West Java police name 21 people as suspects

West Java police name 21 people as suspects

BANDUNG (JP): West Java Police announced on Tuesday that they
had officially charged 21 people for offenses committed in
relation to large rallies by workers and a public transportation
strike here over the past week.

"We officially charged them as suspects because there is
strong evidence of their involvement," Bandung Police Chief Brig.
Gen. Sudirman Ail said after meeting with provincial councillors.

Of the 21 suspects, 18 were allegedly involved in the mass
rally conducted by workers, while the rest were involved in the
public transportation strike. Most of them were arrested for
vandalizing public property and provoking people to join the
strike.

Six of the suspects are students who have been identified as
members of the Democratic People's Party (PRD) and the rest are
either workers or unemployed people.

"They (the PRD members) were arrested because they were found
distributing leaflets asking workers to join the strike during
the rally," said Sudirman, who was only appointed to his post one
week ago.

Thousands of workers rallied last week, demanding the
revocation of new ministerial decrees on labor. This was followed
by another huge rally protesting the fuel price rise. Police were
forced to fire tear gas to disperse crowds during the rallies.

All of the suspects are undergoing a series of intensive
interviews by police before the case dossiers are submitted to
the prosecutors' office.

"This is an organized crime, so we must be very careful. Most
organized crimes are hard to unravel," Sudirman added. (25)