Police detain ten students in clash near Soeharto's house
Police detain ten students in clash near Soeharto's house
JAKARTA (JP): A fierce clash between riot police and anti-
Soeharto student protesters erupted again near the residence of
the former president on Thursday evening after the students
incited the conflict by pelting stones and Molotov cocktails
toward the law enforcers.
No fatalities were reported. The angry students stopped an
official military sedan on nearby Jl. Diponegoro, allowed the
driver, Lesman Simatupang, to flee and then set the Mitsubishi
Gallant car on fire.
Menteng subprecinct police chief Asst. Supt. Paulus Waterpauw
said the students hijacked the car on Jl. Sudirman before they
brought it to the crowd and burned it.
Driver Lesman took refuge at the Menteng subprecinct office.
City police spokesman Supt. M. Nur Usman disclosed that his
men have detained at least 10 protesters, pending further
investigations to identify the provocatuers who provoked the
clash.
"We are yet to determine if all those arrested are student
demonstrators. But we'll find out from them who actually
initiated the clash," he told The Jakarta Post.
According to witnesses, police and the students, the clash
started at about 4:30 p.m. after the hundreds of students failed
to pass through a police cordon on Jl.Teuku Umar to reach
Soeharto's residence.
For unclear reasons, the students then started to hurl stones
and molotov cocktails at the officers.
The protesters, claiming to be students from several
universities in Jakarta, were demanding that Soeharto undergo a
people's trial as they were unsatisfied with the current trial
conducted by the government.
A student coordinator Mario Pasaribu told the Post that they
will stage another rally next Thursday.
"We want the people to decide the appropriate punishment for
Soeharto, not the President," he said.
According to officer Nur, the demonstrators spontaneously
threw rocks and Molotov cocktails toward the policemen.
We believe there was provocateurs among the crowd," he
explained.
The 10 student demonstrators could be charged under Law
No.9/1998 on freedom of speech in a public place because they had
staged a rally without police permission. Under the law,
violators can be imprisoned for a year.
"Moreover, they attacked the law enforcers and caused public
disorder," he said.
The spokesman affirmed that a company of policemen were on
standby at Jl. Suwiryo to block demonstrators who were demanding
to be let through to reach former president Soeharto's residence
on Jl. Cendana, about 100 meters from the scene.
The police deployed four companies into the area, guarding all
entries into Jl. Cendana.
By late Thursday, some students were still attacking the
authorities but many had already dispersed.(bby/dja)