Jakarta – Tension gripped the Papua regency of Jayapura on Wednesday when dozens of soldiers staged a rare protest, which soon turned violent.

Local reporters said soldiers from the Army Battalion 751 Sentani were protesting against a decision made by their commander, Lt. Col. Labok Sihotang, who had collected money from them to cover air transportation and funeral expenditures for their colleague Priv. Joko.

The enraged soldiers then turned their anger toward journalists, whom they suspected had recorded the protest.

The media was present to cover a commemoration of West Papua's vote for integration with Indonesia, upon invitation from the Papua military command.

Cahyono from the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) in Papua said the soldiers pursued members of the media.

"Four of our colleagues, who were eating at a food vendor near the scene of the incident, were attacked by the angry soldiers. The journalists tried to flee but the soldiers managed to grab at least one camera," Cahyono said.

The journalists sought shelter at residents' houses and a police station, he said. In an attempt to trap the journalists, soldiers blockaded nearby roads.

Army spokesman Brig. Gen. Christian Zebua said the incident did in fact take place, but played down the severity of the protest. "It is true that the actions of battalion commander Labok Sihotang sparked discontent among the soldiers. There were gunshots, but the riot did not spread to the streets," he said.

He said the commander had collected Rp 90 million (US$8,400) from the soldiers to cover the burial costs of their colleague.

"The soldiers did not immediately react to the actions of the commander, so he thought everybody approved of his choice," Zebua said. "But apparently the soldiers questioned his decision afterwards and accused him of swindling the money allocated for their fallen colleague."

He said the soldiers began their protest following a morning ceremony. The commander fled after realizing his troops were dissenting, while the deputy commander reportedly sustained injuries to his head.

Christian did not explain how many soldiers were involved. He said security and order had been restored after Papua Military comamnder Maj. Gen. Ahmad Yani Nasution spoke with the protesting soldiers.

"He [Ahmad Yani] has spoken with the soldiers and things are now under control," Zebua said. (fmb)