Feeling Threatened, Families Of Mothers Throwing Stones At Cigarette Factory In NTB Ask LPSK Protection

The family of four housewives who were accused in the case of alleged destruction of the tobacco factory building asked for protection from the LPSK because they felt threatened. (AMONG)

MATARAM - The family of four housewives (IRT), the defendant in the case of alleged destruction of a tobacco factory building in Wajegeseng Village, Central Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara requested protection from the Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK) because they felt threatened.

"We feel that all this time is not safe, we ask for protection from the LPSK as long as this case is still ongoing," said Arian (53), a family of four of the accused's mothers when met at his home in Wajegeseng Village, Central Lombok Regency, quoted by Antara, Wednesday, 24 February.

Arian, who will testify in court, also admitted to having received various kinds of intimidation before four housewives in his village were named suspects.

"There was already intimidation in the form of throwing stones when I was with several residents at the guard post at night. I don't know who did it. We report this incident to the hamlet head," he said.

Arian said that the act of intimidation also occurred after he and several residents conveyed their aspirations to Commission II of the Central Lombok Regency DPRD regarding the existence of a tobacco factory in his village that the community complained about.

"It seems that there are people who feel unhappy with our actions to complain to the council. Those residents are driving the exhaust of motorbikes around the house," he said.

Previously, he said, three residents had also been reported to the police for allegedly committing defamation when participating in mediation at the village office regarding their aspirations to close a tobacco factory in mid-2020.

The three residents were summoned by the police, but until now there has been no progress regarding the reporting of the alleged defamation case.

"I am surprised how can it be reported as defaming a good name, even though in the mediation meeting, there were police chiefs, bhabinkamtibmas, babinsa, village heads, cadres, and BPD," said Arian.

He also hopes that the four housewives who are now defendants and will be undergoing trial in court, can be freed from the charges of detention.

This hope has also been conveyed to Commission IV DPRD Central Lombok Regency, when the four defendants were detained at the Praya Detention Center.

"Alhamdulillah, our struggle is fruitful even though it is just a suspension of detention. We are very grateful to the members of the council and the government as well as women observers who have joined the defense," said Arian.

Meanwhile, the Regional Presidium of the Indonesian Women's Coalition for the NTB region, Lilik Agustianingsih, who also provided assistance to the four accused mothers, said that his party would communicate with the LPSK regarding requests for witness and victim protection.

"We will communicate first, whether there really needs to be assistance from LPSK or what. What are the requirements, what kind of reports to make, because we don't know what the procedure is," he said.

To note, four housewives with the initials HT (40), NR (38), MR (22), and FT (38), residents of Wajegeseng Village, Kopang District, Central Lombok, went to prison with their under-five children.

The four mothers were suspected of destroying the roof of a tobacco factory warehouse in a local village in December 2020. They allegedly threw stones at the warehouse roof, because they felt disturbed by the pungent smell of tobacco.

Local residents also object to the existence of the tobacco factory, because they have complained about the environmental impact of the factory related to the smell emitted from the factory site.

There was also material loss caused by the destruction of around Rp. 4.5 million, so that the four housewives were charged under Article 170 of the Criminal Code with the threat of five years imprisonment.