Ja'far demands deployment of militias in Ambon
Ja'far demands deployment of militias in Ambon
JAKARTA (JP): Members of Laskar Jihad Ahlus Sunnah Wal
Jamma'ah said on Wednesday that their detained commander, Ja'far
Umar Thalib, had instructed the deployment of 100 reinforcements
from the Muslim militia group to the Maluku capital of Ambon.
Chief of the Laskar Jihad communication center, Ayip
Syarifuddin, said after visiting Ja'far at the National Police
Headquarters that the group's fighters would be tasked with
preventing any kind of blasphemy or criminal acts against Islam.
"Despite the fact that our commander is in police custody, he
still cares about the nation. He spoke to us like a teacher
speaks to his students," Ayip said.
Police officials could not hide their surprise upon learning
the message Ja'far had conveyed to his supporters.
"Just because Ja'far is in police custody, this does not mean
that we have stopped observing the Laskar Jihad forces. We will
always keep an eye on them," National Police spokesman Insp. Gen.
Didi Widayadi said.
Police arrested Ja'far last week on charges of inciting hatred
against a religion and passing down a sentence applied in Islamic
law, under which one his followers was stoned to death.
Dressed in white and other bold uniform colors, some 200
Laskar Jihad members visited Ja'far on Wednesday. They met with
him in groups of 30, under tight security.
Unusually, the talks were held in the National Police
detectives' office main hall.
A police officer supervising the visitation said that
conversations between Ja'far and his supporters were conducted in
Arabic.
Didi said that "security purposes" was the rationale behind
the choice of venue for the meetings.
He also revealed that police officers found 26 steel rods,
each about 60 centimeters long, and a bullet-proof vest in one of
the vans carrying the visiting Laskar Jihad supporters.
The Suzuki Carry van had transported Laskar Jihad members from
Surakarta, Central Java.
Only after confiscating the possible weapons did police allow
the Muslim group's members to visit Ja'far.
Didi had earlier said that police had observed Ja'far closely
when he mobilized militia movements from Tanjung Priok in North
Jakarta to riot-torn Ambon in 1999.
Over two years of communal violence in the Maluku provinces
has resulted in nearly complete devastation for the more than 2
million people living there.
At least 8,000 people were killed in the conflict, which
pitted Muslims against Christians.
The arrest of Ja'far was lauded by several scholars who have
conducted research in Maluku in a bid to establish peace,
including sociologist Lambang Trijono of the Gadjah Mada
University in Yogyakarta.
"It has gradually been revealed that the presence of the jihad
forces in Maluku only sharpened the ongoing conflict between
Christians and Muslims," Lambang said on Wednesday.
Lambang said the relationship between Laskar Jihad Ahlus
Sunnah Wal Jamaah and local jihad forces had been severed
following a plan by Ja'far to bomb a prostitution den in the
Ambon area of Galunggung, which was opposed by his local
counterparts. (ylt/44)
JAKARTA (JP): Members of Laskar Jihad Ahlus Sunnah Wal
Jamma'ah said on Wednesday that their detained commander, Ja'far
Umar Thalib, had instructed the deployment of 100 reinforcements
from the Muslim militia group to the Maluku capital of Ambon.
Chief of the Laskar Jihad communication center, Ayip
Syarifuddin, said after visiting Ja'far at the National Police
Headquarters that the group's fighters would be tasked with
preventing any kind of blasphemy or criminal acts against Islam.
"Despite the fact that our commander is in police custody, he
still cares about the nation. He spoke to us like a teacher
speaks to his students," Ayip said.
Police officials could not hide their surprise upon learning
the message Ja'far had conveyed to his supporters.
"Just because Ja'far is in police custody, this does not mean
that we have stopped observing the Laskar Jihad forces. We will
always keep an eye on them," National Police spokesman Insp. Gen.
Didi Widayadi said.
Police arrested Ja'far last week on charges of inciting hatred
against a religion and passing down a sentence applied in Islamic
law, under which one his followers was stoned to death.
Dressed in white and other bold uniform colors, some 200
Laskar Jihad members visited Ja'far on Wednesday. They met with
him in groups of 30, under tight security.
Unusually, the talks were held in the National Police
detectives' office main hall.
A police officer supervising the visitation said that
conversations between Ja'far and his supporters were conducted in
Arabic.
Didi said that "security purposes" was the rationale behind
the choice of venue for the meetings.
He also revealed that police officers found 26 steel rods,
each about 60 centimeters long, and a bullet-proof vest in one of
the vans carrying the visiting Laskar Jihad supporters.
The Suzuki Carry van had transported Laskar Jihad members from
Surakarta, Central Java.
Only after confiscating the possible weapons did police allow
the Muslim group's members to visit Ja'far.
Didi had earlier said that police had observed Ja'far closely
when he mobilized militia movements from Tanjung Priok in North
Jakarta to riot-torn Ambon in 1999.
Over two years of communal violence in the Maluku provinces
has resulted in nearly complete devastation for the more than 2
million people living there.
At least 8,000 people were killed in the conflict, which
pitted Muslims against Christians.
The arrest of Ja'far was lauded by several scholars who have
conducted research in Maluku in a bid to establish peace,
including sociologist Lambang Trijono of the Gadjah Mada
University in Yogyakarta.
"It has gradually been revealed that the presence of the jihad
forces in Maluku only sharpened the ongoing conflict between
Christians and Muslims," Lambang said on Wednesday.
Lambang said the relationship between Laskar Jihad Ahlus
Sunnah Wal Jamaah and local jihad forces had been severed
following a plan by Ja'far to bomb a prostitution den in the
Ambon area of Galunggung, which was opposed by his local
counterparts. (ylt/44)