Police gaffe

Police wrongfully raided two warehouses, containing hundreds of tons of rice on Friday, as part of stepped-up efforts against the hoarding of rice and kerosene following the government's planned price increases.

The first raid took place at a warehouse located on Jl. Gresik, Nusantara bonded zone, North Jakarta, that was the suspected site of 200 tons of hoarded rice.

A guard at the warehouse, which belonged to PT Indo Grand Perkasa, said that the rice had been imported from Vietnam. However, the police believed that the rice came from Indonesia.

Later in the day, a unit of the detective squad raided another warehouse, this one containing 2,700 tons of rice belonging to World Vision, an international non-governmental organization (NGO).

The rice sacks, with labels reading "USA ... not for sale," were apparently intended as humanitarian assistance for poor people in Indonesia.

The police have recently been intensifying their raids on warehouses all around Jakarta which are believed to be the location for hoarded rice and fuel.

There has been a dwindling availability of kerosene, and the price of rice is soaring following the government's plan to increase fuel prices.

According to the police, rice hoarding as stipulated in Law No.5/1999, is punishable by a maximum of six months in prison, and a fine of Rp 25 billion. --JP