Social, religious groups comment on violent rioting

JAKARTA (JP): Social and religious groups are racing to distance themselves from the violent rioting on Saturday which the authorities have blamed on the Democratic People's Party (PRD).

Various groups have condemned the PRD, and demanded that the deposed chief of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI), Megawati Soekarnoputri, also be held responsible for the riots which erupted after the violent takeover of the PDI headquarters by her foe, Soerjadi, and the police.

Seventy-two leaders of 32 organizations yesterday demanded harsh action against anyone found to be responsible for inciting the violence. Earlier in the day, they were briefed on the rioting by the Director-general for Sociopolitical Affairs of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Sutoyo NK, and the Armed Forces' Chief for Sociopolitical Affairs, Lt. Gen. Syarwan Hamid.

The organizations included a youth wing of the ruling Golkar organization, Gakari, and a number of politically well-connected organizations such as the Pemuda Pancasila and the Indonesian National Youths Committee.

Some of the representatives called for a thorough investigation of the riots, and commended the Armed Forces for its handling of the unrest: "We also call on the public to maintain calm and not be easily provoked."

On Monday, 27 influential Moslem organizations declared that the rioting amounted to "insurrection". The organizations included the official Indonesian Council of Ulemas, the Muhammadiyah, the Nahdlatul Ulama and the Indonesian Council for Islamic Propagation.

After a meeting at the Grand Istiqlal Mosque, which was also attended by Armed Forces' spokesman Brig. Gen. Amir Syarifuddin, the chairman of the ulemas council, Hasan Basri, said that the Moslem organizations "condemn the series of brutal and violent actions which damage public and personal transport vehicles, buildings and economic facilities."

The religious leaders were convinced that the rioting was an attempted revolt; masterminded and carried out by radical groups who wanted to revive communism, undermine the government and obstruct the political order established by the New Order administration.

"We support the government and the Armed Forces' stern and swift legal actions against the rioters and the people who masterminded the rioting," the groups said in a statement.

The Indonesian Council of Ulemas also urged the government and the Armed Forces to take harsh legal action against those who, before the rioting, openly "incited and provoked" people through their free-speech forum.

The council was referring to the daily gatherings at the PDI headquarters before the takeover. At the gatherings, the speakers criticized the government and the Armed Forces.

A source from one of the Moslem groups, however, said that they had not prepared the statement themselves: "It (reading out the statement) was a fait accompli."

PRD

Legislators yesterday requested the government to "take harsh action against the People's Democratic Party, and to ban it because it was established in violation of the 1985 Law on Political Parties and Golkar."

The law only recognizes two political parties -- the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and the United Development Party (PPP) -- and Golkar, the legislators said.

In addition, "PRD has conducted political activities which have led to insurrection...so it must be sanctioned and banned," said the chairman of the Golkar faction Moestahid Astari. "I believe that if the government and the Armed Forces have reminded us to beware of communism, it's not just meant to scare people."

Armed Forces representative Suparman Achmad has also condemned the PRD for attempting to rebel against the government through the free-speech forum. "Whoever spoke in the forum should be held responsible, there's no question about that, because they incited people. They provoked people," he was quoted by Antara as saying.

"Communism must never exist in this country, and so the PRD must be banned," he said, adding that the organization's activities reflected efforts to revive the forces of the Old Order administration to undermine the New Order administration, under President Soeharto.

Similar condemnation against Megawati was voiced by State Minister for Women's Roles Mien Sugandhi. Mien, who is also the chief of a mass organization affiliated with Golkar, said that Megawati should be held responsible for holding the free-speech forum.

"We demand that Megawati be held responsible...the forum only resulted in violence and brutality," she was quoted by Antara. "We also support the Armed Forces' stern action to control the situation."

Of the many groups commenting on the political situation, the National Commission of Human Rights was among those who criticized the government's handling of the PDI crisis.

Roekmini Koesoemoastoeti was quoted by Antara as saying that the "violence used in handling the PDI crisis...will breed new problems and even open the opportunity for a resurgence of the (now-outlawed) Indonesian Communist Party."

"Violence is not a good solution...it only incites the people who are already oppressed and frustrated. When (violence) is wide-spread like this, who will take responsibility?" she said.

She also said the commission had established a team to investigate whether there were human rights abuses in the riots which erupted after the forced takeover of the PDI headquarters.

A group of Megawati's lawyers requested that they be included in the rights commission's fact-finding team. Bambang Widjojanto, one of Megawati's lawyers, said he and his colleagues had received reports about people who had died at the hands of the military when it quelled the rioting. "We've been verifying the reports with the commission," he said.

Bambang said the team will ask Megawati to formally lodge a protest with the military police against the involvement of soldiers in the forced takeover of the party's headquarters.

"The attack against the headquarters was a criminal action. It would be very strange if there's no action taken against the attackers," he said.

Separately, Megawati loyalist Laksamana Sukardi was quoted by AFP as saying yesterday that 158 members of PDI were still missing after Saturday's violent takeover.

The 158 missing "are still being sought by their families. We don't know what has happened to them, and we're worried," said Laksamana.

Laksamana said that central Jakarta's military and police hospitals have refused to provide information on their patients to the PDI. Diplomats and journalists on Monday were also denied access to these hospitals, the news agency said. (team)