Govt to send joint team to probe Timika ambush

Govt to send joint team to probe Timika ambush

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government has decided to send a joint investigating team
consisting of Indonesian Military (TNI) and police officers to
probe the Aug. 31 ambush in Timika, Irian Jaya, as separate
probes by the TNI and police have resulted in conflicting
conclusions.

Coordinating Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Monday
that the joint team would start investigating the incident as
soon as possible.

"The joint team should start its duty in Timika immediately,"
Susilo said after a Cabinet meeting.

Two Americans and one Indonesian were killed when unidentified
gunmen opened fire on a convoy of buses carrying employees of PT
Freeport Indonesia, a subsidiary of U.S.-based Freeport McMoran
on Aug. 31, 2002.

Six months of investigations conducted separately by the TNI
and police yielded conflicting reports on who was behind the
attack.

Police investigators alleged that several military personnel
were behind the attack, while the TNI investigating team
concluded that the Free Papua Movement (OPM) was behind the
killing.

Last December, TNI and police leaders sent a joint team to
investigate the killing. The team presented its findings before
ministers under the coordination of the Ministry of Political and
Security Affairs last Sunday but failed to shed light on the
ambush.

TNI and police leaders as well as ministers under the
leadership of Susilo agreed to bring the case to President
Megawati Soekarnoputri.

Susilo announced after a Cabinet meeting on Monday that a
joint team would be sent to Timika, Papua to investigate the
ambush.

He said that previous investigations failed to unravel any
proof regarding possible involvement of TNI personnel in the
killing.

"This is a delicate issue, so I have to underline that so far
no groups or people can be named as responsible for the attack,"
Susilo remarked.

He said that the government would try to explain the situation
to the United States government as the killing claimed the lives
of two American citizens.

Separately, TNI Chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto reiterated on
Monday that none of his soldiers were involved in the deadly
shooting.

"No TNI soldiers were involved in the ambush," he remarked,
adding that so far there was no police report that mentioned
their involvement.