Government urged to move against JI affiliates, members

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Once the United Nations declares Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) a terrorist group on Saturday, Indonesia should move quickly against suspected members, leaders and any affiliate organizations of JI in Indonesia, observers have suggested.

Kusnanto Anggoro, an international relations expert and military observer, nevertheless, cautioned the government to be precise in determining whether particular people and organizations were linked to JI. Otherwise, it would risk a backlash from hard-line groups.

"A local organization could be suspected as being part of JI if they both have the same ideology, have the same goals, and have collaborative and financial links. If the organization only has a similar ideology to JI, I don't think it can be classified as a JI affiliate," Kusnanto told The Jakarta Post.

Hikmahanto Juwono, an international law expert at the University of Indonesia, also warned that even when the UN declared JI to be a terrorist organization, the government could not take any measures against individuals or groups other than JI, unless it had hard evidence that they were connected.

"The government must be very careful about declaring an individual or a local organization as being linked to JI," he told the Post.

Similar warnings have also been expressed by various parties, including the country's two largest Muslim organizations -- the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah. They warned that the government should have strong evidence before making any move against certain radical organizations or their leaders.

Nevertheless, both the NU and Muhammadiyah have stated that they would support government moves against radicals if they were supported by evidence.

So far, the presence of JI in the country has been denied by local officials. Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has claimed that JI did not exist as an organized group in the country.

He nevertheless confirmed reports from Malaysia and Singapore that Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, currently under police detention for his alleged involvement in a series of bombing outrages around the country, was the JI's spiritual leader.

The Indonesian government reportedly submitted on Wednesday a letter to the United Nations to express its support for the proposal to include JI on the UN list of international terrorist organizations.

The United Nations is expected to list the group as a terrorist organization as early as Saturday, setting off domestic legislation making membership of the movement illegal.

Reports say that JI has links to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda terrorist network.

With the naming of JI as a terrorist organization, the government is obliged to take measures against the JI terrorist network and its members, according to international law expert Hikmahanto.

The obligation arises from Indonesia's support for the inclusion of JI on the UN terrorist list, he said.

According to UN Security Council Resolution 1373 (2001), all states shall take measures against terrorist groups, their members and their associates by, among other things, freezing without delay their funds and financial assets, banning them from entering or leaving the country, and prosecuting those who are involved in terrorist activities.

Unlike UN conventions, a UN resolution is actually not binding on members. A member state can either support or reject the resolution, Hikmahanto said.

"However, supporting the resolution will show the world the country's seriousness in combating terrorism," he said.

The UN Security Council separates individuals and groups on its terrorist list.

Some 80 individuals and 87 organizations have already been included on the list.