Students stage protests to demand ABRI quit politics
Students stage protests to demand ABRI quit politics
JAKARTA (JP): Thousands of students across Java greeted the
Armed Forces' (ABRI) 53rd anniversary on Monday with street
demonstrations to demand the military quit the country's
political stage.
They insisted ABRI do away with its dwifungsi (dual role)
doctrine "right away", referring to the military's 40-year-old
concept that justifies its involvement in socio-political affairs
along with its national defense role.
The protests in Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Surabaya, Semarang and
Bogor all proceeded smoothly. No clashes or arrests were
reported, although the rallies were closely watched by security
forces.
In Jakarta, some 300 students from various universities
converged at the front gate of the House of Representatives on
Jl. Gatot Subroto, Central Jakarta. They carried banners, posters
and staged anti-military speeches.
Over 100 police officers and soldiers observed the rally but
did not intervene. Some were even seen joking with students who,
in return, offered bottled water to the officers.
Messages against ABRI's dual role were harsh despite the
seemingly good relations with the security personnel on hand.
"Reject Militarism", said one large red banner.
Others read: "People Unite, Revoke ABRI's Dual Function" and
"Civilian postings are for civilians, not for ABRI".
A poster reading "Go Back to Your Barracks" was carried by a
group calling itself the People's Coalition for Anti-Dual
Function Strategy, whose acronym, Kostrad, is also that of the
Army's crack Strategic Reserves Command.
Pande Trimayuni, a fourth-year political science student of
the University of Indonesia, said the demonstration included East
Timorese youth activists of the Timor Leste group.
Another protest in Jakarta by some 60 young executives and
artists was held near the city's busy traffic circle in front of
Hotel Indonesia in Central Jakarta. Passersby stopped to watch
the protester's street theater production depicting a figure
dressed in an Army uniform surrounded by skull-like forms.
The group's posters and banners read: "The barracks are more
honorable than the political stage", "Best for the People, Best
for ABRI" and "Let Us Leave Behind Dwi-fungsi".
A huge banner spanning five meters wide read "Happy Birthday
ABRI -- Stop Your Domination." The protesters dispersed after
staging a series of poetry readings and orations.
In Bogor, some 50 Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB)
students raised similar demands.
They named their group the People's Anti-Militarism Coalition,
or Koramil, which is also the acronym for the military's lowest
command unit. "Revoke ABRI's Dual Role", "Lower Basic Essential
Prices" and "People Unite, Scrap ABRI's Dwifungsi" were among
messages on their posters carried in the march from their campus
in Baranangsiang to the city's legislature.
Scores of security personnel closely watched the rally.
Yogyakarta and Surabaya were the scenes of the day's largest
protests.
In Yogyakarta, a town famed for its student population, at
least seven university campuses were the sites of separate
demonstrations. As many as 1,000 students gathered near Gadjah
Mada University's traffic circle.
In Surabaya, 1,000 students of 19 universities also cried out
similar demands in a joint street protest.
In Semarang, some 70 students grouped in the Semarang Youth
Group staged a protest in front of the Semarang Military Command.
(23/44/har/aan/emf/25)