Thousands protest outside DPR complex
JAKARTA (JP): Thousands of activists and students demonstrated at the House of Representatives/People's Consultative Assembly complex yesterday, loudly demanding that the assembly convene an extraordinary session and arrange a general election.
The protesters also demanded that former president Soeharto be tried for alleged corruption, and that his successor, President B.J. Habibie, resign.
Arriving in droves, the 2,500 protesters demanded to see House Speaker Harmoko but were barred from entering by 1,000 military and police officers stationed inside the complex.
Undeterred the activists began a demonstration in front of the compound which caused heavy congestion on Jl. Gatot Subroto.
The students, calling themselves the Greater Jakarta Forum of Students, arrived outside the house building in 30 buses, which they used to tour the city when they had finished demonstrating.
Among the ranks of the protesters were 200 supporters of leading opposition figure Megawati Soekarnoputri. They demanded that a general election be held to recruit new House members because the current legislative body had been "elected unconstitutionally."
The group cited the way in which Soeharto's administration had excluded members of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) loyal to Megawati from last year's general election.
The government only recognizes the PDI grouping chaired by Megawati's rival, Soerjadi. Megawati was ousted as the party's leader in a government-sponsored congress in Medan, North Sumatra, in 1996.
A group called Barisan Merah Putih and 70 activists from the Indonesian Women's Coalition for Justice and Democracy also joined the rally. The women were lead by lawyer Nursyahbani Katjasungkana and Women's Solidarity chairwoman Taty Krisnawaty.
Before going to the House, the female activists staged a rally in front of the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) office on Jl. Imam Bonjol in Central Jakarta, and demanded that more money be allocated to provide food for the people.
"The Indonesian Women's Coalition for Justice and Democracy is concerned that the Habibie government has not yet announced any clear plans to ensure food security for the people," coalition member Julia I. Suryakusuma read out in a statement.
The coalition said that a clean government must be formed in the shortest possible time thorough a democratic process.
They also demanded that the government reclaim state wealth which they said had been "looted" by Soeharto, his family, cronies and corrupt government officials.
Quicker
Also demonstrating at the House yesterday was a 40-strong delegation from the Bandung Reform Movement (GRB), which arrived earlier in the day and was therefore allowed to enter the compound. They met with members of Golkar, the Armed Forces (ABRI), the United Development Party (PPP) and the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) factions, and demanded that the implementation of economic reform be sped up.
"People need food. They do not need politics. So we call for a national consensus to gain a better solution for everyone," Koen Soekarno, the group representative told The Jakarta Post yesterday.
Budi Hardjono from the PDI faction told the group that they should present their ideas to President Habibie himself. "As far as I know, there has never yet been any pro-reform group which has asked for a national consensus in a bid to solve the crisis facing the nation," Budi said.
Separately, 1,500 students in Medan staged a sit-in protest at the North Sumatra Police Headquarters. They refused to budge until provincial police chief Brig. Gen. Sutyono heard their outrage over the alleged sexual assault of female students by police officers during recent demonstrations.
The students unfurled banners and waved posters, including one which read: "Respect women because your mothers too are women."
A total of 26 female students reported they had been verbally abused and sexually assaulted by officers when they left a demonstration at Medan Teachers' Training College on May 4. Their rector, Darmono, has filed a formal complaint with the police, the Ministry of Education and Culture, and the National Commission on Human Rights.
The Mitra Perempuan Women's Crisis Center, led by lawyer Rita Serena Kolibonso, reported similar harassment of female students at the May 12 demonstration at Trisakti University, Jakarta. During the riots that followed, many women of Chinese origin were forced to strip by rioters and some were raped in front of many people, she said. (ivy/21/edt/swe)