People told to help combat street crime

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Police called upon the public on Wednesday to participate in efforts to stamp out street crime by taking responsibility for their own protection.

"A war against criminals who target people on streets will be very effective if witnesses to the crime take part by reporting it to the police while it is actually taking place," said city police spokesman Sr. Comr. Prasetyo.

So-named "community-based policing", in which the people take part in upholding security, Prasetyo said, would be more effective in protecting people from crime.

"Public participation to boost their own protection is also the cheapest system to provide tougher resistance by society against street crime," said Prasetyo.

Prasetyo recounted an incident last week in which bus passengers of a S62 Metromini bus, serving the Manggarai-Pasar Minggu route, managed to ward off eight people attempting to rob them.

During the incident, the bus passengers initially surrendered to the perpetrators' threat to hand over their valuables. However, to the perpetrators' surprise, one passenger cried out for help. His cry was heard by people nearby, who then rushed onto the bus. They managed to capture three, but one of them was mobbed to death. Five others managed to flee.

"If all passengers and their bus crew dare to join forces and fight, robbers would be shocked and be forced to run away," said Prasetyo.

Meanwhile, Yusuf Suharyanto, a resident of Kramat, Central Jakarta, said challenging armed perpetrators was too risky.

He recalled a traumatic experience in 1999 when a group of high school students robbed passengers on a bus he was riding and he was stabbed in the hand.

"Until now, I still feel traumatized by the experience. I prefer to use a motorcycle instead of using public vehicles owing to the incident," he said.

Prasetyo revealed that the police were implementing concerted efforts to curb street crime.

"We have placed our officers in plainclothes on public transportation vehicles, especially on routes prone to crime, to capture perpetrators red-handed," said Prasetyo.

Police captured last week four robbers who were preying on passengers onboard a P92 Metromini bus plying the Grogol-Ciledug route. Police seized a hammer and an axe from them.

Data from the city police operational and control division reveals that street crimes were the second most common crime in the city in January and February after drug-related crimes. In January, 33 cases of street crime were reported to the police, while in February, 34 cases.

Between January and February this year, police received reports of 4,320 criminal cases, and it managed to solve around 1,500 of those reported cases.

The police also plan to equip all patrol cars with Global Positioning System (GPS), but so far only six have the system. "It takes time to equip all cars with the system," Prasetyo said.

Tips to ward off perpetrators

1. At the first sign of attack, use all means to attract the attention of personnel in patrol cars, such as honking car horn, flicking high beam on and off.

2. Identify the perpetrators and immediately report to the nearest police post.

3. Call 112 police hotline for immediate help.