JAKARTA. Several hours after armed clashes broke out between Army and police mobile brigade (Brimob) personnel in Batam, Riau Islands, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has instructed his top military and police leaders to take any means necessary to restore order in the city.
Speaking to reporters after attending a morning meeting with the President at the Presidential Palace, Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Tedjo Edhy Purdijatno said that the President has, for instance, instructed the immediate removal of some members of Army’s 134 Tuah Sakti infantry battalion to avoid similar incidents from happening.
"Those [who were involved in the incident] are youth in the private ranks," Tedjo said on Thursday.
"The President has instructed they be split [from their current battalion] so they will not be together to create the same incident."
The fighting between Army and police personnel started at 5 p.m. on Wednesday and ended at 11:30 p.m. when the combatants were persuaded to cease fire by the commander of the Bukit Barisan Military District Command Kodam I, Maj. Gen. Winston Simanjuntak, using a loudspeaker.
The clashes had become a kind of open war witnessed by hundreds of local people, who watched them as if they were seeing an entertainment show.
The incident reportedly took the life of one soldier and injured two men -- a police officer and a civilian.
The fatality, identified as First Pvt. Jack Marpaung, died of a gunshot wound to his abdomen. Upon finding the victim falling unconscious during the clashes his colleagues rushed him to the Embung Fatimah General Hospital at 10:45 p.m.
Tedjo said the conflict dated back to a Sept. 21 incident when a group of police officers, backed up by Brimob personnel, exchanged fire with a group of people who were assisting fuel smugglers in Batam.
"They [the personnel] feel unsatisfied with the settlement of the conflict," he said, adding that the latest clash had started after two separate groups of soldiers and police officers exchanged provocative gestures when they met each other on the street.
Tedjo gave assurances that those involved in the incident would be punished.
"There's a possibility of dismissal for those who committed insubordination," he said.
Tedjo also said that Army Chief of Staff Gen. Gatot Nurmantyo and National Police Chief Gen. Sutarman were in Batam to jointly handle the crisis. (Hasyim Widhiarto)
