GORONTALO: Protesters have set fire to a mayor’s office on an Indonesian island to demand compensation over a mining company’s activity in their area, police said, adding that several arrests had been made.
The unrest began Thursday in Pohuwato regency in Gorontalo province on mineral-rich Sulawesi island when a march involving some 2,500 protesters approached the local mayor’s office but no official was willing to meet with them, according to local media reports. “Regarding the demo, the police are still working hard to investigate the riot that happened during the demonstration in Pohuwato,” Gorantalo police said on its website late Thursday, quoting spokesman Desmont Harjendro.
He warned other protesters they would be arrested if they engaged in violent attacks or damaged public property.