Police break up hunger strike, arrest 41

Police break up hunger strike, arrest 41

JAKARTA (JP): Police broke up a hunger strike at the
Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) compound yesterday and
arrested 41 activists protesting the recent ban of three major
weekly magazines.

Among the detainees are two activists who intended to go on a
hunger strike and five women. The strike was meant to push the
government into reversing the ban against the DeTIK, Tempo and
Editor magazines, which were closed down late last month.

Witnesses said the police entered the foundation's Central
Jakarta compound late in the afternoon when the activists
were beginning their strike.

Two truckloads of police officers, led by chief of the Central
Jakarta Police Precinct Lt. Col. Dadang Garnida, arrived on the
scene and asked the protesters to disperse in order to avoid
"creating public unrest", according to eyewitnesses. A truck
laden with troops later joined the police.

YLBHI officials rejected the police's request on the grounds
that the activity was being held inside the foundation's own
compound.

The activists defied the order and then ignored the 20-minute
grace period they were given to disband. Instead they held a
silent protest by sitting on the ground and holding hands until
the police forcefully dispersed them. One activist was reportedly
beaten by police officers for pointing at them and shouting "long
live the police."

A source at the Central Jakarta Police Precinct confirmed the
arrests and told The Jakarta Post last night that 25 of the
detainees had been sent to City Police Headquarters.

Meanwhile, a group calling itself the Women's Group for Press
Freedom, together with DeTIK's editor-in-chief Eros Djarot and
noted poet W.S. Rendra separately visited factions in the House
to deplore the ban and the use of force by the military against a
group of demonstrators on June 27.

The factions representing the ruling Golkar grouping, the
Armed Forces (ABRI) and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI)
pledged to study their demands in order to formulate follow-up
actions.

Oversight

Eros told members of the Golkar faction, which supports the
June 21 ban, that the government never responded to his request
regarding the changes required in the terms of the magazine's
publishing license -- an "oversight" which led to the
publication's closure. Instead of banning the magazine, Eros
said, the government should have invited the magazine in for a
dialog.

He also asked the faction to support calls for a judicial
review of regulations considered harmful to the press.

Tempo lost its publishing license for its editorial content
while DeTIK and Editor lost theirs because their operations
violated the terms of their publishing licenses. The government
said that the magazines had ignored its repeated warnings.

In the meeting with the ABRI faction, the women's group, which
included prominent figures such as Zumrotin K, Julia Suryakusuma
and Wardah Hafidz, reached an agreement with the legislators who
promised to mediate in order to allow the women to meet with the
City Military Commander Maj. Gen. Hendropriyono.

It was revealed during the meeting that officers from the City
Military Command had been deployed to quell the June 27 protest.

The women, who urged the faction to investigate the beatings
that reportedly occurred during the incident, claimed that at
least five protesters were badly injured by officers who used
batons to attack them.

In the meeting with the ABRI and PDI factions, Rendra
expressed his disappointment with the implementation of several
regulations which restrict the freedom of speech.

Noted lawyer and human rights activist Adnan Buyung Nasution,
who also attended the meeting, questioned the government's
statement which said that any person not satisfied with the ban
could file suit at the Administrative Court.

"Why should the government 'kill' them (the magazines) and
then tell them they can file suit?" he asked.

Another noted lawyer and human rights advocate, Luhut M.P.
Pangaribuan, challenged both factions to hand the Indonesian
Legal Aid Institute, of which he and Buyung Nasution are
executives, a letter of attorney to file a request for a judicial
review.

Both factions said they would think it over. Two legislators
of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), however, said they
would sign such a letter in their private capacities. (par/rah/jsk)