Former spokesman installed as Yogyakarta police chief
Former spokesman installed as Yogyakarta police chief
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Amid strong public demands that the police
solve the murder of a local journalist, outgoing National Police
spokesman Brig. Gen. Saleh Saaf was installed as the new
Yogyakarta Police chief on Friday.
Saleh replaces Brig. Gen. Logan Siagian who will soon be
installed as chief of the National Police's Legal Supervisory
Agency (Kababinkum). Siagian will be promoted to two-star general
upon taking up his new posting.
The handover ceremony was led by the National Police's
Inspector General Comr. Gen. M. Nurdin, on behalf of National
Police chief Gen. Surojo Bimantoro.
Saleh's appointment was welcomed by the local chapter of the
Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), who issued a press
statement titled: "Welcome to Udin's neighborhood", to remind the
new police chief of the still unsolved murder of Yogyakarta
journalist Fuad Muhammad Syafruddin, alias Udin.
Head of the advocacy section of the AJI's Yogyakarta chapter,
Heru Prasetyo, asked Saleh not to repeat his predecessors'
mistakes in failing to solve the murder.
"Four former Yogyakarta Police chiefs, Mulyono Sulaiman, Bani
Siswono, Dadang Sutrisno, and Logan Siagian could not solve the
case.
"We don't want to hear any more police progress reports (on
Udin's case) which tell us nothing new. We want the police to be
serious in investigating this case," said Heru.
He suggested that the new Yogyakarta Police chief should
prioritize the investigation into Udin's slaying.
"It's been more than four years since Udin was killed.
Yogyakarta people have lost patience with the police's handling
of the case," he said.
"Those people who know what happened in Udin's case have to be
interrogated intensively soon, including former Bantul regent Sri
Roso Sudarmo and former Yogyakarta Police chief Mulyono
Sulaiman," said Heru.
Udin, who was a journalist with the Yogyakarta-based Bernas
daily, was severely beaten at his home by unidentified persons on
Aug. 13, 1996. He died three days later.
His colleagues and many others believe that his murder was
connected with his investigative reports into corruption in
Bantul regency. (23)