Students to stage rally to observe Trisakti shooting

JAKARTA (JP): Student groups from several universities disclosed on Tuesday that they plan to mobilize thousands of students on May 12 to join a mammoth rally for the first anniversary of the Trisakti University shooting incident in which four students died.

Adian from the City Forum -- a loose alliance of 30 university student groups throughout Jakarta -- said the group expected to mobilize 4,000 to 5,000 students, but refused to reveal details of the route and site of the rally.

"We will discuss the details in a meeting soon," he said.

Representatives of other groups, including the Students Front for Reform and Democracy (Famred), Communication Forum for Jakarta Student Senates (FKSMJ) and Trisakti Student Family (Kamtri), said separately that their groups would also join the rally.

However, details of their participation were still being discussed among their groups' board members, they said.

Forum Besar, another major student association, is apparently the most well prepared group to conduct street rallies regarding commemoration of the tragedy.

The group expects to mobilize another 6,000 students from various universities here, said Anton, an activist of the group.

He said the group would start the rally by bus from the ABA- ABI College campus on Jl. Matraman Raya in East Jakarta and end at either House of Representatives/People's Consultative Assembly (DPR/MPR) building or outside state run television station TVRI.

"About 80 percent of the group executives have agreed to the plan," he said.

The Trisakti tragedy erupted on May 12 last year when four Trisakti students were shot dead, allegedly by Armed Forces members.

The shooting incident sparked major riots which forced president Soeharto, who had been in power for 32 years, to quit on May 21.

Meanwhile, the presidium of Trisakti students said on Tuesday that they would not join the street rally, but would instead hold campus activities within the university complex in Grogol, West Jakarta.

The student group expects to present, among other things, a free-speech forum and mass prayers, said Sarwinda Pitantri, an activist of the student group.

"We do not plan to hold a street rally since we worry about causing possible unrest," she said, adding that many provocateurs were on the streets these days to stir up unrest.

Meanwhile, city police spokesman Lt. Col. Zainuri Lubis announced that the police warmly welcomed the student rally as long as it did not breach prevailing laws.

"The students have to obey Law No.9/1998 on freedom of speech before they conduct the rally," said

He also warned the students to be vigilant against the possibility of the rally being exploited by irresponsible parties.

"Be careful of certain parties intending to foil the general election on June 7," he said. (01)