Train passengers attack guards

Mon, 03/10/2008 1:24 PM  |  City

A month into its public order operation, state-owned railway company PT Kereta Api (PT KA) would ask for more police help following a weekend incident when passengers attacked guards on a train.

The incident occurred Saturday evening on a Jakarta-Rangkasbitung train. When security guards asked a group of passengers to move inside from the area connecting cars, the group refused and attacked them.

The clash resulted in one officer, Agus, to suffer a severe head injury. All the glass windows of the car's engineer cabin were also smashed.

Authorities have yet to confirm if any suspects were arrested following the incident.

PT KA's greater Jakarta division spokesman, Akhmad Sujadi, said the attackers were a group of criminals.

"The raids have disadvantaged several people, including pick-pocket groups. There's a possibility they were the ones who provoked other passengers," Sujadi said in his press release.

Sujadi said the company would not stop its operations and had asked police for more help.

"We are going to take special measures to handle this problem," he said.

The raids were part of the company's discipline campaign which started last month, aimed at deterring vendors, buskers, beggars and fare dodgers.

The campaign also aimed to prevent passengers from riding on train roofs (roof riders), inside the engineer's cabin or in the areas between cars.

During the campaign PT KA has caught some 269 offenders, including 194 for riding without tickets and 48 for riding on roofs.

Some 600 personnel, including police and outsourced security guards have been involved in the operation.

Last year, the Greater Jakarta division operator served around 320,000 legal passengers in 410 trips each day. With fares from as low as Rp 1,000, it generated some Rp 248 billion in revenue. (JP/dre)

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