Dicky Christanto, Jakarta – Police are questioning 10 officers from their Mobile Brigade (Brimob) unit in connection with a shooting incident last week in Ogan Ilir, South Sumatra.
National Police deputy spokesman Brig. Gen. Sulistyo Ishak said Friday his office would handle the investigation transparently. "We won't cover anything up; if we find these officers are guilty, we will take them to court," he said at a press conference in Jakarta.
Sulistyo said the investigating team comprised officers from both the National Police's and the South Sumatra Police's internal affairs divisions.
Eleven residents of Renggas village in Payaraman district, Ogan Ilir regency, were wounded when members of the local Brimob and provincial police fired on them in an apparent attempt to quell a riot on Dec. 4.
The clash involved local villagers and security guards for state plantation firm PTPN Cinta Manis Unit VII, who were assisted by police.
Bustari, one of the victims, said he was shot in the abdomen, adding bullets also hit his helmet and motorcycle. "We just want our land returned to us," he said. "The Brimob officers who shot us should be fired to teach them a lesson."
The National Police's internal affairs chief, Insp. Gen. Oegroseno, said the 10 Brimob officers currently being questioned were those who had been witnessed shooting at the villagers. "We're now digging for more facts, such as whether they carried out their duties in line with prevailing procedures or not," he said Friday in Jakarta.
Should they be found guilty, Oegroseno went on, the officers would be punished and brought up on criminal charges. The investigating team is also trying to figure out why the Brimob squad had been at the scene in the first place.
"Brimob is not allowed to deploy without first coordinating with the regional police chief," Oegroseno said. "So we need to find out whether their presence there was."
He added a preliminary investigation had showed the South Sumatra Police chief had approved the squad's deployment. "That's why we're now summoning both the field commander and the head of the South Sumatra Brimob for clarification," he said.
He also said he was optimistic the investigation could be wrapped up in less than two weeks.
On Thursday, three of the shooting victims marched on the National Police headquarters in Jakarta to demand the police uphold justice in their case.
They were accompanied by lawyers from the Indonesia Legal Aid Foundation, who brought along evidence of the shooting, including photographs of the victims and a detailed chronology of the incident.
[Khairul Saleh contributed to this story from Palembang, South Sumatra.]