Students Storm Indonesian Parliament
Police fired tear gas and warning shots as thousands of rock-throwing demonstrators stormed the gates of Indonesia's Parliament on Monday in the largest protest against the country's president.
Three students were badly beaten by police as running battles broke out on the lawns of the heavily guarded legislature.
The estimated 10,000 protesters had marched through the streets of the capital, demanding that President Abdurrahman Wahid quit over two corruption scandals.
As the mob broke down the gates, lawmakers met in a closed session inside the legislature to hear the results of a long-running investigation into the two affairs that have bogged down Wahid's 15-month administration.
"Wahid must resign immediately," said Ijan, one of the students. Like many Indonesians, he uses one name.
Speaking to reporters at the presidential palace, Wahid dismissed the significance of the anti-government demonstration and laughed off demands that he should step down.
Even so, the size and violence of Monday's rally was reminiscent of protests that led to the ouster of former dictator Suharto in 1998, and his successor, B.J. Habibie, in 1999.
Police said about 1,000 supporters of Wahid had also gathered inside the parliamentary compound. However, their calls were drowned out by the much larger anti-Wahid demonstration outside.
Wahid has come under increasing pressure as his opponents take heart from events in the neighboring Philippines where President Joseph Estrada was forced to quit this month after protests and impeachment proceedings.
Analysts warned that Monday's protest in Jakarta might herald a new wave of violence in Indonesia.
"The demonstrations will continue. The students are looking at the fall of Estrada. This is just the start," said Taufik Abdullah, chairman of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences.
Last week officials from Wahid's Muslim-based party warned that bloodshed and chaos could erupt if the legislature tried to impeach him.
The investigation into the two scandals represents the biggest political challenge to Wahid since he was elected to office in late 1999 after years of authoritarian rule.
Lawmakers have not yet publicly released their findings. However, many say there is sufficient evidence to implicate Wahid in both scandals, despite the president's repeated denials of any wrongdoing.
It is far from certain, though, whether Parliament will pursue the case and initiate lengthy impeachment proceedings.
The investigation into Wahid comes as his popularity remains low due to his inability to fix fundamental problems besetting the world's fourth most populous nation.
Separatist and sectarian violence has killed thousands in several restive provinces, and the economy remains in crisis. Authorities also have failed to catch the masterminds of a series of deadly terrorist bombings.
The first scandal centers on Wahid's masseur and one-time business partner, who allegedly used te president's name to dupe the government's main food agency, Bulog, into handing over $4 million from its employees' pension fund.
Bulog officials say that months earlier Wahid had asked if the fund's money could be channeled into aid projects in Aceh, a province wracked by bloody separatist fighting.
Wahid has admitted he initially considered doing this, but later decided against it. Instead, he accepted $2 million from the sultan of neighboring oil-rich Brunei.
His revelation led to allegations of a second scandal, dubbed "Bruneigate," despite Wahid's insistence that the sultan's money was a personal donation.