Parents of hurt students ponder children's bravery
JAKARTA (JP): For parents, witnessing their wounded children lying in pain is surely a saddening moment.
But their emotions must be mixed when their loved ones are wounded in a daring protest, demanding equality for all.
Asmat Al Kahfi, father of Muhammad Yanwar Adi, 18, and Marjono, father of Hery Joko, 19, seem to have such an undescribable feeling as their sons, both university freshmen, were allegedly bayoneted during a clash with security personnel during a massive student protest at the House of Representatives' (DPR) front gate inthe early hours of Tuesday.
Asmat, a library employee at the Bisnis Indonesia daily, said he was deeply upset about the fate of his third child but strongly believed that the painful wound suffered by his son would sound alarm bells nationwide to inspire students to continue their struggle for reform.
Though not saying so in as many words, he appears to be proud that his son has been part of the popular wave of student protests which are demanding the reduction of staple food prices and clean and fair government.
"I think the students are so brave. The current reformation era we're now in is the result of the previous student demonstration," Asmat, a father of six, said,
He was referring to the endless, massive rallies early this year which reached a peak with the fatal shooting of four students and led Soeharto to quit.
Experiencing the same sorrowful feeling over his second child, Marjono, whose traditional cakemaking business has slumped recently, said he entrusted the fate of his son entirely to God.
He also questioned why his son was picked on.
"But I have to thank God that my son is still alive and was not shot dead," Marjono said, hoping that what happened would not happen to other students.
Pleasant
The incident, however, gave the father of three a perversely pleasant feeling.
Hery, who is still undergoing medical treatment at the Atmajaya hospital along with Yanwar, insisted his parents did not leave him alone for a second, Marjono said.
According to Asmat, he knew Yanwar had joined the Tuesday protest in front of the House compound when the young man beeped him at about 7 p.m., asking for some money.
"I gave him Rp 30,000 as he planned to stay overnight at the House together with his friends. He also took a bottle of mineral water from my car," Asmat, whose office is just a few minutes drive from the House, said.
Asmat later found the money untouched in his son's bloodstained trouser pocket.
Asmat never thought that the protest would end with such a bloody conflict with the security forces.
When he was informed that his son suffered stab wounds during the clash and was being treated at the hospital, Asmat's only reply was: "My son got it".
He vowed not to prevent his son from participating in further demonstrations.
"What's more, I'll sue the security forces for what they have done to my son," he said.
Yanwar, of the Institute of Social and Political Sciences (IISIP), suffered a single stab wound in his waist, while Hery from the National Institute of Science and Technology was stabbed in the abdomen.
The two were among hundreds of protesting students who made a human barricade by sleeping on the street to hamper any attempt by the security forces to evict them from the site. However they stood no chance when the security forces eventually decided to act.
Grouped in Forum Kota, an association of students from 37 universities and colleges in Greater Jakarta, the students met with members of the Commission of Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) and the National Commission on Human Rights the next day to report the violence. (emf)