Protesters Detained By West Jakarta Police Asked To Ransom Rp3 Million? IPW Speaks Up

Students broke the fence of the DPR RI office/ Photo: Rizky Sulistio/ VOI

JAKARTA - The Indonesian LBH Foundation through its Instagram account @YLBHI uploaded a statement that looked up to the public. In his upload, YLBHI mentioned that one mass of action was detained at the West Jakarta Metro Police who was asked for a ransom.

"The latest update. One mass of action detained at the West Jakarta Police was asked for a ransom of 3 million rupiah by the security forces. Crazy!," he wrote in the @YLBHI account quoted by VOI, Friday, August 23.

"@Resjakbar @ListyoSigitP free our friends!," wrote the account.

Meanwhile, when confirmed, the Public Relations of the West Jakarta Metro Police have not responded to the upload on the YLBHI account. There has been no official statement from the West Jakarta Metro Police regarding the oblique accusations.

According to data from Indonesia Police Watch (IPW), as many as 105 people were brought to the West Jakarta Metro Police consisting of 102 students and 3 adults. On Thursday, August 22, the number of demonstrators who were repatriated was 35 people.

While the rest, 67 demonstrators are waiting for the administrative process. The West Jakarta Police asked students caught to contact their parents and make agreements and signatures on stamps.

Students who have been picked up by their parents are immediately allowed to go home, should not be picked up by other people.

"IPW urges the National Police to increase the professionalism of members - members in the field who handle large-scale demonstrations so as not to be provoked into violence," he said.

Sugeng continued, the National Police must also train and educate them to understand Perkap Number 1 of 2009 concerning the Use of Strength in Police Actions.

"Police officers who commit violence by not heeding the procedures in the recapitulation must be processed ethically and criminally," he said.