Police increase security ahead of September runoff
Police increase security ahead of September runoff
The Jakarta Post, Medan
National Police Chief Da'i Bachtiar announced on Wednesday he
would instruct police nationwide to remain on high alert ahead of
the Sept. 20 presidential runoff.
Da'i's statement came after a recent spate of violent attacks
occured throughout the country.
Although the attacks were apparently not linked to each other,
the incidents could, however, worsen the national security
situation if they continued to occur, Da'i said.
"These killings and bombings have not disrupted the situation
ahead of the upcoming election because they are not related to
each other. However, we can't let (these attacks) occur too
often," Da'i said.
"Each incident was motivated by different reason, and at this
time we do not consider these attacks are related," Da'i said.
A bomb attack earlier this week in Sei Bingei, Langkat, North
Sumatra killed one person and left three others injured.
The attack is believed to have been the result of fighting
between rival gangs.
Meanwhile, on Sunday, a clergywoman, Reverend Susianti
Tinulele, was shot dead in a church by gunmen in Palu, Central
Sulawesi, in an apparent bid to reignite religious violence in
the province.
A later bomb threat at her funeral on Tuesday led to the
evacuation of a church.
The police are still hunting down the perpetrators of the
killing and have put up police checkpoints in roads going out of
the province.
A police sketch artist is preparing a picture of gunmen's
faces to be distributed across the area.
A week before a series of small explosions rocked Bandung,
West Java. The bombs caused no casualties.
Police said that the motive behind the bombing was connected
with an anti-gambling protest conducted by several groups of the
city residents.
While these attacks were not linked, police still had cause to
believe certain groups were planning to disrupt the election,
Da'i said. He refused to identify the groups he believed were
responsible.
The police's increased alert status was a response to this
likely threat, he said. In a bid to ensure against riots and
other disruptions the call would go out to police chiefs
nationwide.
"Tomorrow, I will brief all provincial chiefs throughout the
country to order their men to stay alert to ensure the September
election runs smoothly. We have helped the legislative and
presidential elections to be a success, and we want this success
to continue," Da'i said.
Da'i said he had ordered police, including mobile brigade
units, to actively patrol their jurisdictions to prevent more
security disturbances.
Police were giving special attention to conflict areas such as
Poso, Maluku, Papua and Aceh and were deploying more troops
there, he said.
Indonesia has been rocked by a series of deadly bombings since
2000. Many have been blamed on the Al Qaeda-linked terror group
Jamaah Islamiyah (JI), although others have been linked to
separatist groups and feuding criminal gangs.