Indonesia back in spotlight after FBI visit, arrests

Indonesia back in spotlight after FBI visit, arrests

Yogita Tahilramani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesia finds itself in the spotlight again over terrorism
following the visit by Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
Director Robert S Mueller to Bali and the recent arrest of three
Indonesians in Manila for possession of bomb-making components.

During his two-day visit, Mueller held meetings with high
ranking Indonesian officials, including Coordinating Minister for
Political, Social and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono,
National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar and Indonesia's National
Intelligence Agency (BIN) chief AM Hendropriyono.

Mueller said that he appreciated what Indonesia had done to
fight against terrorism, reiterating that the U.S. understood
that Indonesia was, and would keep, working seriously to address
the terrorism issue.

Indonesia has recently become the target of criticism from
neighboring countries for allegedly doing next to nothing to
fight against terrorism.

The situation worsened after the Philippine police arrested
three Indonesians in Manila last week for possession of bomb-
making components. The three were identified as Agus Dwikarma,
Abdul Jammal Balfas and Tamsil Linrung.

Lawyer Achmad Michdan said in Jakarta on Sunday that he
recognized Agus as an important member of the Indonesian
Mujahidin Council (MMI).

"Agus Dwikarna is a significant player in the MMI. I'm sure
about this," Achmad told The Jakarta Post.

Achmad represents MMI chief Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, who has been
grilled twice by Indonesian Police Intelligence over his alleged
links with international terrorist groups, including reports from
Malaysian Police that he leads the al-Qaeda-linked Jamaah
Islamiyah militant group in Malaysia. Ba'asyir has firmly denied
this.

Philippine police believe the three Indonesians are members of
Jamaah Islamiyah.

According to Philippine intelligence sources, as quoted by
AFP, Agus has admitted to Philippine investigators that he is a
member of several Indonesian militant groups, including the
fourth in command of the MMI, an umbrella group advocating strict
Islamic law in Indonesia. Agus has also told the Philippine
police that he is the overall commander of a group called Laskar
Jundullah and a chapter head of Dewan Dakwah Islamiyah (DDI).

The DDI, linked to the former ruling Golkar Party, was set up
to coordinate Islamic missionary activities through preaching and
sermons, while Laskar Jundullah advocates syariah law for
Indonesia's 80 percent Muslim population.

Investigators have established that Agus, a civil engineer by
training, had illegally entered the southern Philippines island
of Mindanao previously in 1989 and 1991, the sources said.
Meanwhile, Tamsil also stated that he was a DDI member, besides
being a member of the advisory board of the Committee for Syariah
Law Enforcement Preparation, and a former treasurer of the
National Mandate Party (PAN), led by Amien Rais.

Abdul Jamal Balfas said he was the manager of PT Bumi Daya
Kutat, which he described as a contractor for an Indonesian
mining firm, according to Philippine police sources.

Indonesia's National Police chief of detectives Insp. Gen.
Engkesman Hillep, who attended the FBI meetings with government
and police officials in Bali, said the police were seeking
information so as to establish a link between the three arrested
Indonesians and terrorist groups.

He added that police were still focusing their efforts on
locating Hambali, an Indonesian cleric who is the primary suspect
in the 2000 Christmas bombings in Indonesia, and who, according
to Malaysia, was in contact with the two hijackers of the
aircraft that crashed into the Pentagon during the Sept. 11
attacks in the U.S. last year.

Hambali is currently at large. "The Malaysian police are still
focusing their investigation on, among other matters, the Jamaah
Islamiyah organization," Engkesman told the Post on Sunday.

Malaysian Police had earlier revealed that the Jamaah
Islamiyah was introduced to Malaysia by Surakarta-born Abdullah
Achmad Sungkar. When Abdullah died in 1999, Ba'asyir took over
with Hambali as his lieutenant.