Two brawls rock S. Jakarta slums, one man injured

JAKARTA (JP): Two separate brawls rocked Bukit Duri and Manggarai, both in South Jakarta, over the weekend, leaving one man injured and seven buildings vandalized, police said.

South Jakarta police chief Lt. Col. Satrya Hari Prasetya told The Jakarta Post that the first fight took place in Bukit Duri, at about 5 p.m. Saturday.

"The platoon of security officers we deployed managed to calm the situation for a while, but a few hours later, at about midnight, the fighting broke out again. The cause of the incident was not clear.

"The residents involved in the fray started pelting each other with rocks and wood with some vandalizing their opponents' houses," Satrya said.

Antara reported that the Bukit Duri incident descended into total chaos after some of the residents threw molotov cocktails at the officers who were trying to disperse the angry crowd.

Satrya, however, said he had not received any reports of people throwing molotov cocktails.

"It was a routine fight ... The slum areas are known as being prone to riots. We did our best to act as peacemaker between the feuding groups.

"But it was very hard to do so as the people involved ranged from children to adults. Even housewives were yelling and screaming. They were armed with frying pans, kitchen knives and planks of wood. It was very irritating and tiring," he said.

The second brawl occurred in the nearby road Jl. Manggarai Utara II, at about half past midnight yesterday.

One passerby, identified as Richard Tobing, 26, was severely injured after being slashed with a sickle during the fight. He had been visiting a friend's house when the violence erupted.

He was taken to the nearby Mitra Muara hospital in South Jakarta but was later transferred to Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital for further treatment.

The brawl was between two groups of Manggarai residents who were fighting over a report that a member of one of the groups had been beaten up.

It was also reported that some of the kiosks along Jl. Manggarai Utara II were looted and vandalized.

"All of the contents, such as instant noodles, cigarettes and soft drinks, were looted. They also wrecked the kiosks ... I haven't counted my losses yet," Aminah, one of the kiosk owners, was quoted by Antara as saying.

Another kiosk owner, Lasmi, also experienced a similar experience.

"The mobs ruined my food stall and they took all of the stuff in it, except the furniture," she said.

The brawl, which reportedly also involved local hoodlums, eventually petered out at about 3:30 a.m.

Those involved were reportedly armed with air rifles, rocks and crossbows.

In their operation to disperse the angry crowds, police fired several warning shots.

"The matter had been solved by neighborhood leaders here. So I do not know why the violence broke out again," said Kardi, 45, a Manggarai resident.

Satrya said that none of the residents were detained or questioned after the incidents.

"We're trying to solve the matter in a persuasive way. But it is hard because the environment there is not conducive (to such an approach). Emotions are running very high," he said. (edt)