Five members of banned group arrested<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Bekasi Police have arrested five men who claim
\nto be members of the banned Indonesian Islamic State (NII)
\nmovement in Pondok Gede.<\/p>\n
City police chief Maj. Gen. Hamami Nata said yesterday that
\nthe men were detained for their alleged involvement in the
\nprohibited organization.<\/p>\n
\"The organization was banned because it aims to undermine the
\ncountry and the government by planning to build an Islamic
\nstate,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Police identified the five suspects as Ahmad Sani, Arif
\nRahman, Abdullah, M. Uzen Aftarus and Achmad Chaffa. Their ages
\nwere not known.<\/p>\n
\"Their involvements was proved by some evidence, including a
\nkind of biography of Kartosuwirjo (the founder of NII) and some
\nbooks and documents which contained the movement's doctrines.\"<\/p>\n
Hamami said the evidence was seized during a raid early
\nyesterday at a house rented by the suspects.<\/p>\n
Bekasi Police precinct chief Lt. Col. Adjie Rustam said that
\nofficers had also confiscated Rp 10.6 million (US$3,100) from the
\npremises.<\/p>\n
He said it was believed that the money had been collected from
\nmovement members and sympathizers.<\/p>\n
\"The money was kept and managed by one of the suspects, Sani,
\nwho was the alleged caretaker of the group.\"<\/p>\n
Adjie said the men often held discussions and gave tutorials
\non Islamic teachings to their neighbors.<\/p>\n
He said the raid yesterday was based on reports from locals,
\nwho were suspicious of unusual activities at the house.<\/p>\n
Adjie said police were still investigating whether the five
\nmen had any special connection with a group of 21 men arrested in
\nSeptember.<\/p>\n
\"We're still working on it,\" he said.<\/p>\n
During the September raid at a house in Pondok Gede, police
\nconfiscated several religious books and movement leaflets.<\/p>\n
Some of the leaflets contained text from the 1949 proclamation
\nof the movement with the initials SMK printed on them. SMK is
\nprobably an abbreviation for Sekarmadji Maridjan Kartosuwirjo,
\nthe founder's complete name.<\/p>\n
According to the government-sponsored book 30 Tahun Indonesia
\nMerdeka (30 years of Indonesian Independence), Kartosuwirjo
\nproclaimed the birth of NII in Tasikmalaya, West Java, in 1949.<\/p>\n
The book says that he led his group of extremists, mostly from
\nWest Java, to some provinces across the country in an attempt to
\npersuade Indonesian Army members to destroy the republic and set
\nup an Islamic state. (cst)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/five-members-of-banned-group-arrested-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}