The information that you are about to read is a first hand description of the student demonstrations in Jakarta. The only things that have been changed are grammatical errors. As you read this understand that that this could be your University, your friends, your streets, your city’s police. The battle these students are facing is enormous, the courage they are showing is incredible.
Each and every person involved in these demonstrations (which now are not only students) is a hero. Recently I heard it said that the revolution will come whether we are prepare or not, I believe this to be true, the spark has jumped, the fire is lit!
Jakarta, 24 September 1999
Indonesian students refuse to move from Atma Jaya Univeristy at Central Jakarta.
After many demonstration to refuse the State of Emergecy Bill (finally accepted by
Indonesian’s Parliament), Jakarta and in many other big cities around Indonesia,
people are rising to fight the armed forces. Internationale and other revolutionary songs
are singing all around.
We started the demonstration on 22 Sept. (involving 500 ppl, this is only from our basis),
we succeded to break 4-5 police barricades a long the street, before we were stopped by
force, 40 students and civilians were arrested.
23, September
We marched to the parliamentary building. There were 5,000-7,000 people on the street.
We were blocked by police, they shot and threw tear gas into the crowd of demostrators.
The clash between the people against the police still remains as of now.
I was evacuated at six am this morning. Now organising masses and supporting logistics
from faculty buildings. Hundreds were injured (including the press) and as of now, 4 are
dead.
We were forced back to Atma Jaya University, after the first clash. Many students, helped
by the surrounding people are fighting by throwing stones and molotoves, burning some
wheels and army’s cars. The police, now with supporting soldiers chase the students
and others inside the campus. We are now defending from inside the campus.
24, September
00:30 am- We were force to retreat by campus rector. We rejected it.
1:30 am- The alliance of military forces, sweep the streets where the demonstrators are,
shooting again.
2:00 am- The students came out again, hitting stones to metal things, and throwing
molotoves. Shooting by the military again, the fight still endured at several points.
3:30 am- The armed forces came into the campus firing and throwing tear gas. We forced
them back, because there’s few light inside campus, they couldn’t move on. The
struggle is lasting until now.
6:00am- Tear gas is still thrown, shooting by military is the same. Two tanks came and
stopped in front of the campus’s gate, we will fight again after taking a little
rest.
September 25/26 , 1999 (Goodbye Yun Hap)
The Armed Forces stormed our campus which is also a hospital. They chased students,
most of them are Technical students who just lost their friend in a brutal and surprising
attack at a Jakarta Hospital.
Before that incident, the military elite said that the clash is over, and the troops were
withdrawn from the streets. THEY BETRAYED US!!!
While the troops went back by trucks, they shot the demonstrators. The student, YunHap,
who is shot at the back of his head, was having a rest and eating bread, inside the
Jakarta hospital. There is no argument that they planned this, this hospital is located
behind the Atma Jaya Campus and that street does not lead to their barracks or thier base.
!!
Not long after that, many students were gathering at University of Indonesia at Salemba.
We sat on the street, but we still gave enough space for the cars or motorcycles which
were passing. AT dark around 2am or 3 am, the military trucks passed near the campus. We
shouted at them, and some of the angry students kicked the trucks and threw stones. After
that they chased us firing shots, until we were inside the campus. Our campus is alos a
hospital!!! This is the place where the body of our friend was lying with a bullet in his
head.
They smashed the heads of captured students onto walls of the buildings! The bloos is
still there. No one died in this incident. So whta could be the reason for them to chase
us? Just to beat our heads?
There are a lot of victims of military brutality, not only the students, but the people
too, including two kids, one of them was shot at the hospital and the other is a
newspaper-seller who was shot on the street-battle. Tthe students and the people, we are
one. The people resistance last for at least 30 hours.
The next paragraphs are a written counter on Indonesia’s media concerning these recent events.
09/25/1999
The Opposition- The elite do not care about the people’s struggle, the only care for them is power!!
1. "The high-ranking military officers said that Jakarta’s street-battles
between the PEOPLE against the TROOPS and MILITIAS were provoked by some
provocators". There are NO provocators in the street battles against the troops.
[When we forced inside the campus, the troops were shouting at us, dancing, to attract the
students to come outside. After some students came outside, they gave us some
"nice" random shots.]
2. "The military and some right-wingers [including some campus beaurocrats, said that
the students and others didn’t understand the meaning of the controversial Security
Law". We had the draft earlier than most of our docents, beside that, the people
don’t care about the law, they just saw and felt when the military shot them.
3. "Shooting after the withdrawal of the troops is a matter of soldiers’
emotion." They want to isolate the case and lead the public opinion to justify that
they didnt plan the shooting, it was a mere individual’s bad-attitude. The soldiers
always move according to higher commands. Afterall, the TNI (Indonesian National
Soldiers), institutionally must be responsible to their subordinates wrong doing!
Thank you to the people, VIVA PEOPLE.
People Who Unite Will Not Be Defeated!!!!!!
Internationale Unite The Human Race.
Viva Socialista!!