Military chief admits 'dead or alive' order

BANDA ACEH, Aceh (JP): Chief of Lilawangsa Military overseeing North Aceh, Pidie, and West and East Aceh Col. Syafnil Armen admitted here on Saturday that he ordered his troops to capture Islamic religious teacher Tengku Bantaqiah and his followers "dead or alive" last year.

Syafnil told a court trying 24 soldiers charged with the premeditated murder of Bantaqiah and no less than 57 of his students in remote Beutong Ateuh village in West Aceh on July 23, 1999 that his troops were not guilty as they had only followed his order.

"They are not guilty as they were only carrying out their tasks in line with my order," said Syafnil.

The military had maintained that the deaths in the incident resulted from an antirebel operation.

Twenty four military soldiers and a civilian are standing trial in the unprecedented joint military-civilian tribunal of the murder case. If proven guilty, they could face the death penalty.

Bantaqiah, a former political prisoner and supporter of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), was reported be keeping about 100 firearms in the Babul Mukaromah Islamic boarding school.

Syafnil said the July operation was carried out based on information from one of Bantaqiah's aides, Kamaruddin, who was caught by the military, that 100 firearms were hidden in the boarding school.

"What was found were only two firearms and a number of sharp weapons," he said of the result of the operation.

Prior to the operation, the troops had been given training on "legal procedures and human rights", Syafnil said.

Under such procedures, soldiers are allowed to shoot to kill only if their lives were threatened, he added.

Three military witnesses told the trial on Wednesday that the soldiers opened fire in the incident because they were under attack from Bantaqiah students. They also claimed to hear Bantaqiah order the attack.

In the hearing, led by presiding judge Ruslan Dahlan, Syafnil was asked about the testimonies of witnesses describing how missing Lt. Col. Sudjono ordered the troops to shoot dead Bantaqiah and his students. On that account, Syafnil simply replied: "He must be a crazy commander."

"I doubt the shooting of the wounded was carried out by TNI (Indonesian Military) members," he said.

The session failed to present Bantaqiah's family members to testify, and only heard a statement from them.

The trial was adjourned until Monday.

Meanwhile, in North Aceh, alleged rebels ambushed a convoy of two vehicles carrying troops and injuring five soldiers.

The armed gang attacked a truck and a minibus carrying troops as it passed Nalang village in Jeuneb subdistrict on Saturday, local police spokesman Capt. Akhmad Mustafa Kamal said.

The wounded were rushed to Lilawangsa Military Hospital for treatment. (50/edt)