Malaysians arrested in Medan 'not revenge'

Malaysians arrested in Medan 'not revenge'

Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan

North Sumatra Governor T. Rizal Nurdin insisted that the arrests
and 6-hour detention by the local police of 19 Malaysians in the
city last Friday was not in retaliation for the Malaysian
authorities' arrest of illegal Indonesian workers in their
country.

"Local authorities are still studying the case. Of course, the
police have their authority to arrest foreigners without the
required documents, it has nothing to do with the crackdown on
Indonesians working illegally in the neighboring country," he
said here on Monday.

The 19 were arrested by police reportedly while in the lobby
of the Danau Toba hotel on Friday, because they were not carrying
their passports on their person.

It was also reported that they were released six hours later
after being allowed to retrieve their passports from their rooms
and paying the police the equivalent of around US$22, as a
"sincere contribution to the Indonesian police."

Rizal was responding to reports that Malaysian Deputy Prime
Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Achmad Badawi expressed his
suspicion over the weekend that the arrests were a retaliatory
measure.

The 19 were taken to the police headquarters for "further
investigation" before being allowed to retrieve their passports.

Malaysian authorities have deported hundreds of thousands of
illegal Indonesians and arrested a number of others following the
deadline set on Aug. 31, 2002 for all illegal foreign workers to
leave that country.

The governor said he had met Malaysian General Consul Mohammad
Yusof Abu Bakar to discuss the issue.

"I explained to the consul general that the arrests had
nothing to do with the issue of Indonesian workers. We do hope
that this problem will not damage the two countries' bilateral
ties," he said.

He added that he would readily explain to the Malaysians about
the arrests, and that he had instructed local authorities to deal
with expatriates fairly and in accordance with the law to
maintain a conducive investment climate in the province.

Meanwhile, Yusof Abu Bakar said he could understand the
reasons behind the arrests and on behalf of his government had
made an apology to the local police for their suspicions about
the arrest.

"I have just given a clarification to the police that Malaysia
was not offended by the arrests and what the police did was
consistent with the (Indonesian) law," he said.

Sr. Comr. Iskardar Hasan, chief of the detective unit at the
provincial Police, confirmed that the Malaysian envoy had made an
apology for his government's suspicions.

Hasan also denied the report that the Indonesian police told
the Malaysians to pay 80 Ringgit (around US$22) each for their
release.