Muhammadiyah activist held for allegedly harboring terror suspect

ID Nugroho, The Jakarta Post, Malang

Police have detained Muhammadiyah activist Joni Achmad Fauzani on charges of harboring a terrorist suspect, making him the first person associated with Muhammadiyah to be held for terrorism charges.

Joni was arrested on Wednesday shortly after returning home from Muhammadiyah's national congress in Malang, East Java, said Joni's wife, Suminten, on Sunday. Muhammadiyah is the country's second largest Muslim organization.

According to Suminten, four plainclothes police officers dropped by their house in Pacet district, Mojokerto regency, East Java, on Wednesday afternoon. The officers, from the National Police's antiterror unit, reportedly questioned Joni about reports that he had harbored a terror suspect for eight days last month.

Suminten said she did not know the identity of the man who stayed near their house, but later learned from police that it was believed the guest was alleged terrorist Azahari bin Husin. "I had no idea who the person was because my husband never told me his name," she said.

The man stayed at a nearby orphanage of which Joni is an executive.

Najib Hamid, the secretary of Muhammadiyah's East Java chapter, said the organization was looking into the case. The organization contacted the police and learned that Joni is being held at East Java Police headquarters.

"We will check whether he is being held there and whether he is being treated properly," said Najib.

Najib demanded the police be more open about the case. He said the police should reveal whether the person Joni is accused of harboring is Azahari, a Malaysian suspected of involvement in the Bali bombings that killed 202 people, mostly foreign tourists.

If the police cannot prove that the guest was Azahari, the police must release Joni and clear his name, said Najib.

The arrest came two weeks after the National Police anti- terror squad arrested 17 people in Central Java and Jakarta for alleged involvement in terrorist activities. Four of the men have since been released due to a lack of evidence.

Hundreds of people have been arrested on terrorism charges over the last two years, when the police stepped up efforts to combat terrorism.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who came to power last October, set the capture of Azahari and his Malaysian partner Noordin Moh. Top, the top priority job for the police in his first 100 days in office.