`Smiling bomber' finally gets day in court
Wahyoe Boediwardhana, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, Bali
The first trial of a Bali bombing suspect began on Monday under extremely tight security, with prosecutors charging Amrozi bin Nurhasyim, the so-called "smiling terrorist", with plotting the attack.
State prosecutor Urip Tri Gunawan charged Amrozi with taking part in six meetings to plan the bombings, which killed 202 people, mostly foreign tourists.
"They talked about the Muslim obligation toward other Muslims who have been repressed and slaughtered by the United States and its allies in Afghanistan, Palestine, Kashmir ... and Iraq," prosecutor Urip Tri Gunawan read from a 33-page indictment.
The 43-year-old suspect has been charged under the country's terrorism law for plotting the bombings. If found guilty of the charge he could receive the death penalty.
In addition, Amrozi has been charged with using violence to inflict death and damage property, criminal conspiracy to commit an act of terrorism and the illegal possession and storage of explosives.
Amrozi, who earned his nickname from the press by giggling and smiling during previous appearances, was stony-faced on Monday during the packed televised hearing.
Among those attending the hearing were Australian Ambassador to Indonesia David Ritchie, British Ambassador to Indonesia Richard Gozney as well as relatives of the victims.
More than 600 security officers and Balinese traditional guards sealed off the area around the Nari Graha building where the hearing took place, while a police helicopter patrolled above the venue.
Amrozi's lawyers responded to the prosecutor's indictment by describing it as blurry and inaccurate, and asked the panel of judges, led by I Made Karna, to dismiss the charges against their client.
The defense lawyers said the indictment, for example, failed to specify the time and place of the alleged crime.
"In the primary charge, the prosecutors accuse the defendant of being one of the principal planners of the bombings. However, the prosecutors fail to describe any event or action that would qualify the defendant as a planner. They only mention that the defendant attended several meetings prior to the bombings, but did not describe the defendant's role in those meetings," said Wirawan Adnan, one of the nine lawyers defending Amrozi.
The lawyers also questioned the retroactive nature of the antiterrorism law, the main legal text used by the prosecutors.
Chief prosecutor Muhammad Salim said the prosecution team was prepared to reply to the defense's challenges. It will be given the opportunity to do so at the next hearing, which is scheduled for Monday.
Separately, Minister of Justice and Human Rights Yusril Ihza Mahendra said the government would not interfere in Amrozi's trial, and asked the public to allow the trial to run its course.
Yusril also asked the public to respect the freedom of the defense lawyers to voice their opinions. He said that he hoped the lawyers would be free to present their defense objectively.