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Hospitals decline to confirm gunshot wounds
In times of crisis: A victim of a clash between police officers and protesters who were challenging the 2019 presidential election results leaves Tarakan General Hospital, Central Jakarta, after underoing medical treatment on Wednesday
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n times of crisis: A victim of a clash between police officers and protesters who were challenging the 2019 presidential election results leaves Tarakan General Hospital, Central Jakarta, after underoing medical treatment on Wednesday. Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan has said that six people died in the riot while 200 others were injured.(JP/Seto Wardhana)
Hospitals treating casualties from Wednesday’s riot have not confirmed whether any injuries were caused by live rounds even though at least one fatality and one of the injured appeared to have suffered gunshot wounds.
Authorities have said they received reports that six people died and about 200 people were injured in the rioting.
Whether live rounds were fired during the riot is a matter of controversy because the police had earlier said they would not use live ammunition to secure the capital from May 21 to May 25, despite the highest security alert during that period. The police have said that if any live rounds were fired, they were not fired by their officers.
The police had previously warned of the possibility of a terrorist attack “piggybacking” on the election result protest.
In the early hours of Wednesday, the dead and the injured were rushed to several hospitals around the city: Budi Kemuliaan Hospital, Tarakan Hospital, Pelni Hospital, Mintohardjo Hospital, and Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital (RSCM).
RSCM medical and nursing director Sumariyono said the hospital had carried out an examination on the body of one man who was transferred from Budi Kemuliaan Hospital in Central Jakarta. Sumariyono, however, did not identify the fatality.
“We have examined the body, and we will wait for the police to release the forensics examination results,” Sumariyono said on Wednesday.
“I can’t go into the details, but it’s clear that the man died because of traumatic injury,” he said, adding that the Jakarta Health Agency would provide further information.
Budi Kemuliaan Hospital medical services director Muhammad Rifki explained that 18 people were admitted to the hospital after rioting in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta. One of them was identified as Farhan Syafero, 30, a resident of Depok, West Java, who died in the morning and whose body was transferred to RSCM for further examination.
Of the 18 casualties, two were reportedly injured by live rounds and 16 by rubber bullets.
He could not confirm whether any bullets had been recovered from the dead body as it needed further examination with an autopsy. However, he suspected that at least two people suffered injuries consistent with gunshot wounds.
“One [Farhan] died of a gunshot wound to his chest. And the other [wounded casualty] has a gunshot wound to the leg [...] We suspect [the wounds were caused by live rounds] because of the size and shape of the injuries,” Rifki said.
“The size of [Farhan’s] wound was 1.5 centimeters,” he added.
Of the people who were reportedly killed, The Jakarta Post could only confirm three: Farhan and two other fatalities in Tarakan Hospital, Central Jakarta. The other two victims were identified as 17-year-old Adam Nooryan, who lived in Tambora in West Jakarta and Widianto Rizky Ramadhan, 17, a Palmerah, West Jakarta resident.
Both victims died in the hospital, said Tarakan Hospital spokesperson Reggy S. Sobari. They were brought in by ambulance early on Wednesday morning.
Reggy could not confirm whether both victims had gunshot wounds. He only described the wounds on both victims as “round-shaped”. Rizky had a neck wound, while Adam had chest and back wounds.
“We, however, have yet to confirm the cause of the deaths,” Reggy said.
The spokesperson also declined to answer whether medical personnel had recovered any bullets from the dead bodies.
Adam’s family has refused an autopsy, while Rizky’s family is still waiting for the process at Kramat Jati Police Hospital.
From Tuesday evening until Wednesday afternoon, Tarakan Hospital received at least 142 injured protesters. At least 13 casualties were still undergoing treatment for serious injuries, including broken bones. Meanwhile, the remaining casualties had been released from hospital after treatment for minor injuries.
RSCM received at least 10 casualties, eight of whom had suffered traumatic injuries and the other two complaining of nausea and dizziness. As of Wednesday afternoon, only two were still receiving treatment and one was under observation in the emergency unit.
Budi Kemuliaan Hospital recorded 32 patients from last night’s riots, including Farhan. However, as many as 25 patients were sent home after treatment.
The Dr. Mintohardjo Navy General Hospital in Bendungan Hilir, Central Jakarta and Pelni Hospital, West Jakarta, also treated injured protesters, including two reported fatalities. However, hospital officials declined to make a statement to the Post.
