Megawati visits Bali amid sharp criticism

The Jakarta Post, Denpasar/Jakarta

Praised abroad but chastised at home, President Megawati Soekarnoputri on Tuesday flew from the APEC conference in Mexico to Bali to visit for the second time the site of the deadly Bali blasts in a move aimed at mending the image of her much- criticized leadership in the fight against terrorism.

At the press conference during the surprise visit, Megawati expressed gratitude for the assistance given by the international community to Indonesia in its time of grief.

"I would like to say thank you to everybody, both locals and foreigners, for their voluntarily help so that we could cope with the situation," Megawati said.

The Bali tragedy has put Megawati's leadership to the test at home.

Despite the fact that she managed to secure much-needed foreign aid and assistance during the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, she failed to secure much domestic support for her campaign.

U.S. President George W. Bush and Australian Prime Minister John Howard lent their support to Megawati during their bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit in Los Cabos, Mexico, over the weekend.

However, arriving at home, Megawati was met with sharp criticism from various quarters, including from People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Amien Rais.

Megawati has been especially chastised for her lack of firm leadership in the war on terrorism.

Instead of leading the war on terrorism herself, she mandated Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to take the lead in the campaign.

Besides, suspicions continue to be rife in the country that Megawati's administration was targeting Muslim groups to please the international community, especially the U.S., which has repeatedly accused Indonesia of being too weak when dealing with extremist groups.

The government's move in issuing government regulations in lieu of laws on antiterrorism also raised suspicions among some Muslims that the government was moving against Muslims.

Worse still, Megawati has maintained her silence.

Her aids, including Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda, have to repeat the government's denial that the various moves the government have taken are purely local initiatives to secure the country, and are not from foreign pressure.

Hassan said upon his arrival at the Halim Perdanakusuma Airport on Tuesday that the financial aid promised by some foreign countries, including Australia, was not tied with any move the government had taken or would take.

"The aid is mostly to improve our capabilities in dealing with terror, not some kind of compensation," Hassan told reporters at the airport.

Analysts, nevertheless, warn Megawati to be more articulate, not to depend too much on her aides and to take the lead in the campaign because the suspicion would lead to more domestic conflicts in the world's most populous Muslim country.

Following the criticism, Megawati held a rare press conference at Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport, giving the joint investigation team until the end of November to complete the probe to find the perpetrators of the bombing and also the identification process of the victims.

More than two weeks after the carnage in Kuta, the police have not named any suspects, although some quarters have linked the bombings to Jamaah Islamiyah, a shadowy terrorist group allegedly linked to al-Qaeda terrorist network.

The police, nevertheless, have said that they had identified one possible suspect, and were currently hunting him down.

The President also ordered an immediate opening of the bomb site so the Balinese can get on with their lives.

"Local people plan to hold a purification ceremony, a traditional Hindu ceremony, on Nov. 15," Megawati said.

The President is scheduled to attend the purification ceremony of Pemarisuddha Karipubhaya, along with the families of the victims.

This Hindu ceremony has rarely been conducted in Bali as it is meant to release the souls of the victims who died in a violent death.

State-owned airline company Garuda Indonesia agreed to provide two free tickets to each family who lost a loved one. The Bali hotel association had also agreed to provide free rooms.