Home folks treat Al-Ghozi like returning hero
Home folks treat Al-Ghozi like returning hero
ID Nugroho
The Jakarta Post
Madiun, East Java
The remains of the convicted terrorist and prison escapee Fathur
Rohman Al-Ghozi was transported to Surakarta last night for an
autopsy, following suspicions by his family that Al-Ghozi was
deliberately murdered by the Philippine security forces.
"The remains of Al-Ghozi are finally in our hands, but we
found something strange about the body. Previous reports said
that he was shot in a gun battle, but we found here that there
were sewn wounds on the body.
"Only the full autopsy may be able to shed more light over
whether he was killed in a gun battle or deliberately murdered,"
Rusman, the spokesperson of the Al-Ghozi family, told reporters
at the house of Al-Ghozi in Mojorejo subdistrict, Madiun on
Thursday.
The remains of Al-Ghozi arrived in Surabaya on Wednesday night
from the Philippines, and were immediately transported to
Mojorejo subdistrict for burial.
However, the planned burial on Thursday morning was eventually
canceled after the family consulted with members of the Muslim
Lawyers Team (TPM), who considered that the autopsy had to be
done to determine the cause of Al-Ghozi's death.
The official account stated that Al-Ghozi was killed in a
brief shoot-out near the town of Pigkawayan, Cotabato province,
in the southern Philippines late on Sunday in a raid launched by
security forces.
The shoot-out ended the long journey of Al Ghozi, who was last
year sentenced to 17 years in jail in Manila for illegal
possession of explosives. Al-Ghozi, who was said to be one of the
top operatives for the Jamaah Islamiyah (JI), escaped from prison
in June, and was on the run before he was killed.
Meanwhile, on late Thursday, members of TPM who also defended
several Bali bombers, including Fachmi Bachmid, and other Muslim
activists were seen escorting the body of Al-Ghozi, which was
transported by ambulance to Surakarta from his house.
Mahendradatta, another TPM member, said that Al-Ghozi would have
an autopsy in Moewardi Hospital in Surakarta.
Fachmi said that Surakarta was chosen because it had several
hospitals that were well-equipped. Fachmi also said that several
noted doctors had expressed their readiness to conduct the
autopsy, including Abdul Mun'im Idris from the University of
Indonesia.
After the autopsy, the remains of Al-Ghozi would be
transported back to Mojorejo subdistrict in Madiun for burial.