Trial of SIRA Chief to be held in Banda Aceh next week
BANDA ACEH, Aceh (JP): The government has bowed to demands to try Muhammad Nazar, the chief of the Aceh Referendum Information Center (SIRA), in Banda Aceh.
A local judge Farida Hanoum said on Tuesday the district court here was expected to try Nazar either on Wednesday or Thursday next week after the Idul Adha Islamic Day of Sacrifice.
Farida said there is a possibility of sending judges from Medan in the neighboring province of North Sumatra for the trial, as she was the only available judge here.
The new Minister of Justice and Human Rights, Baharuddin Lopa issued a decree No. M.05.AT.01.10/2001 stipulating the relocation of Nazar's trial to Banda Aceh after the defendant failed to appear in the opening session on Feb. 21 in Medan. Lopa's predecessor Yusril Ihza Mahendra had ordered the trial be held in Medan for security concerns.
Nazar welcomed the government's gesture.
"I'm glad that my trial will be held in Aceh. I and my lawyers appreciate the government for its move," Nazar said.
Nazar is charged with showing hostile intentions/treason against the state, a crime which carries a maximum sentence of seven years in jail, for organizing a mass congress to demand a referendum in Banda Aceh last November. He has been detained since Nov. 20 last year.
Aceh governor Abdullah Puteh complained about the lack of judges as a result of security problems plaguing his territory.
"Local judges are too afraid to perform their duties, while at the same time we cannot force the central government to send judges here," Abdullah said on Tuesday.
The lack of judges has left more than 90 percent of cases in Aceh unsettled.
Meanwhile, five women who stated they were raped by security officers in South Aceh early this month filed their case with Aceh's National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM).
Separately, North Aceh Police Adj. Sr. Comr. Wanto Sumardi said on Tuesday that police had identified three bodies recovered in Lhokseumawe on Monday as residents of Bireun regency who had gone missing, following a security sweeping in the area a few hours earlier.
In Jambi province, Antara reported that some 100 Sabhara riot police troops are undergoing jungle survival training before joining the second phase of security operation code-named Cinta Meunasah in Aceh.
Jambi Police chief Brig. Gen. Zamris Anwar said the training was held at Dusun Tua forest in Muara Tebo regency, about 320 kilometers away from Jambi. He said the location resembles Aceh in geographical terms.
The troops are also trained to locate and quell armed groups, Zamris said.
The North Aceh-based oil joint-venture ExxonMobil Oil Indonesia (EMOI) denied on Tuesday accusations by GAM that the company was providing a base for the Indonesian military.
EMOI spokesperson Julia Tumengkol said it was the government that made the decision regarding the level of protection required to adequately secure all strategic assets, including the facilities operated by the company.
"EMOI does not control or direct the activities of these military personnel," Julia said.
The company also offered condolences to the family of 15-year- old Sukirman, who died in a GAM attack on military troops posted in the company's compound on Saturday. (edt/50)