Separatists told to leave Ambon to attend trial

Separatists told to leave Ambon to attend trial

Aziz Tunny, The Jakarta Post, Ambon, Maluku

The North Jakarta Prosecutor's Office has ordered Maluku
separatist leaders Alex Manuputty and Semmy Waeleruny to leave
Ambon and return to Jakarta within 10 days to attend further
hearings in their subversion trials, officials said on Friday.

The order was issued as Maluku security authorities warned
that the presence of Alex and Semmy in Ambon could spark renewed
violence in the troubled province, where the latest bomb blast on
Monday tested a peace deal to end four years of sectarian
conflict there.

"They should not have returned home first to Ambon because it
is feared to bring a negative impact to the security situation in
Ambon and other areas of Maluku and this could create anxiety
among local people," said acting Maluku Governor Sinyo Harry
Sarundajang, who is also chief of the province's civil emergency
authorities.

Alex and Semmy, leaders of the separatist Maluku Sovereignty
Front (FKM), returned home to Ambon on Jan. 11, a few days after
they were released from detention at the National Police
Headquarters.

Head of the Maluku Prosecutor's Office Badrani Rasyid said the
return of the two suspects, charged with treason, to Ambon was
without the knowledge of prosecutors in North Jakarta, who were
handling their separatist case.

He said their return to Ambon had also affected their trial in
the North Jakarta District Court as the two defendants had
skipped another round of a hearing on Jan. 13.

For that reason, the North Jakarta Prosecutor's Office issued
an order for Manuputty and Semmy to leave Ambon and attend their
further trials in Jakarta.

"We give Alex Manuputty and Semmy Waeleruny 10 days (from
Friday) to leave Ambon and report to the North Jakarta
Prosecutor's Office, so that they can attend their upcoming court
hearing on Jan. 27," Badrani told The Jakarta Post.

He said he had extended the instruction to the defendants, but
could not say how they would respond.

"We have sent the facsimile to Alex Manuputty and Semmy
Walerunny for signing, after which the letter was sent back to
the North Jakarta Prosecutor's Office," Badrani said.

Meanwhile, Maluku Police chief Brig. Gen. Bambang Sutrisno
declined to comment on Friday about the return of the two
defendants to Ambon.

"It is beyond my jurisdiction to explain the whereabouts of
Alex and Semmy because they are under the responsibility of the
Ministry of Justice and Human Rights. So, their current return to
Ambon is under the ministry's supervision as the two defendants
are on trial," he said.

Even though Alex and Semmy have reportedly returned to Ambon,
they could not be found at their homes.

Bambang, however, said an unnamed policeman was arrested for
picking up Alex at Ambon airport on Jan. 11, where he had arrived
from Jakarta.

The policeman in question, who was identified as Alex's son-in
law, is being detained because he picked up the separatist leader
while wearing his police uniform.

Alex was arrested following his plan to hoist a separatist
flag on April 25, 2002, which coincided with the 52nd anniversary
celebration of the South Maluku Republic (RMS) movement.