Hamzah supports trial of ulema

Tiarma Siboro and A'an Suryana, The Jakarta post, Kuta, Bali

As police are scouring the country for three possible suspects in the deadly Bali bombing, Vice President Hamzah Haz said here on Wednesday that any party, including Muslim clerics, should be brought to court if evidence indicated their involvement in the terror attack.

When visiting the bombing site here on Wednesday, Hamzah pleaded for all parties to refrain from attaching the blame to certain groups, including hard-line Muslim groups, until investigations revealed the perpetrators.

"Please, don't hold misperceptions about these radical groups because we must see how the investigation progresses. ... Whoever is responsible for the attack must be tried, even if they are ulema," Hamzah said.

Hamzah Haz, who previously denied the presence of terrorists in the country, called on the security forces to take stern actions against terrorists now operating in the country, regardless of their religious background.

"We now believe that terrorist groups have been operating here and we are conducting an investigation into it," Hamzah told reporters after inspecting the bomb site for 20 minutes.

At least 190 people, mostly foreigners, were killed and more than 300 others injured by the powerful bomb blasts.

"The terrorist attack here was aimed at isolating Indonesia from the international community and destroying the country's economy," Hamzah said further.

Accompanying Hamzah were Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Minister of Health Achmad Sujudi and the National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar.

Hamzah has in the past defended hard-line group leaders, including cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, named by Singapore, Malaysia and the U.S. as the leader of Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) which the U.S. labels as a terrorist group.

Ba'asyir denies any knowledge of Jamaah Islamiah and any connection to terrorism.

About 6,000 people from Muslim groups crowded in and around a Solo mosque on Tuesday night to show their support for Bashir.

They heard former national intelligence chief Z.A. Maulani dispute the allegations against Bashir and say: "This war against international terrorism is merely a tool to dominate the world oil sources."

According to noted anthropologist Arief Budiman, Ba'asyir is a victim of the United States quest to create a bad-guy actor which will be the target for its strategic campaign against global terrorism.

"Through such a widely-exposed apprehension of Abubakar Ba'asyir, the world communities are expected to be alerted that terrorist attacks can take place anywhere, and there is no other alternatives than active participation in the United States-led war on terrorism", the Indonesian anthropologist said.

The police are still waiting to question Ba'asyir, currently receiving treatment at a hospital in Surakarta, Central Java.

Gen. Da'i said earlier that police investigators were looking into a possible connection between the Bali bombing and JI, noting that the bombs had similarities to previous attacks by an alleged JI leader Riduan Isamudin alias Hambali.

However, investigators have not linked Ba'asyir nor JI with the Bali blasts.

The Indonesian investigation team leader Insp. Gen. I Made Mangku Pastika said that the police were searching for three men -- all Indonesians -- for their possible role in the Bali bombing. Sketches of each have been produced, but they would not be made available to the public yet.

"The team has concluded that there might be suspects after interviewing dozens of witnesses, who observed three people acting suspiciously at the blasts sites," Pastika told reporters at the Ngurah Rai International Airport in Denpasar.

Meanwhile, National Police deputy spokesman Brig. Gen. Edward Aritonang said the joint investigative team, including foreign investigators, had cooperated with Interpol to locate the three.

He also said that the joint investigative team had completed forensic examinations of the dead victims.

The number of identified victims has now reached 56.

The joint investigative team will consult with the Bali administration, families of the deceased and their respective embassies over the fate of the remaining bodies that have not yet been identified or could not be identified.

"It depends on them whether the deceased would be buried or cremated," said Aritonang.