Police have tougher job ahead

Police have tougher job ahead

On its 53rd birthday, the National Police (Polri) is facing
challenges that are even tougher than it has ever faced before.
Now, Polri will not only have to face common criminals, but it
must also face political criminals. With the coming of the reform
era, there seems to be an opinion in the public that Polri is an
arm of the New Order. Polri's efforts to rid this country of
chaos and anarchy are seen by some people as inhumane. Recently,
Polri's action against unruly People's Democratic Party
(PRD) demonstrators in front of the General Elections Commission
(KPU) headquarters received negative comments from some analysts
in newspapers or even on television. Is there any action taken by
Polri that will satisfy all these analysts?

All of us must remember that the police are people like us.
Sometimes they make mistakes but as human beings they also want
the best for the nation. Destructive action by some demonstrators
must be dealt with the proper action. Have we learned anything
from the May 1998 riots, a time when people disregarded the law
and the police were helpless to handle the problem?

What do these analysts have in mind for our country's law
enforcers? My prayer goes out to our National Police. Although
sometimes national opinion might not be on their side, they have
tried hard to do their job well. I hope with its 53rd birthday,
Polri will improve its services to the people of Indonesia, with
the help of the people of Indonesia.

ISACH WAHYU

ZULFIKAR KARMIADJI

Tangerang, West Java