W. Java town calm after riot, shops remain closed
W. Java town calm after riot, shops remain closed
JAKARTA (JP): The West Java town of Kadipaten, about 150
kilometers southeast of here, was calm yesterday as many shops
remained closed following a riot Sunday and early Monday.
West Java police spokesman Lt. Col. Istanto Judihardjo said
the police had the subdistrict town under control but conceded
that tension persisted in some areas.
"The town has resumed its normal day-to-day activity although
not all shops have reopened yet. It's normal for a town which has
just experienced a riot," he told The Jakarta Post by phone from
Bandung.
Five people had been detained for questioning, he added.
The riot broke out Sunday night and continued into early
Monday following reports that security guards at the Kemukten
general store strip-searched a local woman Saturday they and the
owner suspected of stealing a pair of socks.
On Sunday morning, dozens of people pelted stones at the shop
shortly after it opened. They then attacked the shop owner's
house and car.
Scores of people massed again Sunday night and attacked other
shops, a restaurant, a billiards hall, a motel and a church.
Istanto said: "It was spontaneous violence stirred up by a
misunderstanding.
"But the misunderstanding has been cleared up in a meeting
between local community leaders, the girl, and the shop owner."
Istanto said five people -- four youths arrested red-handed
for throwing stones and the Kemukten shop owner -- had been
detained in the Majalengka police precinct for interrogation.
"There have been no indications so far that the riot was
orchestrated," the spokesman said.
It was the latest in a series of disturbances to have shaken
Java over the last few months.
Several acts politically motivated mob violence hit
Pekalongan, Central Java in April. It involved United Development
Party and Golkar supporters.
A major riot, targeting Chinese and Christian properties, in
which five people were killed occurred on Dec. 26 last year in
the West Java town of Tasikmalaya. (aan)