Riot rocks Lombok after bus station closure

JAKARTA (JP): About two hundred public van drivers ran amok in the small West Nusa Tenggara town of Praya in Central Lombok yesterday morning, attacking two bus stations and a government office, the military said.

Armed Forces spokesman Brig. Gen. Slamet Supriadi said here last night the drivers went on the rampage in protest over the closing of an old bus station before the new one was finished.

Praya is 35 kilometers southwest of the province's capital, Mataram.

"There were no casualties or arrests. Life has returned to normal out there thanks to the quick handling of the riots by security authorities," Slamet told The Jakarta Post.

He ruled out any political motive behind the riot, the first since security authorities quelled an ethnic clash in West Kalimantan just recently.

"There was a misunderstanding between the local government and the group of public transport drivers," Slamet said.

The Central Lombok authorities had closed the old terminal before the new terminal was ready to operate, said Slamet.

The drivers also protested last week because the new terminal is outside the town. The old one was close to the downtown market, he said.

The drivers claimed their incomes were reduced because people were reluctant to use the new terminal.

Antara reported that the mob stoned Regent Ircham's office on Jl. Gajah Mada after vandalizing the old terminal's buildings. A shop and the house of the new terminal's developer were also attacked.

Slamet said the protesters smashed window panes and two garden lamps when they mobbed the regent's office. "They attacked the government building just because it was near the old terminal."

Military and police troops from the province's capital were deployed to help local authorities restore order.

An agreement was reached late yesterday between the local authorities and the drivers to reopen the old terminal pending the completion of the new terminal, said Slamet.

Neither local military nor top police officers in Lombok could be reached for comment.

An officer on duty at the Central Lombok military office said his commander was out on night patrol with other police and local government officials. (amd)