"True, we will soon send an investigating team there to see the reasons behind the clash and to find a way to prevent a recurrence of the incident in the future," Head of the Army`s Public Information Service Col. Dedy Agus Purwoko said here on Sunday.
For the time being, the investigation was conducted by a team from the Central Java Regional Military Command while a comprehensive investigation would be conducted by a team of the Army Headquarters, he said.
Earlier, Dedy said personnel of the Army`s research and development unit clashed with the Buluspesantren residents in self-defense.
He said the Army personnel had taken persuasive and procedural steps to prevent the residents from pushing their way into the Army`s research and development unit station.
"But they ignored (the measures) and even kept ransacking the station," he said.
Dedy said the clash followed the residents` refusal of the Army`s research and development unit`s plan to use the area as training ground. "We have given in by relocating the training area. But the residents continued to refuse the offer by holding a rally in front of the station."
Army personnel handled the rally by taking procedural and persuasive measures but they continued to attack and pulled down one of the name boards at the station, he said.
They also cut the branches of trees around the station to blockade the road from and to the station. "Consequently, access to the station was closed. They continued to ransack the station," he said.
Seeing that the mass turned uncontrollable, the Army personnel acted in self defense to protect the assets inside the station, he said.
Responding to critic that the Army personnel overreacted by opening fire during the clash, he said "it is not a matter of overreaction or not. But because they attacked our station and pushed their way into it we must do so in self defense."
He said all the injured had been hospitalized. "There are no fatalities. Most of them sustain bruise due to rubber bullets." (*)
(S012/H-NG/s012)
Editor: Ruslan Burhani
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
