Primary charge against Ba'asyir dropped

Primary charge against Ba'asyir dropped

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Prosecutors recommended that hard-line cleric Abu Bakar Ba'asyir
be sentenced to eight years in jail for his alleged role in a
string of terrorist acts.

Ba'asyir, the alleged leader of Jamaah Islamiyah (JI), an
organization linked to the al-Qaeda terrorist group, is on trial
for allegedly inciting his followers to bomb two nightclubs in
Bali in 2002, and the luxury JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarta in
2003, crimes that could put the 66-year-old preacher on death
row if convicted.

But a team of 14 prosecutors failed to come up with sufficient
evidence to back up the primary charge that Ba'asyir had incited
others to commit acts of terrorism.

"The prosecutors aver that: First, Abu Bakar Ba'asyir is not
guilty of inciting people to carry out acts of terrorism, as
accused in the primary charge. Therefore, he should be acquitted
of this charge," said Salman Maryadi, the chief prosecutor,
reading from the 312-page indictment during a heavily guarded
court session on Tuesday.

"Second, the prosecutors aver that the defendant is guilty
of collectively (with other JI members) conducting acts of
terrorism. Third, we would urge the court to sentence the
defendant to 8 years in prison ...".

Some 200 police officers were deployed around the court as
hundreds of Ba'asyir supporters were present in the courtroom.
His supporters, some of whom were wearing black vests bearing the
slogans "Mujahidin" (Holy warrior) and "Hidup Mulia atau Mati
Syahid" (Live honorably or die as a martyr), jeered and heckled
the prosecutors.

Ba'asyir has denied any role in the bomb attacks, saying that
such acts were against his principles.

He has previously told the court that he was being prosecuted
for his critical views of the United States. He was arrested and
convicted shortly after the Bali bombings on immigration charges,
and was in prison at the time of the Marriott attack. He
completed his sentence in April but was rearrested immediately.

Since his trial started in November, prosecutors have
struggled to prove that Ba'asyir is a terrorist. Only one witness
testified that he was the leader of JI, while most of the
witnesses failed to link the cleric to either the Bali or
Marriott bombings, which killed a total of 214 people.

Ba'asyir's chief lawyer, Muhammad Assegaff, said that the
prosecutors had manipulated the facts used in the indictments.

The trial was adjourned until Feb. 17, when the defense will
make its closing statement. (006)

The prosecutors' weak case is likely to have prompted them to
seek a lighter penalty than the maximum death sentence.