Police call for close watch on Net surfers
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The City Police has called on Internet kiosk (warnet) owners to keep a better record on people, especially unfamiliar ones, using their services, as a part of preventive efforts to help wipe out terrorism in the capital.
Apart from technical problems in the field, head of the City Police Public Education Division Sr. Comr. Bambang Soerjo Wardjoko said the measure was being taken in light of the increased terror threat and the Aug. 5 JW Marriott Hotel bombing that killed 12 people and injured 147 others.
"Besides asking residents to be on the alert, warnet owners should check the identity of people using computers at their kiosks, especially those who are unknown to them," he said on Tuesday in a released circular.
The police apparently did not care for the inconvenience the measure would raise, because even is such a measure was applied, it may ultimately be ineffective and warnet owners would be reluctant to carry it out, as it was not obligatory.
National Police deputy spokesman Sr. Comr. Zainuri Lubis said the measure was developed in response to the discovery that terrorists used e-mail as a mode of communication within their network.
"Imam Samudra, a key suspect in the Oct. 12, 2002 Bali bombings ... surfed on the Internet while stopping over in Surabaya and Cirebon, either to check on the latest news or to contact his colleagues," he said.
The use of e-mail among terrorists was also highlighted by Brig. Gen. Gorries Mere, a senior officer at National Police Headquarters. Gorries told ABC radio station that police had intercepted an e-mail from terrorist suspect Asmar to another Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) suspect, in which he said he was going to "get married," a JI code word for bombing.
Meanwhile, warnet owners lambasted the police measure, saying it was ridiculous and would affect their business.
"The measure is quite ridiculous and cannot be justified no matter what the reasons are," Michael Sunggiardi said.
Michael, who owns an Internet kiosk in Bogor, said the new measure could be a blow to the business, as people might be reluctant to come to warnet if they were aware that their identities and Internet usage were being recorded on behalf of the police.
Bambang said police had also asked landlords to observe their tenants and any unfamiliar visitors.
The heads of community units (RW) and neighborhood units (RT) were also required to put an alert out if any unfamiliar or suspicious people were seen in their areas, as well as retain the personal identity card of newcomers.
"If you see anything suspicious, you can report them immediately to the nearest police station, or call 112," Bambang said.