Indonesian president demands action

How much support the military will give Mr Wahid is not clear

Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid has issued a decree ordering the security forces to enforce law and order, as tension mounts ahead of a parliamentary vote on his impeachment later this week.

His order stopped short of declaring a state of emergency or martial law, which military chiefs are resisting.

Mr Wahid: Warning of chaos

Senior leaders of parliament were quick to ridicule the president's move. "This cannot be taken seriously," said Upper house Speaker Amien Rais.

Mr Wahid, who is facing possible impeachment in parliament on Wednesday over charges of corruption and incompetence, warned that attempts to oust him could trigger massive rioting and bloodshed and ultimately the disintegration of Indonesia.

It is business as usual... there is no political implication

Upper house Speaker Amien Rais

He said the provinces of East Java, Irian Jaya and Aceh would all declare independence if he was forced out of office.

"I have ordered the security minister to take actions and special steps to co-ordinate the functions of all the security forces to overcome the crisis, to enforce law and order and security as soon as possible," said the presidential decree.

Protests

But BBC Jakarta correspondent Richard Galpin says parliament is almost certain to go ahead with the impeachment proceedings.

It is not immediately clear what effect the decree will have.

Mr Wahid's defence minister said the move would not lead to mass arrests.

Some supporters want to fight a "holy war" for Mr Wahid

And his top security minister, Bambang Susilo Yudhoyono, said he would "study" the decree.

In East Java, President Wahid's stronghold, Indonesian police fired warning shots to break up protests by his supporters.

Thousands of the Wahid faithful took to the streets of towns around the regional capital, Surabaya, to protest against the impeachment proceedings.

Hundreds tried to force their way into the regional parliament building, burning tyres on the street in front of the building.

Earlier, they had thrown stones at a party office of Mr Wahid's deputy and chief rival, Megawati Sukarnoputri, then rampaged through the streets, torching piles of car tyres as they went.

Thousands of Mr Wahid's supporters have reportedly formed suicide squads to defend the ailing Muslim cleric, training in martial arts in secretive camps in East Java.

Time running out

Megawati has ignored pleas to share power

Our correspondent says the security decree may be more about increasing the pressure on political leaders to accept an offer Mr Wahid made on Friday to end the crisis.

The president said he would hand over executive power to the vice-president, whose party controls the largest number of seats in parliament. A majority of MPs want her to become president.

So far, Mrs Megawati has failed to give a full response to the offer. But leaders from her party and the other main factions in parliament have all rejected it.

In the press release issued by her secretariat, Ms Megawati said she had reservations over the offer, which she felt was legally shaky.