Thousands attend peaceful PDI rally
JAKARTA (JP): Thousands of people attended a peaceful rally at Megawati Soekarnoputri's home in Kebagusan, South Jakarta, yesterday to commemorate the second anniversary of the forced takeover of the Indonesian Democratic Party's (PDI) headquarters.
Clad in predominantly red, the party's colors, the Megawati loyalists claimed to have traveled from throughout Java, Sumatra and even Sulawesi.
The much-anticipated event, held under the watchful eye of police officers, proceeded in an orderly fashion with traffic congestion being the only real problem.
Many of those who came from out of town had assembled the night before. By midday organizers claimed the crowd had swelled to about 30,000.
People were seen almost everywhere; many sat on blue mattresses under tents in the garden as thousands of others stood outside the house, listening to the proceedings relayed via large loudspeakers.
On the main streets leading to Megawati's house, thousands more lined up as it became difficult to even near the area.
Those who came were from all walks of life.
A 47-year-old mother, Rohani, told The Jakarta Post that she and about 150 of her friends chartered a minivan from Semarang, Central Java.
When asked why she had traveled so far, Rohani simply replied: "Because I have always and will always be loyal to Ibu Mega".
The ceremony began at 11 a.m. with prayers and a poetry recital followed by speeches from event organizer Roy Janis, Nahdlatul Ulama representative Said Agil Siraj, government critic Lt. Gen. (ret.) Kemal Idris and Megawati's lawyer, R.O. Tambunan.
All exclaimed that Megawati was the legitimate leader of PDI and called for the government to reveal the truth behind the bloody takeover of the party's office.
Authorities had banned Megawati's initial plan to hold a commemoration at the Istora Senayan Stadium. Organizers then decided to move the commemoration to Megawati's house.
Megawati was ousted from the PDI chair by Soerjadi in a government-backed congress in June 1996.
Then on July 27, 1996 her loyalists were forced from the PDI headquarters on Jl. Diponegoro, Central Jakarta. The incident sparked a major riot which also spread to surrounding areas.
Many believe the government engineered the takeover of the headquarters.
The National Commission on Human Rights said at least five people were killed in the incident and 23 others are still classified as missing.
Megawati invoked memories of those who died in the incident in her address. She said that they were present yesterday in spirit.
"The truth cannot be hidden and will finally prevail," Megawati, the daughter of the country's first president Sukarno, told her cheering supporters.
She asserted that the July 27 incident will forever be part of the nation's history and called on the government to follow up the human rights commission's recommendation to search for those still missing.
Megawati also lashed out at the government for imposing restrictions on the commemoration.
Meanwhile on Jl. Diponegoro, the PDI headquarters which has remained vacant since the attack two years ago, hundreds of Megawati supporters gathered on the street to pray and lay wreaths in front of the building.
The crowd dispersed peacefully in the afternoon after Jacob Nuwa Wea, the head of the rally organizing committee, persuaded them to leave.
Sacred event
Minister of Home Affairs Syarwan Hamid maintained yesterday that the July 27 incident was an internal matter between Soerjadi and Megawati supporters.
"I am continuously asked about the July incident as if it was a sacred event. I do not want to answer any more questions, because it has become unproportional," Syarwan, who was then the Armed Forces chief of sociopolitical affairs, told reporters after meeting President B.J. Habibie at the Bina Graha presidential office.
Megawati supporters have claimed that Syarwan and the then Armed Forces commander Gen. (ret) Feisal Tanjung, who is now coordinating minister for political and security affairs, were involved in the ouster of Megawati.
Jakarta was generally quiet yesterday as people, with the May riots fresh in their minds, were gripped with unease.
Traffic was much lighter than usual as the public were aware of the potential risk of violence.
Several companies even asked their employees not to go to work yesterday. A female employee of a private property firm on Jl. Sudirman said employees had been told not to go to work.
Business districts such as Glodok and Mangga Dua in North Jakarta were also quiet with many shops closed.
Some schools gave students a half day.
The military said last week that it would deploy 9,000 personnel to back up the police force in securing the city. Six hundred were deployed in Central Jakarta alone. (byg/ivy/jun/prb/edt)