VP denies govt interference in the arrest of Ba'asyir<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Hard-line Muslim groups lost their guardian angel in the
\ngovernment as Vice President Hamzah Haz threw in his support for
\nthe arrest by the National Police of terror suspect Abu Bakar
\nBa'asyir.<\/p>\n
Hamzah stressed on Monday that the current police effort to
\narrest Ba'asyir was based on the law and not to fulfill
\ninternational community demands for his arrest.<\/p>\n
\"The police action is based on legal aspects, the government
\nhas never engineered the arrest of Ba'asyir,\" Hamzah said.<\/p>\n
\"The government will not interfere with the investigation as
\nthis is the duty of the police and the arrest (of Ba'asyir) is
\nbased on the Criminal Code. However, if the investigation links
\nhim to the Bali bombing, then the police could use the new
\nantiterrorism regulations,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Hamzah's statement was apparently in contrast to his earlier
\ncomments that he would be the person to protect Muslim hard-
\nliners should the authorities move to crack down on them.<\/p>\n
\"Only if they are proven to be terrorists will I myself order
\nthe arrest,\" he said last month.<\/p>\n
However, Hamzah backtracked on his earlier stance and stressed
\nthat should Ba'asyir be guilty the authorities need to take
\naction against him.<\/p>\n
Ba'asyir, detained over the weekend in a crackdown on
\nterrorist suspects following the Bali bombings on Oct. 12, has
\nbeen undergoing treatment since Friday at the Muhammadiyah
\nHospital in Surakarta, Central Java.<\/p>\n
Ba'asyir was taken to the hospital after he collapsed during a
\nnews conference on Friday.<\/p>\n
Ba'asyir's lawyer Mahendratta said that in addition to lethal
\nbombings, the charges against his client included a plot to
\nassassinate President Megawati Soekarnoputri.<\/p>\n
\"Pak Ba'asyir is suspected of a conspiracy to murder the
\nPresident or Vice President,\" Mahendratta told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
The allegation was listed on a police summons handed to
\nBa'asyir, explaining the reasons for his detention, he added.<\/p>\n
Police say they arrested him after a detained al-Qaeda
\nsuspect, Omar al-Faruq, told Indonesian investigators that
\nBa'asyir was implicated in bomb plots.<\/p>\n
Time magazine reported last month that al-Faruq had admitted
\nto plotting to assassinate Megawati before she became president
\nand masterminding a series of bomb attacks in the country. He
\nalso admitted to having links with Ba'asyir.<\/p>\n
Mahendratta said the summons for Ba'asyir did not mention the
\nBali bombings, which killed nearly 200 people.<\/p>\n
He said Ba'asyir is also charged with violating laws on
\npossession of explosives and firearms and destruction of
\nproperty.<\/p>\n
\"He is also suspected of breaking the immigration law for
\nallegedly entering and leaving Indonesia without a passport or
\nother travel documents,\" Mahendratta added.<\/p>\n
If convicted, the elderly Muslim cleric could face the death
\npenalty for the explosives and firearms charges.<\/p>\n
Mahendratta's colleague Djoko Trisnowidodo said the team of
\nlawyers were preparing a lawsuit against the National Police for
\nallegedly producing \"baseless\" charges against Ba'asyir.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile in Surakarta, doctors said Ba'asyir's health was
\nimproving, although he remained on an intravenous food drip and
\noxygen nasal tube.<\/p>\n
\"In general, the patient's health is getting better. Only his
\nlung problems still require special treatment,\" said Ros Edi
\nAriswati, the director of the Muhammadiyah hospital, who leads a
\nteam of doctors treating the suspect.<\/p>\n
Another doctor, Suradi, said respiratory problems resurfaced
\nafter Ba'asyir was taken off oxygen on Sunday evening, forcing
\nthe doctors to put him back on.<\/p>\n
Speaking at a media conference, Ariswati would not say when
\nthe 64-year-old cleric could be discharged from the hospital.<\/p>\n
Despite the campaigns against Ba'asyir, support has begun to
\ndrift into the hospital with several Muslim figures visiting the
\nbearded terrorist suspect.<\/p>\n
On Monday, Nahdlatul Ulama leader Solahuddin Wahid, younger
\nbrother of former president Abdurrahman \"Gus Dur\" Wahid, was
\namong the visitors after their uncle Yusuf Hasyim extended
\nsimilar moral support for the ailing cleric on Sunday.<\/p>\n
However, Gus Dur told a radio interview broadcast on Monday
\nthat \"I believe that Ba'asyir is a terrorist and should have been
\narrested a long time ago\".<\/p>\n
Criticizing Megawati's cautious approach toward radicals, Gus
\nDur demanded that other extremist leaders soon be cracked down on
\nfor a series of violent incidents purportedly committed in the
\nname of Islam.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/vp-denies-govt-interference-in-the-arrest-of-baasyir-1447893297",
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