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)