Credibility at stake

Credibility at stake

The stubborn skepticism that is evident in certain sectors of
our society regarding the progress that investigators are making
in Bali illustrates the difficult path that our National Police
have to walk toward unraveling the questions that are still
hanging over the horrendous Oct. 12 bombing. In particular, it
illustrates the need for our police officers to exercise caution
and good judgment, to act in a professional manner and give
performance precedence over any other consideration.

It is of course encouraging to hear our National Police chief,
Gen. Da'i Bachtiar, assure Indonesians and the world over the
weekend that the investigators in the field are making good
progress. Also, his appeal to the public to trust the
investigators in the field and discard any suspicions of police
fabricating facts in a case as serious as this is reasonable
enough. Excessive criticism and distrust on the part of the
public could hamper the investigation, especially when voiced by
people in high positions such as People's Consultative Assembly
Speaker Amien Rais.

Amien, talking to reporters in Makassar last week, said he
doubted the credibility of police work in the Bali bombing case.
In an apparent allusion to the fact that smooth progress in
investigating violent incidents was not a trademark of police
work in this country -- remember for instance the Trisakti and
Semanggi incidents -- Amien suggested that one method that could
be better relied on to reveal what really happened that fateful
night of Oct. 12 was by reconstructing the attack, rather than
simply questioning suspects. That, he said, would quickly
establish whether or not Amrozi, the only suspect in the case
interrogated so far, is telling the truth. As things are going at
present, he said, the general impression was that the
investigation was going all too smoothly. In other words, the
unfortunate impression is that the suspect's admissions were
either made under duress or fabricated by the police.

Of course those suspicions may not be justified. Da'i, for
his part, promptly assured the public that none of Amrozi's
confessions were made through coercion or were fabricated. In
fact, he told reporters in Jakarta, it was precisely to dispel
such an impression that he held a meeting with the suspect
organized in Bali last week. The encounter, Da'i said, was meant
to prove to the public that everything that Amrozi had revealed
about his role in the Bali attack was volunteered freely and
without coercion.

"I only wanted to verify whether what he (Amrozi) told the
interrogators was the same as what he told me. That was proven to
be the case," he said, apparently in response to public criticism
of the event. As for the suspect smiling and waving to reporters
and press photographers, according to the police general, that
was done at the request of reporters present on the occasion --
not a very professional act, by the way, on their part, if true.

So much for Da'i's version of that friendly chat last week
between the chief of our National Police force and a major
terrorist suspect. It could of course be true that the police
chief's intentions were, as he said, to assure the public that
none of Amrozi's confessions were made under duress and that he,
himself was offended by the suspect's seemingly untroubled
behavior and his smiling and waving to reporters.

Assuming Da'i's explanation is true, there is still another
aspect that the police general apparently has forgotten to take
into account -- which is the impression of gross insensitivity
that he created by his friendly chat with Amrozi and allowing the
suspect to behave in the manner he did. One cannot blame friends
and family members of those who died or were injured in the Oct.
12 terrorist attack, both here and abroad, for being offended by
that unfortunate show of insensitivity.

Indeed, it is difficult to avoid the impression that, through
the meeting, a tasteless public relations show was being
presented to the public for the benefit of our police force -- or
worse, for the benefit of certain officers in our police force.

That would have been distasteful under any circumstances. In
this present case, the biggest terrorist attach since the Sept.
11 attack in the United States last year and one that killed or
injured hundreds of people, such exploitation would be totally
unacceptable.

Police officers, whatever their rank, should always bear in
mind that their tasks and responsibilities are both a privilege
and a burden. It is important that our police officers consider
all the consequences of the actions they might take.
Unfortunately, the same must also be said of the press.