UPC's secretariat pelted with stones

UPC's secretariat pelted with stones

JAKARTA (JP): The secretariat office of the Urban Poor
Consortium (UPC), which uncovered money politics practices
allegedly conducted by political parties, was pelted with stones
early on Friday.

Wardah Hafidz, UPC's coordinator, said the front glass of the
secretariat was damaged during the attack.

"The office was in fact guarded by several men and security
guards, but none of them dared to go out to see who the attackers
were," Hafidz told Antara.

She said her office received two threatening calls on
Wednesday morning. The callers threatened to attack and burn down
the secretariat if the nongovernmental organization continued
with a plan to unveil malfeasance on the disbursement of the
safety net fund in the afternoon.

"The first caller, named Ali Mustofa, claimed to be a member
of the Center for the Community Participation, which is closely
linked with the People's Sovereignty Party," she said.

At the media briefing on Wednesday, Hafidz disclosed evidence
about money politics allegedly practiced by the People's
Sovereignty Party and the Golkar Party in various regions.

Evidence showed that the two parties allegedly utilized the
safety net fund and credit reserved for farmers and for small-
scale development for the parties' interests.

Commenting about the threat to the UPC office, Hafidz said she
wanted to show the public that in the reform era violence was
still directed toward those who intended to positively contribute
to the democratic process. (hhr)