Riau Police Detain Foreign Journalists and Activists
Monday, 16 November, 2009 | 20:59 WIB

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: Police in Riau Province stopped two foreign journalists from India and Italy near a village in the Kampar Peninsula, on their way to Greenpeace Climate Defenders Camp on Monday, four days after environment activist were detained for staging a protest.

Kum Kum a Hindustan Times reporter and Raimundo Bultrini of the El Expresso was stopped as they were traveling from Pekanbaru the seat of Riau Province on two cars with some Greenpeace activists, to cover the Climate Defenders Camp.

Four police who stopped the convoy were those who picked up three Greenpeace activists from the camp set up last month about 150 kilometers east of the capital, to be taken to Pelalawan Resort Police. “One Greenpeace activist from Italy, one from Germany, and one from Belgium, Bustar Maitar Greenpeace Southeast Asia Forest campaigner said.

They were stopped at about 3:15 pm local time (+7GMT), the two journalists initially refused to be taken but Bustar said on Monday night that all the two reporters and three activists had been taken to the Pelalawan Resort Police.

Pelalawan Resort Police Chief Adjutant Senior Commissioner Ary Rachman Nafarin confirmed the report and that the journalists were required to file notice on their visit. While on the Greenpeace activists Adj Sen Comm. Ary said one Belgium activist was going to undergo “routine checks”.

On Thursday last week Greenpeace held a protest in a forest estate controlled by the Riau Andalan Pulp and Paper, which later dispersed by timber workers. Police detained 21 local activists and 11 foreign activist afetr the protests.

TITO SIANIPAR | RONALD