Surabaya intercity bus drivers go on strike

SURABAYA (JP): Haunted by the vandalism of angry mobs who have set fire to several buses, hundreds of intercity bus drivers at the Purabaya terminal went on strike here on Monday demanding that police guarantee their security.

The strike has seemingly crippled bus transportation to and from Surabaya.

Reports state that almost all large intercity bus terminals in East Java were simultaneously hit by strike actions.

Only several buses at the Purabaya bus terminal were willing to operate, after local police posted two officers on each bus.

The drivers said that at least seven buses had been incinerated by street mobs or local residents, following accidents occurring since the Idul Fitri holiday on Dec. 27.

They cited incidents in Probolinggo, Sidoardjo and other towns involving Akas, Sumber Kentjana, Restu, Tentrem, Salimas and Moedah buses.

People usually blame bus drivers if collisions or other traffic accidents involving intercity buses occur. They contend that everybody witnesses intercity buses speeding on the roads and ignoring other motorists, even pedestrians.

The Purabaya intercity bus terminal in Bungurasih, Surabaya, claimed to be biggest in Southeast Asia, serves as an interchange for at least 1,500 buses, transporting more than 40,000 passengers every day.

The drivers' strike has left thousands of passengers, destined for other cities in Central Java and East Java, stranded at the terminal.

Hundreds of them have decided to hitchhike, stopping empty trucks at the gate of the Waru toll road.

The intercity bus drivers' strike was followed by similar action from drivers of local transport vehicles in Surabaya, as an expression of solidarity.

Chairman of East Java's chapter of the Association of Land Transportation Owners (Organda) Mustafa said after negotiations with police, that Organda members would not operate their buses until they received a security guarantee.

"We don't want to risk our drivers and buses. We don't want to speculate on such a matter," he said.

Separately some drivers said the street brutality was still terrifying them.

"Let's see tomorrow. If there is a security guarantee, we will go," Hartono, driver of an Akas bus said, adding that he had to sacrifice his Rp 30,000 daily income because of the strike.

Meanwhile, approximately 600 police officers, including around 400 Mobile Brigade troops, were deployed to avert possible chaos during the drivers' strike.

"I have been ordered (by the East Java Police chief) to contact all police precincts in the province to prevent any incidents during and after the strike," chief of the East Java Police operational and control center Sr. Comr. SW Sabur was quoted by Antara as saying on Monday.

He said that the Akas bus company had asked him to make two officers available to escort each vehicle during operation in the future.

Many drivers left their buses at the garage in Waru, east of Surabaya.

"Marine and Army personnel have expressed their willingness to assist police officers posted at the Purabaya bus terminal in the event of an emergency," said Sabur. (nur/sur)