Residents set fire to rubber factory, 53 arrested

Residents set fire to rubber factory, 53 arrested

Suherdjoko, The Jakarta Post, Pati, Central Java

Local police officers have detained 53 latex tappers from
Karangsari subdistrict in Pati after they were caught on Tuesday
in a destructive rampage at the rubber processing company PT
Rumpun Sari Antan.

As of Wednesday, the police were still questioning them at the
Pati Police station, located some 75 kilometer south of Semarang.

The incident began on Tuesday morning, when dozens of
Karangsari residents flocked to an area in their subdistrict,
where a rubber processing factory belonging to PT Rumpun Sari
Antan is located. The rubber factory is about 50 kilometers away
from the main town of Pati.

The residents, most of whom worked for the company to tap
latex at its rubber plantation in their subdistrict, descended on
the company's factory to demand a 50 percent share from each
liter of latex tapped from the plantation.

But, as they arrived at the gate of the factory, several PT
Rumpun Sari Antan employees quickly locked the gate, preventing
the group from entering the factory's compound.

The move incited anger among the residents, so they began to
destroy the gate. After finally knocking it down, the angry latex
tappers proceeded to burn two warehouses, a truck, a security
post and four other small buildings within the compound.

Police personnel arrived at the scene afterwards, and they
immediately arrested 39 suspected perpetrators on the spot.
Fourteen others were arrested later in the evening.

The arrests have stirred anger among other residents of the
Karangsari subdistrict. On Wednesday morning, hundreds of the
latex tappers' relatives and neighbors flocked to the Pati police
headquarters to demand the release of their fellow residents.

Kusno Bashori, the subdistrict chief of Karangsari, was among
those who demanded the release of the group.

In response to the demand, Comr. Untung Slamet, the deputy
Pati police chief, said that his men were still investigating the
incident.

"If they are not guilty, then we will set them free," Untung
told Kusno and the others.

Kusno said that the workers had been demanding a 50 percent
take for three years. The workers have been paid on a per day
basis rather than the amount of latex collected. The amount of
money paid each day was not made clear.

The company has never accommodated their demand for the change
in remuneration, provoking anger among the residents, Kusno said.
He added that the anger came to a head on Tuesday, resulting in
the rampage. The management of the company was not available for
comment on Wednesday.