Three journalists beaten up

BENGKULU, Bengkulu: Three journalists have been beaten up by two unidentified men, believed to have been hired by a local businessman wanting to kill one of the reporters, a press report said yesterday.

The Antara news agency reported that the journalists were Syafrudin Siregar of the Lampung Post daily, Amir Syarif of the Padang-based Canang magazine and Gafar Uyub of the Jakarta Swadesi weekly.

The incident happened on Tuesday in the journalists' hotel room when two men entered the room and attacked Amir. Siregar and Gafar, who were trying to intervene, were also attacked with a bamboo stick.

Amir said the attackers -- Sol and Ar -- were accomplices of HN, alias Ka. Amir said he believed the assault had to do with Canang's report on an incident in which businessmen HN physically attack a Lampung Post reporter.

"The businessman is obviously enraged by the report," Amir said. (pan)