Commission to sue KAI over teen's death

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Sun, 06/18/2006 3:34 PM  |  Jakarta

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The National Commission for Child Protection will demand compensation from railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) if a police investigation proves one of its officers was involved in the death of a homeless boy.

Permana, 13, died of serious injuries last month at Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital, Central Jakarta, after he was allegedly kicked off a speeding train by a police officer.

""The officer was hired by the railway operator to guard the train. That is why KAI is also responsible in this case,"" the commission's secretary-general, Arist Merdeka Sirait, told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.

If no one made a claim on behalf of the boy, the compensation could be given to the boy's homeless friends, he said.

Permana was sweeping the floor of a car of the Sawunggaling business-class train and picking up litter for tips from passengers with four of his friends when an officer yelled and kicked him.

The train was traveling from Kutoarjo in Central Java to Gambir Station in Central Jakarta. Permana was pushed from the train near Klender Station in East Jakarta.

The police have questioned several witnesses, including one of the four friends who were in the car that day. So far police, have not found enough evidence to prove the officer actually kicked him off the train.

""The only clue that we have now is Permana's statement to his guardian saying that he got kicked off the train by the officer,"" said Comr. Imam Saputra, the head of the police station.

Permana lay in the hospital for two days accompanied by his friends and guardians before he died.

KAI's spokesman Ahmad Junaedi said his company was ready to help reveal the truth in the case.

""If it is proven that it was one of our trains' security guards, we are ready to take the responsibility of finding him,"" he said.

Ahmad said it was part of the company's policy to clear all trains at stations of scavengers, beggars and the homeless children, although rough action against them is prohibited.

""We know they are homeless children who do not have parents to house and feed them. But their presence annoys the passengers and our operational activities,"" he said.

He said the children often put their feet and hands outside the trains, making them susceptible to accidents.

According to KAI data, there are about 33 homeless children at the Kota station in West Jakarta while there are 25 at Jatinegara station and more than 10 at Cakung station, both of which are in East Jakarta. (06)

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