Britain embassy warns 'nowhere safe' in Indonesia

Britain embassy warns 'nowhere safe' in Indonesia

Agencies, Jakarta

Britain warned on Friday that nowhere was safe in Indonesia,
and again urged British nationals to leave the country amid
increasing warnings of more terrorist attacks following the Bali
bombing, which killed at least 190 people, mostly foreigners.

Britain has issued several warnings about Indonesia since the
Oct. 12 bomb attack, and in the latest warning said the threat to
British nationals and British interests "remains high."

"In essence, nowhere in Indonesia can be judged fully safe at
present. Our advice is that if your presence is not essential,
then you should consider leaving," the statement by the British
ambassador to Jakarta, Richard Gozney, said.

Britain announced last week it was pulling out non-essential
diplomats from Indonesia and urged its citizens to leave. It also
said that Britons should not travel to the country.

The Foreign Office earlier this week warned that the arrest of
terror suspect Abu Bakar Ba'asyir could lead to a wave of
reprisals against foreigners, and on Friday announced a ban on
the Southeast Asian terror group Jamaah Islamiyah (JI).

Ba'asyir is accused by Singapore and other countries of being
the spiritual leader of JI.

There are growing suspicions that JI may have been involved in
the Bali bombing although Ba'asyir has not been named as a
suspect.

He is wanted for questioning over a spate of bombings two
years ago, which killed 18 people, and an alleged plot to kill
Megawati Soekarnoputri before she became President.

The 191 confirmed dead in the explosions in a crowded tourist
nightspot area of Bali included 11 British nationals, with
another 18 unaccounted for.

Despite the strong statement from Gozney, Indonesian Ministry
of Foreign Affairs spokesman Marty Natalegawa said on Friday that
the European Union countries and Japan had denied reports that
they had issued travel bans to their nationals prohibiting them
from visiting Indonesia following the Bali bombings on Oct. 12,
2002.

According to Marty, they simply advised their citizens to
avoid visiting Indonesia for the time being,

"There is no travel ban from the European Union. It would be
unusual for the EU to issue a joint travel warning," he was
quoted by Antara as saying.

Marty made the statement after holding a meeting with the
ambassadors of EU countries in Jakarta on Thursday. It was also
attended by Ibrahim Ambong, who chairs the House of
Representatives' foreign relations committee.

The meeting, initiated by the Danish ambassador in his
capacity as the representative of the EU presidency in Indonesia,
was aimed at discussing efforts to deal with terrorism in the
country.

Marty said that during the meeting, the EU ambassadors
explained that their citizens were recommended not to travel to
Indonesia for the time being.

Japanese Ambassador to Indonesia Yutaka Imura also said that
his country did not prohibit its nationals from visiting Jakarta
and other cities around the country despite the Bali carnage.

"We have only advised our citizens to postpone traveling to
Indonesia if they don't have urgent business there," he said
after signing several diplomatic notes at Marty's office.

The notes dealt with Japanese government pledges to provide
Indonesia with material and technical assistance.

Imura said his government had decided to assist Indonesia in
investigating the Bali bomb attack by giving the latter a grant
of 2.5 billion yen (about US$20 million).

The grant was meant to help the Indonesian government overcome
the impact of the Bali bombings as quickly as possible, he added.

In addition, the Japanese government has also sent 21 forensic
experts, eight policemen, three antiterrorism personnel and one
DNA expert to help deal with the aftermath of the bombings.

Marty also denied that the Australian government was planning
to open a permanent intelligence office in Jakarta as part of
Canberra's efforts to help Indonesia root out terrorism.

"There's no such a plan, and Australia does not have such
intelligence offices in other countries," he said.

However, Australian Attorney General Daryl Williams told
parliament in Canberra recently that an Australian Security
Intelligence Organization (ASIO) liaison office would be opened
in Jakarta with immediate effect.