10 years sought for GAM 'treasurers' in court trial

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan, North Sumatra

Two alleged Free Aceh Movement (GAM) members who prosecutors say funded a grenade attack on a Medan hotel should be sentenced to 10 years in prison, the Medan District Court was told on Tuesday.

Prosecutors said the two men, Mustafa Halim and Tengku Zainal, provided funds for an attack on the Asean International Hotel two years ago, which they said was designed to intimidate the local population. No one was hurt in the attack, which shattered the hotel's front glass panels.

Head prosecutor Mardiana Sianturi claimed the two defendants he called GAM "treasurers" had hired two other men, Musliadi and Anwar, to throw grenades at the hotel, located on Jl. Adam Malik in downtown Medan.

The attack on the hotel, which is popular with foreign tourists, was aimed at sparking fear in Medan society, he said.

Mardiana said the two had paid Musliadi and Anwar a total of Rp 1.8 million (US$211.8) to carry out the attack.

Musliadi and Anwar, both who are witnesses in the case, received further payments totaling Rp 1.5 million after the Aug. 17 attack two years ago, while a remaining Rp 300,000 was used to cover the men's communication and meal expenses, Mardiana said.

Musliadi and Anwar have admitted in earlier trials the grenades were obtained from Abdullah Sulaiman, another defendant, who is also an alleged GAM member.

When the pair threw their grenades at the hotel, only Musliadi's exploded, Mardiana said. The two escaped by riding off on motorcycles, he said.

Head judge Abid Saleh Mendrova said the trial would be adjourned until Feb. 12 to allow the defense time to prepare its case.

GAM has been staging years of guerrilla action in the Aceh Nanggroe Darussalam province. Pro-independence sentiment has run high in Aceh following the reform movement's election to power in 1998.

The Indonesian government declared martial law in the province last year after peace talks between GAM and the Indonesian Military (TNI) failed. Many GAM members have been arrested and sentenced to long jail terms for their roles in the rebellion.