Terrorist who blew off his

Terrorist who blew off his
own leg sentenced to death

Yogita Tahilramani
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

A Malaysian terrorist who blew off his own leg and wounded
five others in a botched bomb attack on a bus load of Christians
in Jakarta last year, has been sentenced to death by the Central
Jakarta District Court.

Presiding Judge Panusunan Harahap said that Taufik bin
Abdullah Halim, alias Dani, had entered Indonesia illegally to
threaten Jakarta's stability by engaging in an act of terror to
cause public disorder and spark religious unrest.

"The defendant was a guest in our country. Being a guest, he
engaged in an act of terror that could have initiated religious
unrest," Panusunan said on Tuesday.

He said the defendant had been legally proven guilty of
violating Paragraph 1, Article 1 of the Emergency Law No.
12/1951, in possessing and using ammunition or explosives.

Court spokesman Judge Andi Samsan Nganro said on Tuesday that
the primary factor that judges took into consideration was the
fact that the defendant had intended to launch widespread
religious unrest with the bombing.

"That was ... intolerable. Jakarta already has its share of
tragic bombings which have claimed so many lives. Bombings,
particularly those executed with such malicious intent, should
not be tolerated," Andi told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday evening.

Dani's right leg was partially blown off when the bomb he was
carrying exploded prematurely. His leg had to be amputated.

Dani, through his lawyer Duni Rubayati, immediately appealed
the sentence. Prosecutor Andi Walinga had asked for a 20-year
jail term.

Duni later said that Dani had provided "a lot of information"
about other bombings in Jakarta and deserved a lighter sentence
than the sentence passed.

The lawyer also said that the court could not prove that Dani
had masterminded the bombing, making the death sentence
unwarranted.

Eddy Setiyono alias Abbas alias Usman, another defendant in
the same case, is being tried separately and a verdict is due
next week. Two other suspects are still on the run.

On Aug. 1 last year, Dani brought a bomb wrapped in a plastic
bag, and stood near a column in the west lobby of the Atrium
Plaza, Central Jakarta, awaiting a signal from four friends
including Abbas. But, before the bomb was planted, it exploded
and injured six people at the scene, including Dani.

The bomb was intended for a bus load of Christians holding a
religious gathering at the Aston hotel adjacent to the plaza.

Based on Dani's testimony, police tracked down the other
suspects, including Abbas who was arrested on Sept. 12 last year
in Tasikmalaya, West Java.

Following Abbas' arrest, police arrested 12 other suspects
undergoing military-style training in Pandeglang, West Java. All
of the suspects belonged to the Jihad squad of a Mujahidin group
based in Malaysia, police said. The group, in turn, was believed
to be linked to regional terrorist organization Jamaah Islamiyah.

Police said Abbas had admitted that he was involved in the
bombings of several churches in the capital around Christmas in
2000, which claimed 19 lives.

Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines sealed a trilateral
security pact on Tuesday in an attempt to bolster cooperation to
combat terrorism and cross-border crime.