The Indonesian government postponed endorsement of a controversial new security law after its opponents clashed again with security forces in the capital, Jakarta, yesterday, leaving four dead.
About 1,000 students and residents hurled stones and Molotov cocktails at troops and police who sealed off part of the main road outside Atmajaya University, the scene of fierce anti-government protests almost a year ago.
The security legislation, seen by its opponents as handing too much power to the military, has prompted two days of bloody riots in Jakarta and other cities and a military spokesman said its endorsement would be delayed "until a suitable time".
"In this case, there are many sections of society who oppose the bill, and don't understand it intellectually . . . they need time," Maj Gen Sudrajat told the local Radio Sonora station.
A doctor said three protesters had been shot dead in clashes last Friday, apparently by snipers. "All three of them were killed by gunshots from a distance," said Dr Abdul Munin Idries, a forensic specialist at Cipto Mangkusumo Hospital in central Jakarta.
A military spokesman denied that troops or police had fired live bullets during the riots. He also said that one policeman had been killed in the clashes. At least 80 protesters were injured in the past 24 hours, hospital sources said. One man collapsed yesterday, blood gushing from his right eye. About 10 members of the Indonesian security forces have also been injured, the military said.
Traffic in the main Jakarta business district was brought to a near standstill, the streets littered with debris from the previous night's rioting.
Indonesia's parliament, meantime, demanded the suspension and formal investigation of seven senior government and finance officials in a bank scandal that has shaken President B.J. Habibie's political prospects.
Parliament approved a report of a special parliamentary team that said the central bank governor, Mr Syahril Sabirin, the Finance Minister, Mr Bambang Subianto, the State Enterprises Minister, Mr Tanri Abeng, and Mr A. A. Baramuli, a key ally and chief adviser of Mr Habibie, should face "investigation and court proceedings".
Action was also demanded against three officials at the powerful Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency, seen as a cornerstone of attempts to revive Indonesia's economy.
Analysts say the scandal may have killed Mr Habibie's hopes of winning November's presidential election. Dissidents in the Golkar party are using the issue to try to get the party to drop Mr Habibie as its candidate. A decision is expected next month.
The scandal revolves around a payment of about $70 million by Bank Bali to a firm run by Mr Setya Novanto, a leading Golkar official, for the recovery of loans from IBRA. Indonesia's opposition says some of the money went into the coffers of Mr Habibie's re-election campaign - an allegation he has denied.