Indonesia's war on terrorism goes on, Mega assures the world

Wahyoe Boediwardhana and Tiarma Siboro, Bali/Jakarta

President Megawati Soekarnoputri has said Indonesia has been more serious in fighting terrorism than other countries, despite a new ruling that has cast doubt on the convictions of the Bali bombers.

"If I'm not mistaken, Indonesia could be the first and only country to have consistently resolved acts of terrorism and legally prosecuted them in court," she said in a speech on Tuesday to the Asia and the Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) transportation ministerial meeting on the resort island of Bali.

Megawati said Indonesia would remain consistent in fighting terrorism through legal procedures.

"We are fully conscious of the fact that our uncompromising stance may harbor risks, bearing in mind a majority of our people are adherents of Islam," she remarked.

However, she made no mention of a ruling issued last Friday by the Constitutional Court that Antiterror Law No. 16/2003, used to convict the Bali bombers, went against the 1945 Constitution.

"Despite the limitations we have, the world has become a witness to our seriousness," she boasted.

The new opinion overrules the retroactivity principle adopted by the law, and could provide an opportunity for the Bali bombers to file fresh appeals against their convictions.

The verdict sparked fears that the Bali bombers could walk free should they appeal to the Supreme Court.

However, officials have given an assurance that Jakarta would not allow any suspects implicated in the 2002 Bali blasts, which killed 2002 people, to be released, despite the new ruling.

They could still be convicted under the Criminal Code and an emergency law issued in 1950, they argued.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Bagir Manan said on Tuesday the Constitutional Court's verdict could not be held to be new evidence (novum), of a type that would enable convicted terrorists to file for review of their cases.

"Novum is whatever judges fail to discover when they try cases. Therefore, a new legal decision that comes after a court has issued a verdict should not be categorized as novum," he said at his office.

"Of course, such a new legal circumstance will automatically affect cases on which judges have yet to hand down verdicts," he added.

At least 33 people were convicted by the Denpasar District Court, under the Antiterror Law, for their involvement in the devastating Bali explosions.

Three suspects, Amrozi, Imam Samudra and Ali Gufron, alias Muklas, were sentenced to death, while four others -- Ali Imron, Sarjio, Suranto Abdul Goni and Utomo Pamungkas, alias Idris -- were given life imprisonment.

Others received jail sentences of three to 16 years.

Lawyers of the convicts hailed the Constitutional Court's ruling and said they would appeal to the Supreme Court, claiming the new verdict was novum.

Apart from the 33 people, elderly cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir is being detained as a terrorist suspect charged under articles 14, 15, 17 and 18 of the same law.

Police have alleged that Ba'asyir is a spiritual leader of the regional terror group, Jamaah Islamiyah (JI), blamed also for the Bali bombings. He could face the death sentence if convicted.

"The police can continue with legal processing of Ba'asyir, as well as other people involved in the Bali blasts, by using Article 55 of the Criminal Code," Bagir said.

The Bali blasts, the worst terror incident since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States, prompted a huge manhunt in Indonesia for members of the al-Qaeda-linked JI network.

Megawati, who will contest the presidential election runoff on Sept. 20 to challenge her own former chief security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, blamed terrorism for its devastating impact on tourism and transportation in Indonesia.