Nine students were arrested last week after 50 students commandeered a public bus to attack a rival gang. Police confiscated sickles, a sword, a knife, two sharp steel rulers, two belts with cogwheels attached to them and steel bars.

Aside from questions of youth alienation, poor job prospects and poverty, the increasing incidents of busses being commandeered has been caused, ironically, buy bus fare structures. Several years ago the government introduced a student fare of 100 rupiah (US$0.04), compared with the normal Rp400 (US$0.17) ticket price. But because bus drivers' wages are determined by how much they collect each day it makes little sense to pick up students during peak traffic hours. Students are left stranded for hours as a result and many of them take to roaming in gangs. When these gangs of adolescents meet, it takes very little to spark a fight.

Nineteen students were killed last year in the 150 school-related brawls reported by police, and a total of 1,842 students were arrested. Police also said 541 buses were damaged last year as students "ran amok" in two schools. Over the last 5 years, 63 have been killed, 300 suffered minor 110 serious injuries. Thousands of buses and private vehicles attacked

[Compiled from reports by the Indonesian media on high-school student fights - James Balowski]