Jakarta – A student from National University (Unas) died Friday after being detained by police for 13 days and then treated at two Jakarta hospitals another two weeks, Pertamina Hospital officials said.
Maftuh Fauzi was among 31 students arrested at dawn on May 24 and detained for almost two weeks at the South Jakarta Police station.
The arrest followed a protest over the fuel price increase by hundreds of students at their campus in Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta. The protest turned ugly when both students and the police threw rocks at each other.
Police released the students June 2 after the university's rector and parents guaranteed they would report to the police twice a week.
In the first of two press conferences Friday afternoon, the hospital said Maftuh had died of an infection. They added a CT-scan had not revealed any sign of injury to Maftuh's head.
Later in the evening, hospital executives held another conference. "Based on our examination, the patient died of HIV," Widya Sarkawi, the hospital's vice medical director said.
Widya said hospital management was not supposed to disclose such information to the public without permission from Maftuh's family. "But we were asked to announce it, so we did."
The statement was booed by dozens of Unas students, who believed their friend died as a result of wounds inflicted by police officers. Witnesses said they saw Maftuh being beaten by police officers during the rally.
Students said they were not beaten while detained by police. Maftuh was rushed to Indonesian Christian University (UKI) Hospital a day after he was released from detention. He was treated for two weeks at the hospital.
Later on June 18, he was transferred to Pertamina Hospital. Widya said Maftuh was barely conscious when he entered the hospital.
State Palace spokesman Andi Mallarangeng said the palace conveyed deep condolences over Maftuh's death.
Around 200 students staged a protest and blocked the street in front of the South Jakarta Police station. They demanded the police be held responsible for their harsh methods in halting the protest last month, which they claimed resulted in Maftuh's death.
The body of the English literature student, who was in his fifth year at Unas, was taken by his family to Kebumen, Central Java, in the afternoon. The family refused an autopsy.