Soldier gets 3.5 years for Ambon bombings

Oktovianus Pinontoan, The Jakarta Post, Ambon

A court martial held in the troubled Maluku province's capital city of Ambon sentenced a soldier to three years and six months in jail on Tuesday for his involvement in a series of bombings in the eastern Indonesian city before last February's peace deal was signed.

Chief Pvt. Kanafi, a member of the security task force in Ambon, was also dishonorably discharged from the Indonesian Military (TNI) for his role in provoking trouble in Maluku.

Military prosecutors had demanded the death penalty or at least a life sentence for the defendant.

The court martial's judges found Kanafi guilty of involvement in at least nine bombing incidents across Maluku since he was assigned to the strife-torn province.

The latest bomb blast, in which he played a key role, damaged the Maluku governor's office on Nov. 30, 2001. No casualties were reported.

Six days earlier, Kanafi also hurled a bomb in a street adjacent to a Maluku Protestant church, the court added.

The court martial, however, failed to reveal the motive behind Kanafi's involvement in the bombings nor the masterminds. Neither was it able to reveal whether the defendant was obeying his commander's orders or working on his own behalf.

The judges, presided over by Col. Supiandi, simply said Kanafi was trying to disrupt the security situation in Ambon.

It was the first court verdict of any kind handed down against trouble-makers in Maluku since fighting first broke out between Muslims and Christians in January 1999. The religious conflict raged on until recently with some 6,000 people killed in three years.

Leaders from both warring factions signed a peace pact on Feb. 12, 2002, to end the clashes. Yet, it seems to have been ineffective as sporadic attacks and bombings are still terrorizing local people.

Kanafi was arrested along with Aras Pantororeng, a civilian resident living in the Christian area of Batumerah, by local security forces who stopped their Yamaha RX King motorcycle.

The security personnel seized a five-kilogram bomb from Kanafi at the time of the arrest.

But, Aras, who was expected to be a key witness against Kanafi, later escaped from detention in an Ambon police station and his whereabouts remains unknown.

Hearing the verdict being read out by the presiding judge, Kanafi appeared to cry.

Responding to the sentence, Kanafi's lawyer, Second Lt. Ery Subianto, said his client would decide in one week whether to file an appeal against the verdict.