacked the office of Sinar Indonesia Baru daily in Medan earlier this year.

Spokesman of North Sumatra police, Sr. Comr. Bambang Prihady, said that the investigation into the case was going slow because all the local residents remained tight-lipped about the incident.

"We have identified the suspect, but we cannot arrest him as there are no witnesses willing to testify," claimed Bambang. -- JP