Jakarta – Police fired warning shots and tear gas yesterday to disperse about 500 slum dwellers protesting against an attempt to evict them from their Jakarta settlement.

They took the action after residents armed with sickles, bamboo sticks and crowbars threw rocks and burned tyres. The police and public order officers later stormed the area and started destroying the residents' homes.

Dwellings were allegedly built illegally on a 5-ha site in the Jembatan Besi neighbourhood in West Jakarta. About 700 police, armed with shields and tear gas launchers, were involved in the face-off with the residents.

Police said that since 1998 about 5,000 people have settled in the area, which belongs to a private company. They have built brick houses, installed electricity and telephone lines. One officer said they had been asked to leave last year but had ignored the order.