Pasuruan gradually returns to normal after violence

SURABAYA (JP): As many as 150 people were reported missing in the town of Pasuruan on Thursday as life gradually returned to normal following an interfaith meeting between senior local ulemas and Christian clergymen on Wednesday evening.

Respected ulemas from Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), including KH Mas Subadar, KH Mujib Imron, KH Abdul Halim and KH Zainuri, and clergymen agreed to join hands to stop all violence and mass rallies.

"No more mass rallies," the chief of the Pasuruan chapter of Banser (the NU's civilian militia), Masyhudi Nawawan, said.

He said that Banser had conducted a survey after the three days of unrest and found that 150 persons who had taken part in the street protests had yet to return home as of Thursday.

"That number does not include 47 people detained by the police for incitement. Many people have made reports to the Truth Defenders' post (managed by Banser) that their relatives haven't shown up since Monday," Masyhudi said. "We are working together with the police to find them."

Thousands of East Java people have joined pro-Abdurrahman demonstrations in Jakarta, and some of the 150 people who "disappeared" from Pasuruan are presumed to be among those protesters.

Many shops had opened again for business on Thursday, but some government offices were still closed. Pasuruan Regent Dede Angga said, however, that public services in his office were back to normal.

"Many civil servants are still afraid of fresh violence. I'm sure next week everything will return to normal," he added.

Other towns in East Java, including Banyuwangi, Gresik, Bondowoso, Situbondo, Sidoardjo, Surabaya and Malang were also reported to be less tense on Thursday.

Most East Java towns are strongholds of Nahdlatul Ulama, the country's largest Muslim organization which Abdurrahman Wahid chaired for 15 years before being elected President.

Violence erupted in several towns in East Java, but Pasuruan was the worst hit with one church being torched and two others vandalized on Monday and Tuesday.

Popular anger in the town came to a head after the issuance by President Abdurrahman of his controversial executive order, or Maklumat, on Monday.

The peak of the clashes between the protesters and the security forces in Pasuruan came when a local was shot dead by police on Wednesday.

Ali Maschan Moesa, chairman of the East Java chapter of the NU, said that his organization had instructed all its members and supporters to maintain security and order by abstaining from all forms of violence.

"I earlier warned the politicians in Jakarta not to engage in political shenanigans or the people at the grassroots level will get angry."

Demonstrations

While East Java was reported calmer, demonstrations continued to take place in other parts of the country.

In the West Java capital of Bandung, a group of students grouped in Anti-New Order National Coalition staged a protest at the provincial legislative building, demanding the dissolution of the Golkar Party.

"Golkar must be disbanded now or the future of the country will become even more uncertain," one demonstrator said in his speech.

They dispersed peacefully after legislators refused to meet them.

In Makassar, South Sulawesi, a group of around 100 students staged a mass prayer in front of the Muhammadiyah University campus on Jl. Sultan Alaudin giving thanks for the "successful" House of Representatives (DPR) plenary session.

The House plenary session on Wednesday recommended that the People's Consultative Assembly convene a special session to hold the President to account.

The students thanked God that all the members of the House had been saved from danger during the plenary session.

In their speeches the students urged the public to trust their representatives in the House and "stop using violence in politics."

Another group of 500 students in Padang, West Sumatra, welcomed the House's call for an MPR special session.

The students, grouped in the West Sumatra Students' Alliance, stormed the gubernatorial office demanding that President Abdurrahman step down soon.

Doni Sofyan, the students' spokesman, said that the House's decision was the best course for the country. (25/27/28/ylt/sur)