Suspected terrorist Ba'asyir goes on trial for treason, bombings<\/p>\n
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Central Jakarta District Court opened the trial on Wednesday
\nof the alleged leader of regional terrorist network Jamaah
\nIslamiah (JI) on charges of treason.<\/p>\n
Many view the trial as being a test case of the country's
\nresolve to fight terrorism.<\/p>\n
The prosecution in its 25-page indictment charged Ba'asyir,
\n64, with being the leader and mastermind of a treasonable
\nconspiracy aimed at toppling the legitimate government and
\nestablishing an Islamic state in the country. If convicted, he
\nfaces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.<\/p>\n
Ba'asyir, who is identified as the emir, or leader, of JI, was
\nalso charged with procuring fake identification papers, a charge
\nthat carries a maximum jail term of five years.<\/p>\n
The police also announced on Wednesday they had arrested 17 JI
\nmembers, including Nazar Abbas, the alleged leader of JI's third
\nregion covering Sabah, Brunei Darussalam, Kalimantan, Sulawesi,
\nand the Southern Philippines. Three of them have been implicated
\nin the Bali bombings.<\/p>\n
Around 500 police personnel were deployed around the trial
\nvenue -- the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) building in
\nKemayoran, Central Jakarta -- where some 300 supporters of
\nBa'asyir had gathered.<\/p>\n
All visitors to the court were examined with a metal detector
\nand asked to leave their identity cards with security officers
\nbefore entering the building.<\/p>\n
The Wednesday morning session of the trial, which is being
\npresided over Justice Muhammad Saleh, started at 10 a.m. and
\nended at about 11.30 a.m.<\/p>\n
\"The defendant gave his blessing to the plan to bomb a number
\nof Indonesian cities including the Christmas Eve 2000 bombings,\"
\nstated prosecutor Hasan Madani said.<\/p>\n
Nineteen people were killed and scores more injured when a
\nspate of bombings hit dozens of churches across the country on
\nChristmas Eve in 2000.<\/p>\n
Reading out the indictment, Hasan said the bombings were
\ndesigned to shake the government and to encourage Indonesian
\nMuslims to wage jihad.<\/p>\n
Ba'asyir was also accused of approving a plot to bomb U.S.
\ninterests in Singapore and ordering the assassination of
\nPresident Megawati Soekarnoputri when she was still vice
\npresident.<\/p>\n
Ba'asyir, wearing a long white robe and white skullcap, sat
\nimpassively throughout the session.<\/p>\n
Asked by the judges if he understood the charges, Ba'asyir
\nreplied: \"Yes, God willing.\" Asked if he would submit a defense
\nplea, he said: \"Later. I don't accept the charges.\"<\/p>\n
\"I strongly object to this trial. The whole thing is slander
\nfabricated by the United States,\" Ba'asyir said after the
\nhearing.<\/p>\n
The trial will resume on April 30.<\/p>\n
Pressure has been increasing for Indonesia to try suspected
\nterrorists following the deadly Bali bombings on Oct. 12, 2002
\nthat killed at least 202 people and injured 350 others. Before
\nthe bombings, the government denied JI's presence in the country
\nand shrugged off foreign criticism that it was soft on terrorism.<\/p>\n
Defense lawyer Mahendradatta said the indictment was just a
\nrehashing of a document produced by the U.S. Central Intelligence
\nAgency (CIA), which had previously been published by TIME
\nmagazine.<\/p>\n
The indictment, he said, also revived the dichotomy between
\nIslam, the state ideology Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution.<\/p>\n
Separately, Central Jakarta Police chief Sr. Adj. Comr.
\nSukrawardi Dahlan disclosed that he had deployed about 500 police
\nofficers to guard the trial.<\/p>\n
The bomb squad searched the courtroom before the hearing began
\nwhile both regular and paramilitary police stood guard around the
\nbuilding.<\/p>\n
Police closed the approach road to the court and two water
\ncannon were stationed nearby.<\/p>\n
About one hundred supporters, many of whom came from
\nBa'asyir's Islamic boarding school in Surakarta, Central Java,
\nwere on hand outside the court to provide moral support for
\nBa'asyir.<\/p>\n
They unfurled banners reading: \"A Muslim cleric is detained;
\nthe corrupt are protected\", and \"Who Is The Real Terrorist?\"<\/p>\n
Chronology of Ba'asyir detention
\n----------------------------------------------------------------
\n- Oct.20, 2002 : Ba'asyir was arrested, but was not put
\ninto detention from Oct. 20 through Nov.1, 2002.<\/p>\n
- Nov.2 - Nov.21, 2002 : Put into detention.<\/p>\n
- Nov.22 - Dec.31, 2002 : Detention extended by Jakarta
\nProsecutor's Office.<\/p>\n
- Jan.1 - Jan.30, 2003 : Detention extended by South Jakarta
\nDistrict Court.<\/p>\n
- Jan.31 - March 1, 2003: Detention extended by South Jakarta
\nDistrict Court.<\/p>\n
- Feb.28 - March 19 2003: Detained by State Prosecutors<\/p>\n
- March 20 - April 18 : Detention extended by South Jakarta
\nDistrict Court.<\/p>\n
April 23 : Trial begins<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/suspected-terrorist-baasyir-goes-on-trial-for-treason-bombings-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }