Misunderstanding Leads to Riots in Indonesia

2,000 public officers accompanied two excavation machines to the site currently used by hundreds of illegal inhabitants.
Misunderstanding Leads to Riots in Indonesia
4/15/2010
Updated:
4/15/2010

What was supposed to be a routine eviction of squatters from grounds in Koja area, owned by state-run company Pelindo II, turned into the most intense riots in Jakarta, Indonesia, in years with at least two deaths, and 130 wounded.

On Wednesday morning, 2,000 public officers accompanied two excavation machines to the site currently used by hundreds of illegal inhabitants. This site also harbors the tomb of Mbah Priok, an Arabic cleric that spread Islam in the 18th century.

City spokesman Cucu Ahmad Kurnia said, according to AP, “We did not intend to demolish the tomb, but we want to evict the illegal settlers. In fact, the local government wanted to preserve or restore the tomb.”

Residents believed however they came to destroy this sacred monument and waited for them with sickles, Molotov cocktails, and machetes. At the first clashes one officer nearly lost an arm while another was slashed across the stomach.

Many rioters was also critically wounded. The nearby hospital was the stage for further riots with increasing numbers of protesters and police officers. Rioters were searching the area for officers and looting, and burned several vehicles. Many officers had to be evacuated by boat.