Tasikmalaya – The district court in Tasiklamaya has passed a savage sentence of eight years on an activist from Garut named Agustiana who was accused of being the brains behind the riots that struck Tasikmalaya in West Java on 26 December last year.

Hundreds of supporters of the accused were in court to hear the verdict and sentence read out by the presiding judge. Four truckloads of troops were on guard outside, armed with M16s and truncheons.

The accused announced immediately that he would appeal against the sentence; he then shouted: 'Long live democracy!' and went to the bench to shake the hands of the judges.

As supporters rushed forward in court to embrace Agustiana, the police chief in charge of the police forces present ordered his men to surround him and take him to a vehicle outside, to be driven back to Cimahi Prison.

Agustiana was charged under the anti-subversion law and given four years less than the prosecutor's request for twelve years. In his summing up, the judge spoke at length about Agustiana's involvement in the pro-democracy movement, statements he made in various publications and his involvement in solidarity forums, none of which is related to the riot in Tasikmalaya.

Agustiana had told the court that on the day of the riot, he was at the Garus General Hospital together with a friend named Titik to visit a friend, and from there they went to the home of the police chief of Garut to keep an appointment with friends there. His request for Titik to be called as a witness in court was rejected by the court as being 'irrelevant'.

The riots in Tasikmalaya were sparked by an incident in which the son of a local policeman was punished for a misdemeanour at a local religious school. The policeman and other officers summoned the teachers involved and beat them up. This triggered anger among Muslims in the city, which led to the outburst of violence.