Bali bomb trial to be held in Denpasar: Pastika
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Denpasar
While the investigation into the Bali bombings is not expected to be completed any time soon, the provincial police are already preparing themselves for the trial of the perpetrators.
Head of the joint investigative team into the bomb attacks Insp. Gen. I Made Mangku Pastika said on Friday that the trial would take place on the world-famous resort island.
"All those who are involved in the Bali bombing will be tried in Bali," Pastika told a media conference in Jakarta.
He played down the possibility of reprisals from Balinese seeking revenge for the blasts, which killed over 190 people and injured hundreds of others.
"Don't worry. The Balinese are a peace-loving people. If the trial goes ahead in Bali, public order and security will be maintained," said Pastika, himself a native of Bali.
The terrorist attack not only claimed many lives, but has brought about other serious consequences for the Balinese, including mass unemployment as a result of the virtual collapse of the tourist industry.
Pastika was commenting on a rally staged by some 100 local non-governmental organization activists, who marched on Thursday through the Bali provincial capital of Denpasar to demand that the trial of the bomb suspects be held on the island.
They threatened to create trouble should the alleged perpetrators of the carnage be tried outside the province.
The participants in the rally comprised the People's Representative Council (DPM) and several other local non- governmental and other organizations, including the Laskar Trisna Jaya militia and the Karangasem Youth group.
"We urge the authorities to hold the trials of the bombers in Bali as this is in line with Article 48 of the Criminal Procedures Code," DPM secretary I Nyoman Widana told the provincial police chief, Insp. Gen. Budy Setyawan, during a meeting that lasted less than 30 minutes on Thursday.
The protesters also marched to the Bali prosecutors' office and the provincial legislative council to voice their demands.
The DPM, a leading pressure group in Bali, is based in Karangasem district and has thousands of members across the province. The town, some 50 kilometers from Denpasar, is a stronghold of Bali's traditional Hindus and is known for having the province's highest level of violence.
In his reply, the Bali police chief said he would listen to the voice of the people and pledged to ensure that the trials of the bomb suspects would take place in the province.
"The Bali Police are prepared to guard the trials," Budy told journalists after his meeting with the demonstrators.