New Year party goes smoothly across nation
New Year party goes smoothly across nation
BANDA ACEH, Aceh (JP): New Year celebrations generally passed
peacefully across the country, except for two fatal attacks on
security personnel in the troubled province of Aceh over the
weekend.
Second Sgt. Zulkifli, 35, a military officer, was killed on
Saturday while Second Sgt. Zenda, 35, a policeman, died on Friday
in separate armed assaults by unidentified groups in Pidie
regency.
In between the incidents Aceh Police chief Brig. Gen.
Bachrumsyah asked for people's forgiveness over harsh measures
taken by security authorities, which he said were provoked by
Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatist group members.
"I apologize for what my men did in the field. I regret it but
I did not wish such a thing to happen," Bachrumsyah said in his
year-end statement on Friday.
He was referring to the rough acts of reprisal committed by
security personnel, which included a forcible search of a village
believed to be the harbor of rebels. The move frequently ended in
arson attacks by the personnel.
Bachrumsyah admitted that to maintain security and order, the
police took repressive measures instead of attempting self-
defense.
"Don't take it the wrong way. Being repressive does not mean
blindly shooting at people. It must be done according to the
law."
At least 94 security personnel, 51 of them police officers,
died and another 93 were injured while on duty in Aceh last year.
Up to 25 others are still missing.
"All of the personnel were killed during attacks by armed
gangs," Bachrumsyah said.
Police data recorded that 275 houses, along with 65 schools
and government offices and 72 vehicles, were burned last year,
resulting in up to Rp 26.5 billion in financial losses.
No less than 157 members of the armed gangs were arrested, 77
others were killed and 12 were injured during armed clashes with
security authorities, according to Bachrumsyah. Dozens of guns,
thousands of rounds of ammunition and 108 vehicles were seized
from the groups.
Zulkifli of the Pidie military, died from severe stab wounds
to his neck and stomach following an ambush by an group of
unidentified men in Keudeu Gigieng of Simpangtiga district.
"We deeply regret the killing. How can they murder people
especially during holy Ramadhan fasting month?" Pidie military
chief Lt. Col. Iskandar said.
A day earlier, Zenda, was killed on his way to Friday prayers.
He died instantly from stab wounds to the abdomen.
In Denpasar, Bali, three alleged thieves died when residents
of Banjar Sebudi village along Jl. Dewa Madri went into a rage
and assaulted them with various weapons just 30 minutes into the
new year.
Exuberant celebrations across the island of paradise continued
unperturbed as thousands of people thronged the streets, watching
the once-in-a-lifetime parade of Ogoh-Ogoh (giant puppets) along
with a music festival which was held during a traditional
ceremony.
In Yogyakarta, a man died in a traffic accident and a pedicab
driver named Sumarno, 23, lost his right foot in a massive
firecracker blast at the front of the city's post office shortly
after midnight on Saturday. Police are still searching for the
owners of the firecrackers.
Thousands of partygoers crowded the streets across the
sultanate town to watch a Barongsai dragon dance. Hotels in the
area were fully booked.
A similar mood was witnessed in Semarang, the capital of
Central Java.
In Surabaya, the capital of East Java and Makassar, the
capital of South Sulawesi, student protests marred the millennium
festivities.
Marching to their respective council buildings, the protesters
demanded that President Abdurrahman Wahid and Vice President
Megawati Soekarnoputri bring peace to the riot-torn provinces of
Maluku and Aceh and send human rights violators to trial.
"We give them 100 days to solve those cases. If not, we will
ask the House of Representatives and the People's Consultative
Assembly for a special session to pass a vote of no confidence,"
Hasbi L., a student leader in Makassar, said.
(27/44/51/edt/har/nur/zen)