Students ask Megawati to resign

Students ask Megawati to resign

SURABAYA: Some 100 activists from several East Java branches of the Indonesian Muslim Students Movement took to the streets on Thursday to demand that President Megawati Soekarnoputri and Vice President Hamzah Haz resign over their failed economic recovery program.

They marched from the Sunan Ampel Institute of Islamic Studies to the provincial legislature, some 12 kilometers away.

During the march, the activists waved posters and banners in a show of support for constitutional amendments and in opposition to Megawati's style of governing.

In a statement, the students said Megawati's government had failed to respond to the people's demands for better law enforcement, a restructuring of the political system and the protection of human rights.

The protesters also accused the government of selling state assets cheaply and relying too heavily on foreign donors.

"We call on the People's Consultative Assembly now meeting for its Annual Session to remove Megawati and Hamzah," rally coordinator Pitono said. -- JP