TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Regional Representative Council's (DPRD) office in Gowa was razed by protesters on Monday, September 26, 2016. The action was allegedly carried out by a group of people calling themselves as Concerned Citizens of the (Gowa) Sultanate.
The incident started when a group of people arrived to stage a demonstration in front of the DPRD office. The group urged local legislators to withdraw a Regional Regulation on Regional Customary Organization (Lembaga Adat Daerah / LAD). The protest, which started peacefully, turned violent when no legislators were refusing to provide a response.
The group's coordinator Muhammad Ridwan, said that the demonstration was not the first to take place. "[The DPRD] never responded to our demands," Ridwan said.
The Regional Regulation No. 5/2016 was issued by Gowa Regent Adnan Purichta Ichsan Yasin Limpo. Article 1 (3) of the Regulation stated that Gowa Regent also serves as the chief of the Regional Customary Organization and act as the sombayya, local customary leader of the Gowa people. The group believed that the Regional Regulation No. 5/2016 contradicts Law No. 17/2003 on Public Organization.
Gowa DPRD Deputy Speaker Abdul Harris Tappa, argued that the group had not informed about their plan to stage a protest, and therefore no legislators were available to meet them. "There was no information about the demonstration at all," Harris said.
ABDUL RAHMAN
