Sutiyoso to be protested over role in July 27 incident
Sutiyoso to be protested over role in July 27 incident
JAKARTA (JP): At least 5,000 people plan to take to the
streets here on Monday, in protest against the alleged
involvement of Governor Sutiyoso in the violent takeover of the
Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) headquarters here on July 27,
1996, a coordinator of a protest group said on Sunday.
Sutiyoso was the Jakarta military commander at the time.
M. Roco Sinaga of the Pro-Reform Jakarta People (MPR Jakarta)
said that Sutiyoso was definitely involved in the violent
takeover.
"We plan to start the protest at 11 a.m., starting from City
Hall and the City Council and ending at the Hotel Indonesia
traffic circle," Roco said in a statement made available to The
Jakarta Post.
In the rioting that ensued after the violent takeover of the
party headquarters, at least -- according to the official data --
two people were killed and 26 others injured, leaving 22
buildings badly damaged, including seven banks and an agriculture
ministry building. Some 91 vehicles, including 5 buses and two
motorcycles were burned.
However, there were varying accounts of fatalities, with some
sources saying the number ranged from between three to 46 in the
attack.
Attack
Separately, hundreds of angry residents on Friday night
attacked a rented house used as a massage parlor and a food stall
used for prostitution on Jl. Benda Raya in Pegadungan, West
Jakarta.
No fatalities or injuries were recorded but the incident
forced Jakarta Police chief Maj. Gen. Noegroho Djajoesman, West
Jakarta Police chief Lt. Col. Adjie Rustam Ramdja and chief of
the local Kalideres Police subprecinct Maj. Sudirman to inspect
the site.
Officers are still counting the losses. The owner of the
rented house, Agus Salim, 52, and the food stall, Saman, 51, were
immediately brought in for questioning at the Kalideres Police
precinct.
According to Adjie, Agus's rented house was leased by pimps
who offered sex services to customers visiting the massage
parlor.
"The prostitutes not only gave massages, but also extra
services for less than Rp 125,000 per client," the officer told
reporters.
The mob which carried out the act of vandalism were local
Kamal residents and from the nearby Tangerang area.
"They stormed the area starting from 10:30 p.m. on Friday,"
Adjie said.
The locals, he said, had known about the real business of both
the massage parlor and food stall for quite a long time.
"When the residents attacked, the parlor was closed. But the
women who worked at the parlor were still conducting their
business outside.
Residents became very angry, since the holy month of Ramadhan
is still ongoing," Adjie said. (ylt)