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Riot erupts between gangs, residents near South Jakarta
Five hundred police officers were dispatched to Rempoa, an upscale residential area near South Jakarta, after several territorial gangs rioted against local residents late Saturday night
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F
ive hundred police officers were dispatched to Rempoa, an upscale residential area near South Jakarta, after several territorial gangs rioted against local residents late Saturday night.
The South Jakarta Police named two suspects and detained 30 others in the unrest, which caused widespread panic and severe traffic congestion.
“The two were named suspects for using sharp weapons [in the riots],” Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Boy Rafli Amar said here Sunday as quoted by Antara news agency.
Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Timur Pradopo told the public that the capital was now safe.
He said he had met with the leaders of several gangs allegedly involved in the incident — the Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR), the Betawi Family Forum (Forkabi) and youth groups Pemuda Pancasila (PP) and Kembang Latar.
Timur said the four groups’ leaders had promised to make peace. “No mass group has ever allowed their members to act violently,” he said.
FBR chairman Lutfi Hakim said he would dismiss any member found to have participated in the riot.
The incident began Saturday at about 8 p.m., when FBR members allegedly attacked residents of
Jl. Garuda in Rempoa, Tangerang.
The violence then spread to other areas bordering South Jakarta, including Pondok Indah, Pesanggrahan, Kreo and Bungur.
Sudiar, a neighborhood unit chief on Jl. Garuda, said the FBR members had “been offended by residents who had removed and burned their flags Saturday”.
He alleged that members of Forkabi and Kembang Latar had been involved in the clash.
Yuliar, who was involved in the clash, said the residents had no interest in violence.
“No one is taking sides. Therefore, we cannot allow any flag to be waved here,” he said. “We just want to secure our neighborhood.”
Five hundred police officers were dispatched to secure the neighborhood.
University of Indonesia (UI) criminologist Eko Hariyanto said the police’s failure to deal with recent social violence showed “their indecisiveness when it comes to all forms of threats and violence from individuals or groups”.
“The taxpayers hope the police can enforce the law fairly,” he said, adding that the public had the right to not be intimidated.
“I am afraid these mass groups are being used by the authorities to secure their interests,” Eko said, adding that the groups had been formed to help the police guard the neighborhoord.
“There are political elements in this case. In the name of securing certain interests, it is possible that the police have been pitted against these groups [mass organizations],” he said.
Another criminologist at UI, Adrianus Meliala, said such mass organizations and authorities shared “mutual relationships”.
“The authorities ‘nurture’ the groups because their members, who mostly are from the lower class, are easily persuaded to help, such as in securing a parade,” he said.
Adrianus said members of such mass organizations were easily influenced, and tools such as symbols and paraphernalia were used to instill fanaticism in them.
“The police often think it is okay to let them exist as long as they do not engage in any tumultuous activities,” he said.
In the early afternoon on Sunday, some residents were still seen guarding their neighborhoods in anticipation of further attacks.
Some of the residents were armed with slingshots, sticks, rocks and sharp weapons. (ipa)
