Lombok joins bin Laden hunt

Lombok joins bin Laden hunt

MATARAM, West Nusa Tenggara (JP): "Osama fever" has hit
Lombok, an island near Bali famous for its sun, sand and sea.

Last weekend, tourists and residents were bemused when police
stopped cars and searched vehicles in case vehicle owners were
hiding the world's most wanted man: Osama bin Laden.

An amused local businesswoman Elly Kelvin said she could not
stop wondering how the police could believe rumors that bin Laden
had gone into hiding in Bali or Lombok after President George W.
Bush named him as a suspect in the Sept. 11 attack on the United
States.

"It is really absurd," she said.

Heidy Frank, a German tourist, recalled how scared she was
when the police waved down her minivan. In her mind was the news
about the threats against U.S. citizens.

Sumiyati, a social worker, commented, "The police should first
find Tommy (fugitive Hutomo Mandala Putra, son of former
president Soeharto) before trying to catch bin Laden."

"The police stopped the angkot (public minivan) and searched
for the fugitive," she said.

The police declined to comment on the operation. Certainly,
they did it on their own initiative, not on President Bush's
behest. (raw)