Aceh People's Congress rejects security deployment<\/p>\n
BANDA ACEH, Aceh (JP): The Aceh People's Congress (KRA)
\norganizers rejected on Tuesday the massive deployment of around
\n1,700 elite Police Mobile Brigade (Brimob) officers to secure the
\nweek-long event which is slated to start here on April 22.<\/p>\n
\"We neither need nor ask for that many security troops. KRA
\nhas already organized its own security task force comprised of
\nstudents and Thaliban,\" congress coordinator Tengku Syamaun
\nRisyad said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\"We're afraid that the congress may regress into chaos due to
\nBrimob presence. We certainly do not want to give any impression
\nto locals that Jakarta is behind the event by dispatching a large
\nnumber of security forces. It will ruin everything,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The congress is to be attended by around 1,700 participants,
\nincluding representatives of the Malaysian-based moderate wing of
\nthe Free Aceh Movement Administrative Council (MP-GAM).<\/p>\n
There is no confirmation of attendance by representative of
\nthe armed wing of separatist rebels Free Aceh Movement (GAM) led
\nby Tengku Abdullah Syafi'ie, Syamaun said.<\/p>\n
National Police chief Brig. Gen. Roesdihardjo said in Jakarta
\non Monday that the dispatch of four battalions of Brimob was
\nneeded \"so that the congress can take place safely and
\nsuccessfully.\"<\/p>\n
Days before the event, however, tension gripped Banda Aceh and
\nnearby Aceh Besar regency after outbreaks of violence rocked the
\nareas.<\/p>\n
Locals complained about soldiers and Brimob officers
\nfrequently spraying bullets, wrecking markets without clear
\nreason.<\/p>\n
\"They do it for a 'trigger-happy' expression and people are
\nterrified. We have filed complaints with the local police chief
\nabout the matter,\" Aceh Besar councillor Tengku M. Amin Hasan
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Late on Sunday, around 11:30 p.m., two bomb explosions
\ndestroyed two rooms in the regency office and local legislature
\nbuilding in Aceh Besar. No casualties were reported in the
\nblasts.<\/p>\n
Accidental causes were ruled out when police found a 15-meter
\nwire stretching from the bomb site to the main road, local police
\nchief Lt. Col. Sayed Husaini said.<\/p>\n
Also in Aceh Besar, three bodies have been found, including
\nthe remains of Muzakir, 32, who was found under the Krueng bridge
\non Sunday with a gunshot wound to the head.<\/p>\n
As a result of security concerns, two special airfields which
\nserve multinational companies in Lhokseumawe, the capital of the
\ngiant industrial regency of North Aceh, have halted operations.<\/p>\n
\"The flights to and from Lhokseumawe have been temporarily
\nhalted since Monday. Who knows what will happen next?\" a senior
\nofficer at Exxon-Mobil (formerly known as Mobil Oil Indonesia)
\nsaid on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The employees are now working at the company's branch office
\nin Medan, the capital of neighboring North Sumatra province.<\/p>\n
Alleged separatist rebels have been blamed for attacks on the
\nairfield belonging to Exxon-Mobil, located 20 kilometers east of
\nLhokseumawe and the Malikussaleh airfield, about 45 kilometers
\nwest of the city. (50\/edt)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/aceh-peoples-congress-rejects-security-deployment-1447893297",
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