Police top brass fired after protest turns ugly
Police top brass fired after protest turns ugly
Andi Hajramurni, Makassar, South Sulawesi
At least 61 students sustained serious injuries here on Saturday
after the police stormed their campus following a protest against
the rearrest of a controversial Muslim cleric.
Police said they stormed the Indonesian Muslim University
(UMI) campus to rescue a police officer who had been being taken
hostage by the students. It took them about 10 minutes to rescue
the policemen, during which they fired warning shots and beat up
students. One student was shot in the thigh while another's head
was grazed by a bullet.
Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, 66, was rearrested on Friday, moments
after being released from a Jakarta prison after serving an 18-
month jail term for immigration-related offenses. Police claim
they have new evidence that implicates the cleric in a string of
terror attacks in the country between 1999 and 2002. A suspect
can be detained up to six months under the new Antiterrorism Law.
National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar promptly fired three
Makassar Police chiefs after the university incident.
"They have been removed from their positions because the
brutality of their men is their responsibility," South Sulawesi
Police chief Insp. Gen. Jusuf Manggabarani said, "Their actions
in handling the student rally did not follow proper procedure."
Jusuf identified the officers as Makassar Police chief Sr.
Comr. Jose Rizal Effendi, East Makassar Police chief Adj. Sr.
Comr. Eko Suprianto and Panakukang Police chief Adj. Comr. Namora
Simanjuntak. Twenty-one policemen involved in the incident are
being questioned.
Jusuf disclosed that the three police officers had been
removed during his visit to injured students in Bhayangkara
Police Hospital.
"The police chief (Da'i Bachtiar) immediately ordered me to
remove the officers in charge because the brutality of their men
is their responsibility," he said.
An earlier clash broke out following a rally held by students
in front of the local General Elections Commission (KPUD) office
to protest against two retired senior military officers who are
running for president.
Former top security minister Gen. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and
former military chief Gen. Wiranto have emerged as leading
contenders in the July 5 presidential election.
During the rally, the students tried to burn a military
uniform, but the police beat them and then dispersed them before
they could do so. At least 26 students were arrested in the
rally.
Upon learning that fellow students had been arrested, the
group of students rallying against the arrest of the Muslim
cleric demanded their release.
The rally, however, turned ugly when the students dragged
traffic police officer First Brig. Sudirman onto the campus and
held him hostage.
Policemen reacted by raiding the campus, charging up to the
third-floor classrooms. They kicked and beat students with their
firearms and sticks. Dozens of students were forced to undress
and duckwalk downstairs.
Most of the students suffered from head injuries and were
covered in blood.
Some junior students who were not involved in the rally were
also beaten even though they claimed ignorance about the hostage-
taking and asked for mercy from the angry policemen.
The police officers also yelled at and beat lecturers when
they protected the students and tried to reason with the police.
Moments before he was replaced, Makassar Police chief Sr. Comr
Jose Rizal Effendi said his men had followed police procedure
when storming the campus.
"We entered the campus to release a fellow officer taken
hostage by the students but they resisted us. We had no other
option," he said.