Rally in peace, please!

From Republika

The number of high school students participating in street rallies seem to be increasing. I agree with the chairman of the East Java chapter of Muhammadiyah that high school students can stage street rallies as long as they keep the rallies peaceful and orderly, refrain from mudslinging and using dirty words and do not damage or burn anything.

Muhammadiyah high school students have taken to the streets because President Abdurrahman Wahid's supporters in East Java have damaged and burned Muhammadiyah's educational facilities. Unfortunately, the rallies held by Muhammadiyah high school students have not received a proper response from law enforcers, Minister of Defense Mahmud M.D. and Coordinating Minister for Social, Political and Security Affairs Bambang Susilo Yudhoyono.

These people have called into question the street rallies by high school students, while in fact these rallies are only the result of the vandalism committed by the President's supporters. Why did the ban on rallies by high school students come about only after Muhammadiyah students took to the streets to protest the vandalism of their educational facilities by Abdurrahman's supporters?

Why did the security personnel take repressive action against rallies against the President, but refrained from taking the same actions against pro-Abdurrahman demonstrators, particularly those in East Java, where these rallies degenerated into mudslinging, vandalism and arson? The military and police did not seriously respond to these rallies until after acts of arson and vandalism had been committed.

As a law abiding citizen, allow me to call on law enforcers, politicians and community figures to respond wisely to these events to avoid further damage to any party.

AGUS S.

Kemayoran, Central Jakarta