The Jakarta Police dispatched more than 600 officers on Thursday to secure areas surrounding a cemetery that locals in the Koja subdistrict of North Jakarta consider as sacred, a police spokesman said.
Sr. Comr. Boy Rafli Amar said that officers were deployed to several locations at the Jakarta international port adjacent to the cemetery to prevent the escalation of riots and looting.
"Officers from the traffic control unit were deployed to manage the streets near the port,” Boy said. “Officers from the North Jakarta headquarters are tasked to secure strategic points in the event of further violence.”
He added that police have yet to conduct an investigation into the violence to determine who was responsible for the bloody clash. "Our main concern is to secure the area and prevent further riots," he added.
On Wednesday, the area was the scene of a violent encounter between residents and public orderly officials known as Satpol PP.
The conflict centered on the tomb of legendary Hasan Muhammad al Hadad, better known as Mbah Priok. Jakarta deputy governor Priyanto said that the tomb would be renovated and that the government would build a city monument. The government would only destroy the illegal semi-permanent buildings surrounding the tomb.
Boy said that the police were in the process of evacuating more than 50 vehicles set on fire during the riot. Police used a forklift to clear the road near the tomb, one of the main access points to the container terminal. The task was not easy, though. Authorities struggled to move the vehicles to a disposal site in Cilincing, North Jakarta, and were unsuccessful due to inadequate resources, as well as locals scavenging the wreckage for car parts and scrap metal.
"We can get Rp 5,000 [50 cents] per kilogram," a scavenger named Aroel, 24, told. "I have already managed to get 20 kilos of scrap metal. My friend here even managed to salvage an entire engine block, which is probably worth about Rp 1 million in the junk market."
The roads in the area have been blackened from burned tires and littered with shattered glass and rocks. A fire engine unsuccessfully tried to hose away the rubber and glass.
Police estimated that 38 Satpol PP personnel carrier trucks were destroyed in the riots, in addition to 16 police cars, a police water cannon tactical vehicle, a civilian bus and two container trucks carrying heavy equipment meant to be used for the demolition attempt. Heavy machinery was also destroyed.
Muhammad Riziq, chairman of the hardline Muslim group Islamic Defender Front (FPI) and Hasyim Muzzadi of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) visited the cemetery on Thursday and held a meeting with the descendants of Mbah Priok.
"We will try to lobby the city government to convert the tomb into a historical site. The location holds an important part in history because it was central to spreading Islam in Jakarta,” Riziq said.
According to local legend, Mbah Priok came from Saudi Arabia and arrived in Jakarta in the 18th century. His ship was wrecked by a storm and he was found adrift on the coast of Jakarta, along with a cooking stove also known as periuk in Indonesian. The area was later called Tanjung Priok in his honor.
Sr. Comr. Boy Rafli Amar said that officers were deployed to several locations at the Jakarta international port adjacent to the cemetery to prevent the escalation of riots and looting.
"Officers from the traffic control unit were deployed to manage the streets near the port,” Boy said. “Officers from the North Jakarta headquarters are tasked to secure strategic points in the event of further violence.”
He added that police have yet to conduct an investigation into the violence to determine who was responsible for the bloody clash. "Our main concern is to secure the area and prevent further riots," he added.
On Wednesday, the area was the scene of a violent encounter between residents and public orderly officials known as Satpol PP.
The conflict centered on the tomb of legendary Hasan Muhammad al Hadad, better known as Mbah Priok. Jakarta deputy governor Priyanto said that the tomb would be renovated and that the government would build a city monument. The government would only destroy the illegal semi-permanent buildings surrounding the tomb.
Boy said that the police were in the process of evacuating more than 50 vehicles set on fire during the riot. Police used a forklift to clear the road near the tomb, one of the main access points to the container terminal. The task was not easy, though. Authorities struggled to move the vehicles to a disposal site in Cilincing, North Jakarta, and were unsuccessful due to inadequate resources, as well as locals scavenging the wreckage for car parts and scrap metal.
"We can get Rp 5,000 [50 cents] per kilogram," a scavenger named Aroel, 24, told. "I have already managed to get 20 kilos of scrap metal. My friend here even managed to salvage an entire engine block, which is probably worth about Rp 1 million in the junk market."
The roads in the area have been blackened from burned tires and littered with shattered glass and rocks. A fire engine unsuccessfully tried to hose away the rubber and glass.
Police estimated that 38 Satpol PP personnel carrier trucks were destroyed in the riots, in addition to 16 police cars, a police water cannon tactical vehicle, a civilian bus and two container trucks carrying heavy equipment meant to be used for the demolition attempt. Heavy machinery was also destroyed.
Muhammad Riziq, chairman of the hardline Muslim group Islamic Defender Front (FPI) and Hasyim Muzzadi of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) visited the cemetery on Thursday and held a meeting with the descendants of Mbah Priok.
"We will try to lobby the city government to convert the tomb into a historical site. The location holds an important part in history because it was central to spreading Islam in Jakarta,” Riziq said.
According to local legend, Mbah Priok came from Saudi Arabia and arrived in Jakarta in the 18th century. His ship was wrecked by a storm and he was found adrift on the coast of Jakarta, along with a cooking stove also known as periuk in Indonesian. The area was later called Tanjung Priok in his honor.
