13 protesters arrested in Jayapura

JAYAPURA: Police arrested 13 protesters Tuesday for resisting police efforts to disperse a rally to commemorate the anniversary of Papua province, on Tuesday.

Papua Police chief Insp. Gen. Bekto Suprapto confirmed the arrests and the reasons for them.

"They violated Articles 216 and 218 of the Criminal Code by resisting officers. We did not detain them because they had staged the rally in a different place from the one they had informed us of," Bekto said.

The protesters had sent a request to the police saying they would hold the rally in front of the post office, but later changed location and carried it out in front of a car showroom in Palimak, Jayapura.

The police confiscated banners and microphones from protesters, as they broke up the rally. - JP