FBR leader killed, police on alert

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta Thu, 06/28/2012



A leading member of the hardline Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) was beaten to death in the Pondok Aren district in South Tangerang in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Police said that some 50 unidentified motorcyclists approached one of FBR's organizational posts, where around ten FBR members were gathered.

The motorcyclists suddenly began attacking the FBR members, most of whom immediately fled for their lives.

An FBR leader by the name of Muhidin, however, stayed behind to try to ward off the attackers, which led to his death at the hands of the unidentified mob.

Following the attack, police have been on the lookout for suspects.

Tangerang City Police conducted a city raid which resulted in the arrest of three men armed with three machetes of different sizes.

The three are reportedly members of the Ciledug district branch of the Pancasila Youth (Pemuda Pancasila), a mass organization known to be rivals of the FBR.

The police, however, denied that the men were targeted due to their membership of the Pancasila Youth.

"I'm not arresting members of mass organizations. I'm merely watching out for people armed with sharp objects," Tangerang City Police chief Sr. Comr. Wahyu Widada said on Thursday, as quoted by tempo.co.

In addition to hunting for suspects, police have also been on the alert for potential outbreaks of further violence throughout the city.

They are focused in particular on the area bordering the Ciledug and Pondok Aren districts.

"We're focusing on the Ciledug-Pondok Aren border area. We're also monitoring pockets of the city where massed groups can gather," Wahyu said.

he Jakarta Post, Jakarta Fri, 06/29/2012



The Jakarta Police have named five members of the Pancasila Youth (PP) as suspects in the killing of one leading Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR) member in a recent fatal brawl in Pondok Aren, South Tangerang.

“The five men were identified by their initials as, A, AJ, AK, M and YM,” Jakarta Police spokesman, Sr. Comr. Rikwanto, told reporters, adding they were now being detained at the Tangerang Police precinct.

He said police had determined that there were 14 men involved in the killing of Muhidin at an FBR guard post in Pondok Aren on Wednesday, after conducting an investigation.

Rikwanto said 50 men on motorcycles approached the post and suddenly attacked 10 FBR members who were guarding the post.

Nine fled the scene, leaving Muhidin alone trying to defend the post.

He died, however, after being brutally assaulted and suffering severe injuries.

“The police confiscated several meat cleavers stained with blood from the arrested suspects,” Rikwanto said.

He added that the police were also still tracking those responsible for spreading messages via various social media sites and text messages after the deadly brawl, saying FBR members would be going on the rampage and people should be careful.

The messages made Ciledug and Bintaro residents anxious.

The FBR and the PP are notorious rivals and are often involved in violent clashes.

In response to the latest incident, the Jakarta Police said they were planning to invite top executives from various mass organizations from across Jakarta, including the FBR and the PP, to a gathering on Friday evening, as they were responsible for keeping their members in line.

Rikwanto said police had often mediated disputes between mass organizations following clashes between their members.

“We hope that by having them meet and share a dialogue, we can reduce the number of brawls between these organizations,” he said.

The Jakarta Globe, June 30, 2012


The Jakarta Police on Thursday called for the dismantlement of posts belonging to two rival groups operating in the Greater Jakarta area, saying that they are a source of clashes and conflicts.

The statement came a day after a member of the Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR), 36 year-old Muhidin, was allegedly killed by three members of a rival group, the Pancasila Youth (PP), in Tangerang, just west of the capital.

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto said that hundreds of posts erected by the two groups often became targets of attacks.

“If no one is inside the post, the post gets destroyed, but when there is someone inside, this person will be mobbed,” he said.

The posts, Rikwanto added, “are often perceived as turf claims. That is why clashes have occurred because of them.”

Police will try to mediate between the rival groups in a dialog next week.

“We need to cooperate with city officials... because [the dismantlement] is their jurisdiction. The way we see it, [the posts] need to be destroyed because they have caused problems,” he said.

On Thursday, police in Tangerang arrested Surono, Endi Yunus and Syamsudin — all three are members of the PP — in connection the FBR member’s death.

The three reportedly supplied the machetes used to fatally slash Muhidin, Tangerang Police said.

A mob of approximately 50 men attacked the FBR’s headquarters in Tangerang at 12:30 a.m. on Wednesday, police said. Muhidin fought back, but died after being repeatedly cut.

The FBR reportedly staged a series of retaliatory attacks on alleged PP members. Both are hard-line groups.

Hundreds of FBR members reportedly armed with Molotov cocktails and weapons showed up at legislative council member Karnadi’s house. Karnadi, a PP supporter, was able to escape through the home’s front door.

A mob of alleged FBR members also attacked two motorcyclists whose bikes had Pemuda Pancasila stickers on them. The men were in Ciputat, Tangerang, when they were stabbed and beaten.

One man, Sulistyawan, suffered wounds to both of his hands while the other rider, Zaki, was bruised, police said.