New Order agents 'might be behind bomb blasts'<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government pledged on Thursday to get to the
\nbottom of a series of bomb attacks here and was cautiously
\nsuggesting that remnants of the New Order regime or wayward
\nmilitary personnel might be behind the senseless acts.<\/p>\n
Attorney General Marzuki Darusman told reporters after a
\nbiweekly Cabinet meeting that President Abdurrahman Wahid has
\ninstructed the Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Adm. Widodo A.S.
\nto help police in investigating the cases as the government felt
\nthat the military had been uncooperative.<\/p>\n
\"The government feels that clearly there have been obstacles
\nin the sense that police investigations (over a series of bomb
\nblasts) had been discontinued when they were about to conclude
\nthat the (military) apparatus might be involved ... they are
\nbeyond the reach of the police,\" Marzuki said.<\/p>\n
\"We know the source of the problem and those who have been
\nhampering the investigations. The TNI chief has been authorized
\nto break through this (barrier) and to resolve the problem,
\ninstitutionally,\" he added.<\/p>\n
However, Marzuki stopped short of declaring that military
\npersonnel were behind the bomb attacks.<\/p>\n
Later in the day, Cabinet Secretary Marsilam Simanjuntak
\nquoted the President as saying that those responsible for the
\nblasts would be prosecuted and that \"nobody is above the law\".<\/p>\n
Coordinating Minister for the Economy Rizal Ramli described
\nthe bombing as a \"barbaric act\" which was aimed at sabotaging the
\ncountry's economic recovery.<\/p>\n
Separately, one of Soeharto's lawyers, Juan Felix Tampubolon,
\nsaid on Thursday:<\/p>\n
\"I'm confident that my client (Soeharto) was not behind this
\n(bombing). Anyone can point the finger at my client, but if the
\npolice were to think on the same lines as them I don't think it's
\nwise.\"<\/p>\n
\"The police must get hold of the bombers first.\"<\/p>\n
Another of Soeharto's lawyers, Muhammad Assegaf, said there
\nare rumors that certain parties were taking advantage of
\nSoeharto's trial to conduct terrorist acts and \"put the blame on
\nPak Harto.\"<\/p>\n
\"Anybody can say anything. Even in Caday's (Philippine
\nAmbassador) case, they were saying that the Cendana (Soeharto's
\nresidence) family was behind it,\" Assegaf said.<\/p>\n
The U.S. government condemned the bombing and called upon the
\nperpetrators of this act of terrorism \"to cease their unspeakably
\ncruel acts.\"<\/p>\n
\"If asked, we stand ready to assist the Indonesian government
\nin trying to solve this crime,\" the U.S. embassy said in a
\nstatement made available to the Post.<\/p>\n
Jakartans were horrified on Wednesday when a powerful blast
\nrocked the 34-story Jakarta Stock Exchange (JSX) building in the
\nbusy Central Business District which is in the heart of the
\ncapital, in the afternoon.<\/p>\n
The blast killed at least 10 people and injured over 30
\nothers. But police kept insisting that 15 men died in the blast
\neven though they failed to produce the bodies.<\/p>\n
\"Ten dead bodies were found in the smoke-filled underground
\nparking lot later in the night while the other five died at the
\nPertamina Hospital, after receiving emergency treatment, shortly
\nafter the explosion,\" Jakarta Police spokesman Supt. Nur Usman
\nsaid on Thursday.<\/p>\n
A senior officer at the National Police Forensic Laboratory
\n(Puslabfor) said the blast was caused by a bomb containing over
\none kilogram of TNT, the highly flammable toxic compound
\ntrinitrotoluene.<\/p>\n
Another forensic officer, Supt. Marsudi, said the bomb was
\nplaced at the rear of a car. The car was split into two by the
\nblast. The rear side of the car he said, was completely damaged,
\nwhile the front part was blown six meters away.<\/p>\n
The explosion left a hole, 60 centimeters in diameter, in the
\nfloor of the P2 parking lot where the car was believed to have
\nbeen parked. Another one-square-meter hole was found in the floor
\nof the P1 parking lot, which is one level above.<\/p>\n
By Thursday evening, police said that at least 81 cars, mostly
\nsedans, had been completely damaged by the explosion. Some 110
\nother vehicles were partly damaged.<\/p>\n
Nur said the building, except for the parking lots, is now
\nsafe. A joint forensic team is still working among the debris,
\nlooking for more possible clues.<\/p>\n
The Capital Market Supervisory Agency chief, Herwidayatmo,
\nsaid the loss suffered by JSX in the blast was not so much in
\nmaterial terms as it was on its image because the stock exchange
\nportrays the country's economic state.<\/p>\n
Chief commissioner of JSX, Erry Riyana Hardjapamekas, said the
\nstock exchange had lost administration fees worth some Rp 300
\nbillion (US$33.3 million).<\/p>\n
Separately, PT. Procon Indah, which manages the JSX building
\nrefused to disclose their estimated loss, saying that the
\ninsurance company is still calculating the damage.<\/p>\n
The company's staffer Carrey Alam said the management has
\ndecided to close the building until Monday due to the serious
\ndamage to its sewer system, forcing the JSX to suspend its
\ntrading on Thursday and Friday.<\/p>\n
Police spokesman Nur Usman said his office has questioned five
\nwitnesses over the incident, namely, Darmus, a retired military
\nofficer; Kusnadi and Haryadi, both entrepreneurs; Oding
\nSupriyadi, a security officer of Danamon Bank; and Sahat Siahaan,
\na JSX driver.<\/p>\n
\"The witnesses said that about 15 minutes before the blast, a
\nToyota Kijang was seen being parked and the driver then left the
\nbuilding immediately,\" Nur said.<\/p>\n
On Thursday, at least two offices in the Central Business
\nDistrict received bomb threats, that turned out to be hoaxes.
\n(prb\/byg\/dja\/ylt)<\/p>",
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