Medan police probe reports of officer brutality

Medan police probe reports of officer brutality

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan, North Sumatra

Police in Medan launched an investigation into reports of police
violence against people protesting against pulp company PT Toba
Pulp Lestari (TPL) in the Porsea area of North Sumatra.

North Tapanuli Regency Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Burhanuddin
said on Friday that three officers from the provincial capital of
Medan had arrived on Monday.

"Over the last four days, Medan police have been making
various efforts to crosscheck reports from the public about acts
of violence against them," Burhanuddin told The Jakarta Post.

The investigation followed the allegations by leaders from 47
villages about police brutality against their residents.
Burhanuddin said the team was attempting to verify the
allegations.

He could not say how long the investigation would take, but
said that the officers would report the results to National
Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar.

The results, Burhanuddin added, could help the police find a
solution to the conflict surrounding TPL's pulp operations.

TPL, formerly known as PT Inti Indorayon Utama, is a unit of
the Radja Garuda Mas (RGM) Group. Its operations have been
bedeviled by conflict for years.

Locals complain about the decreasing water level of Lake Toba,
water and air pollution, and the uncontrolled felling of trees as
raw material for the pulp mill.

Anti-TPL protests have often been marred by violence, with a
number of people reportedly killed during clashes with security
personnel.

Responding to the intense protests, the government froze TPL's
pulp and paper operation in 1999. But in November last year, the
government allowed TPL to reopen its pulp mill after the latter
agreed to comply with environmental regulations and improve the
welfare of the surrounding communities through community
development programs, among other things.

TPL's reopening, however, sparked a new round of violent
protests. In November, police arrested 16 people, including two
church ministers, for ransacking the Porsea district chief's
office during an anti-TPL rally.

Responding to demands that the police be pulled out of the
Porsea area, Burhanuddin said such a move would be unacceptable.

Mangaliat Simarmata, who coordinates anti-TPL protests among
the Porsea people, said he hoped the investigation would confirm
the reports of violence.

"Too many people have been traumatized by the violence of
security officers in Porsea. It's only reasonable for us to wish
to see them being punished," said Mangaliat, who is also the
executive director of the Legal Aid Institute for North Sumatra
People (Bakumsu).