Public asked to watch over new neighbors

Public asked to watch over new neighbors

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The time to ask for and offer forgiveness for any wrongdoings
among neighbors during Idul Fitri holiday is over.

Jakartans are now asked to monitor newcomers in their
respective neighborhoods as the Jakarta Police lack the resources
to do so but are enjoined to protect the capital from possible
terror attacks.

Jakarta Police general crimes unit chief Sr. Comr. Moh.
Jaelani, said on Saturday that the police had deployed more
detectives down to the neighborhood level and asked residents to
immediately report the arrival of strangers to nearby police
stations.

Acknowledging that the move was taken following the report of
the escape of terrorist suspect Omar al-Farouq from a U.S. prison
in Afghanistan, Jaelani said that the police would maintain close
contact with the people.

"We have asked residents in each neighborhood to report any
new neighbors to a nearby police station. Our detectives then
will check the reports to make sure the new neighbors are not
suspected terrorists," he told The Jakarta Post.

He said that more detectives were deployed across the city
after President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ordered on Friday the
police to increase security measures following the escape of Al-
Farouq.

Al-Farouq, known as the lieutenant of Osama bin Laden and the
leader of the al-Qaeda terror network in Southeast Asia, had
escaped the prison in July. However, it was only after a trial
over a case of torture of prisoners in Fort Bliss on Wednesday
that the escape was leaked to the media.

The Indonesian authorities arrested al-Farouq in June 2002 in
Bogor, West Java, where he had adopted an alias and had two
children with an Indonesian wife. He was later handed over to
U.S. authorities.

Jaelani said that the security measures were also taken
following a warning from the Australian government, which claimed
on Friday that terrorists would launch new bomb attacks in
Indonesia before the end of the year.

"We have taken the necessary precautionary measures to prevent
a new bomb attack in Jakarta. We hope foreigners are not scared
away because of the warnings as we believe residents will give us
full support," he said.

Earlier, police said that the Jakarta Police had deployed
thousands of officers at several entry points to the city such as
bus and railway stations, Soekarno-Hatta International Airport
and Tanjung Priok port to monitor the influx of travelers to the
capital after celebrating Idul Fitri in their hometowns.

Police said that they would conduct spot checks of passengers'
luggage to look for guns, sharp weapons and explosives.

Jaelani said that police were still on full alert after the
Oct. 1 bomb attacks that destroyed two cafes and a restaurant in
Jimbaran and Kuta in Bali, killing 23 people and injuring more
than 130.

Jakarta Police have readied around 17,000 personnel, some
13,000 of whom are deployed to secure the flow of people entering
the city. They have also stepped up security at certain places
after Detachment 88, the police's special antiterror squad, had
said there was a strong possibility of bomb attacks during Idul
Fitri.

Some 2.5 million Jakarta residents left for their hometowns to
celebrate Idul Fitri there on Nov. 3 and Nov. 4 after the end of
Ramadhan. It is estimated that some 250,000 newcomers will come
to Jakarta this year.