A-Infos (en) Indonesian Students Stage Most Violent Protests Yet In Capital

[Arm The Spirit <ats@locust.etext.org>]

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Indonesian Students Stage Most Violent Protests Yet In Capital

Associated Press, 05/02/98

     JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Police fired tear gas at
rock-throwing students on four Jakarta campuses today as tens of
thousands of protesters held anti-government rallies at
universities nationwide.
     It was the most violent day of campus protests in the
capital since Indonesia's economy plunged into crisis last year.
At least four officers and seven students were injured.
     "Let's go!" shouted protesters at the Teaching and Education
Institute as they edged toward police lines, some wearing scarves
over their faces. Minutes later, officers fired tear gas and
flailed with clubs at the students, who scattered.
     Bleeding from a head wound, at least one protester was
rushed to a campus clinic.
     Police with sticks and shields were deployed outside other
Jakarta campuses where rallies were being held, all to mark
national education day.
     Meanwhile, President Suharto urged the Education Ministry to
take steps to allow cash-strapped students to continue their
studies. With prices skyrocketing, students have complained they
cannot afford to buy books or pay tuition.
     "The monetary crisis has placed a bigger burden on the
government and society and educational institutions in
particular," the 76-year-old leader told a gathering of
dignitaries at a state palace.
     At one rally at the State University of Indonesia, students
in yellow and blue jackets shouted "Reform!" and raised their
fists. Students tried to push their way past the campus gates
into the streets but were blocked by dozens of police with
shields and helmets.
     At campuses in southern Jakarta, protesters shouted "Hang
Suharto!" and hoisted posters calling for his ouster.
     The protests have turned increasingly personal in recent
weeks, with students shouting demands for Suharto to quit. More
demonstrations are turning violent as students try to force their
way off campus in defiance of a ban on street rallies.
     Thousands of students also demonstrated in Bandung, Ujung
Padang, Palembang, Yogyakarta, and Kupang. In Surabaya, taxi
drivers and street peddlers joined them.
     Students have been the most vocal opponents of the
government's handling of Indonesia's financial turmoil, which
erupted last year with a plunge in the value of the rupiah.
     Suharto, a former army general who has been in power for
three decades, remains in firm control of the government. On
Friday, he brushed aside demands for democratic change - saying
there would be no political reforms until his current term ends,
five years from now.
     Government officials pointed out that some political
changes, such as a shift from proportional representation to a
district system for legislators, were already under way.
     Indonesia is implementing economic reforms in exchange for a
$43 billion bailout led by the International Monetary Fund.

(For info on the resistance movement in Indonesia, visit the
CSVI/GPDI page at http://www.xs4all.nl/~peace)


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