Twelve officers to be court-martialled over riots

JAKARTA (JP): The 12 officers accused of "responding excessively" to student demonstrations last month in the South Sulawesi capital of Ujungpandang will be tried by the end of this month.

Chief Spokesman of the Wirabuana Regional Military Command Lt. Col. Mochtar Darise told The Jakarta Post by telephone yesterday that military prosecutors are preparing the dossiers on the soldiers.

Three of the 12 soldiers are high-ranking officers in the local military command, Mochtar said. He declined to reveal the soldiers' names or exact military ranks.

Chief of the Wirabuana Military Command Maj. Gen. Sulatin said on Saturday that the 12 soldiers would be court-martialled for their role in the military's handling of the student demonstrations that led to the deaths of three students.

The soldiers will be charged with what he called an "excessive response" to a flurry of violent demonstrations that involved an estimated 10,000 students from various universities in Ujungpandang, Sulatin said.

Students from state and private-owned universities and colleges in Ujungpandang took to the streets in a wave of demonstrations which began on April 22 to protest the public bus fare increase from Rp 300 (13 U.S. cents) to Rp 500.

The students reportedly went on the rampage during the demonstrations, setting up roadblocks, vandalizing buses and other public property, and hurling stones at riot police.

The protests soon turned into clashes when security officers entered college campuses, chasing students with rattan sticks and making arrests.

The regional military command and the investigation team, which was established on April 27, have admitted that some of their members "erred" and resorted to violence.

The National Commission on Human Rights announced in a press briefing on Wednesday that it had found "violations of rights which led to the death of three students, scores of injuries, and much vandalism".

The three students reportedly died because they plunged into the Pampang River while trying to escape from security officers who had entered their campus during the protests.

Reports on the number of fatalities vary, however, with organizations such as the Ujungpandang office of the Indonesian Legal Aid organization, which also established its own fact- finding team, saying that six people actually died.

The South Sulawesi provincial administration responded soon after the massive rioting by declaring that it was canceling the Ujungpandang mayor's fare increase decree. (imn)

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