Surabaya students target local television stations

Surabaya students target local television stations

SURABAYA (JP): Hundreds of students marched yesterday
afternoon to the private SCTV television station here demanding
their demonstration for reform be broadcast and refused to budge
until the station managers yielded.

Traveling in two big buses and other personal vehicles, the
students first went to the state-owned TVRI television station
but were prevented from entering. They then went to SCTV, which
is located nearby in the Darmo Permai housing complex.

While several of their leaders negotiated with station manager
Ris Anggono, the other students from, among others, Petra
Christian University, Wijaya Kusuma University and Surabaya
Teachers' Training Institute, held a free-speech forum under the
watchful eyes of security personnel.

One of the students, Sapardi, said their demand to be
broadcast was meant to help disseminate the students' call for
total reform.

The students defined reform as including the revocation of the
five laws that govern the country's political system, and
revision of the Armed Forces' dual function that enables the
military to be not only security forces but also a political
player.

They also demanded the revocation of the subversion law, the
release of political prisoners, general elections, the lowering
of prices of essential goods, and an investigation into alleged
corruption by officials.

SCTV finally agreed to air the student demonstration on its 6
p.m. news bulletin yesterday.

The students' move echoed that of another group of student
protesters who last month took over the RRI radio station and
broadcast a protest against former president Soeharto.

Yesterday's demonstration called for the convening of a
special session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) to
elect a new president and for Soeharto to be tried for
corruption.

The same demands were made by another group of students who
staged a rally at the East Java provincial legislative council.
They demanded the local legislators endorse their call for the
MPR special session.

In Medan, the capital of North Sumatra, 200 students from the
Medan Teacher Training Institute continued with their
demonstrations.

They marched to the provincial police headquarters and
demanded to meet police chief Brig. Gen. Sutyono to discuss the
alleged sexual harassment committed by his men toward female
student protesters last month.

The students failed to meet with the police chief.

Officials

Also yesterday, demonstrations were held by students and other
groups against certain officials they considered to be corrupt.

At the Ministry of Education and Culture office, staff members
demanded the resignation of Director for Vocational Senior High
Schools Jorlin Pakpahan for allegedly "cultivating practices of
corruption, collusion and nepotism" at the ministry.

Antara reported that yesterday's was the second protest held
by the same group of civil servants; the first was held last week
during the transfer of duty from outgoing minister Wiranto
Arismunandar to Juwono Sudarsono.

Then, the staff members demanded that the new minister fight
the rampant corruption and collusion prevalent in the education
ministry.

In Padang, the capital of West Sumatra, 25 students continued
their sit-in at the provincial legislative council and claimed
they would not budge until State Minister of Agrarian Affairs
Hasan Basri Durin resigned because of alleged corruption.

Yesterday's was the students' fifth day at the complex.
Supporters have been supplying the student protesters with food.

Basri Durin is the former West Sumatra governor.

Intervention

Also yesterday, two groups of students demonstrated in
Surabaya and Jakarta against what they called the United States'
meddling in Indonesia's internal affairs. Seventy Jakartan
students rallied outside the U.S. Embassy in Central Jakarta,
while 200 colleagues marched to the U.S. consulate on Jl. Dr.
Soetomo in the East Java capital.

Both demonstrations passed without incident after delegations
were received.

In Jakarta, protesters calling themselves the Defenders Front
for National Sovereignty criticized U.S. aid to local Indonesian
groups.

"We reject all types of American intervention and condemn
those sons and daughters of the nation who have already become
the stooges of America," the group said in a statement.

The Surabaya protest, by the unknown Indonesian Saviors Forum,
also criticized the reported presence of a number of U.S. naval
ships close to Indonesia during last month's political turmoil
and violence. (nur/21/swe)