Ba'asyir alleges conspiracy
Ba'asyir alleges conspiracy
Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Alleging a wicked plot to put cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir behind
bars by any means, his lawyers met legislators on Tuesday and
demanded a probe into the suspected conspiracy.
The lawyers also filed an appeal with the Jakarta High Court
to overturn Ba'asyir's 30-month jail term.
Muslim Attorney Team chief Mahendradatta said the alleged
conspiracy between police, prosecutors and judges was blatantly
obvious during Ba'asyir's trial proceedings.
"(The prosecutors and judges) deliberately kept Amrozi from
being called to the stand, but it was so bizarre because they
later based their verdict solely on Amrozi's alleged statement,"
he told House of Representatives Commission III for law.
Sixty-six-year-old Ba'asyir was sentenced to 30 months last
week by the South Jakarta District Court for his part in the 2002
Bali blasts that claimed 202 lives, mostly Westerners.
The judges relied on the sworn testimony of Mubarok, a Bali
bombing convict, who cited a conversation between his convicted
accomplice Amrozi and Ba'asyir about holding an "event" in Bali,
which the court interpreted as proof that the cleric had
conspired in staging the terror attack.
"The prosecutors, with help from the police, kept preventing
Amrozi from being summoned. They even adjourned the trial
whenever Mubarok couldn't make it. They clearly violated
Ba'asyir's right to defend himself against Amrozi's statement
because he never testified," said Mahendradatta.
He said Amrozi claimed to have never been contacted by the
prosecutors to testify and clarify his statement.
Mahendradatta said the verdict must have been handed down
merely to prevent the police from losing face again given that
most witnesses and evidence presented at the trial favored
Ba'asyir.
It was the second court case for Ba'asyir. He was cleared last
year of leading the regional Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) terror network
blamed for the Bali blasts and other terror attacks in the
country over the past few years, but was found guilty of
immigration offense.
The lawyers, said Mahendradatta, also suspected foreign
involvement in the trial due to the large amount of funds spent
on the hearings.
"It was odd that, instead of using a regular courtroom, they
had to rent a huge air-conditioned room and bring in dozens of
policemen and prepare meals for them," he said, referring to the
Ministry of Agriculture's hall as the venue for Ba'asyir's trial.
In response, Commission III chairman Teras Narang promised to
immediately arrange hearings with relevant offices to investigate
the lawyers' allegations.
Meanwhile, analysts have said that Ba'asyir could win the
appeal due to what they believe was a flimsy prosecution.
The sentence has been criticized as too lenient by Australia
and the United States, which insist Ba'asyir is JI's spiritual
leader. Canberra has urged prosecutors to appeal.