RI regrets RP statement on suspected terrorist<\/p>\n
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja
\nThe Jakarta Post
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
The government regretted on Friday the Philippine's supposition
\nthat suspected terrorist Taufik Rifki is Indonesian, despite the
\nfact that his nationality has not yet been established.<\/p>\n
Spokesman of the ministry of foreign affairs Marty Natalegawa
\nsaid that the statement may have tarnished the image of the
\nworld's most populous Muslim country.<\/p>\n
He said that until now the Philippines had found no solid
\nproof of Taufik's citizenship.<\/p>\n
Referring to the statement, Marty said, \"We have no proof of
\nidentification that he is an Indonesian citizen. The suggestion
\n(that Taufik is an Indonesian) is based on his confession alone.<\/p>\n
\"We should be more careful with statements that we cannot
\nverify as they could create misperceptions about Indonesia,\" he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Indonesia has delayed providing consular assistance to the
\nsuspect. But Marty said a letter had been sent to the Philippine
\nforeign affairs ministry and ministry of defense asking for the
\nopportunity to question Taufik directly.<\/p>\n
\"We do not want to be involved in the ongoing legal process
\nagainst Taufik if there is not legal certainty on his
\ncitizenship,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Taufik, who was arrested on Oct. 2, has been declared the
\nsecond in command of the Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) terrorist network
\nin the Southern Philippines.<\/p>\n
The Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said on
\nFriday that JI was a national threat as the recent arrest of
\nTaufik had revealed that the group's plans were \"both deadly and
\nfar-ranging\" and could threaten the stability of the region.<\/p>\n
The Philippine police said Taufik had confessed under
\ninterrogation that he was JI's \"finance and liaison officer\"
\nresponsible for funding deadly bombings in the south.<\/p>\n
His arrest led government forces to an alleged JI hideout,
\nwhere they recovered bomb-making equipment and radical Islamic
\nliterature.<\/p>\n
The Philippine police also said that the arrested man is
\nclosely related to the late Fathurrahman Al-Ghozi, an Indonesian
\nwho was sentenced to 17-years imprisonment in Manila but was
\nkilled in a shoot-out after escaping from prison.<\/p>\n
Marty said there that many Indonesians left the country for
\nyears only to lose their citizenship, as they never registered
\nthemselves with the Indonesian embassy.<\/p>\n
\"We also hear that Taufik is speaking with a Malay accent, so
\nthere are many possibilities regarding his citizenship,\" Marty
\nsaid.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ri-regrets-rp-statement-on-suspected-terrorist-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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