U.S. embassy to move over security

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The United States Embassy on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan in Central Jakarta will move to a new site within the Golden Triangle area, according to the head of City Spatial Agency Nurfakih Wirawan.

Speaking at a hearing with the City Council's Commission D for development affairs, Nurfakih said that the U.S. Embassy had conveyed its plan to the city administration, but has yet to make decision on the exact location of its new office.

"The embassy has expressed its intention to move to a more secure place," Nurfakih said when asked about the closure of the road under the railway line, just east of the embassy.

United States Embassy staff were not available for comment on Thursday.

The embassy has become an easy target for anti-U.S. and anti- war protests, especially since the U.S. invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq.

The British Embassy on Jl. HM Thamrin, Central Jakarta has also expressed a desire to move its office to Jl. HR Rasuna Said in South Jakarta, also for security reasons.

The government has implemented strong security for the embassies following bomb blasts in Jakarta and other cities across the country.

Dozens of police are constantly stationed outside the U.S. Embassy. Half of Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan in front of the embassy has been blocked off by one-meter high concrete road separators and razor wire, and the road to the east of the embassy is currently closed to traffic.

The U.S. Embassy had also requested that the city administration allow it to replace the current perimeter fence with three-meter concrete wall. But the request was knocked back by Governor Sutiyoso because it would violate existing regulations.

Nurfakih said the city administration had allocated areas for diplomatic compounds in the Setiabudi district, surrounding Jl. HR Rasuna Sahid and Jl. Casablanca in South Jakarta.

"The administration hopes that all embassies will move to the compound for security reasons, but we cannot force them to go there," he said, adding that it would be difficult to find a location for the United States Embassy as they apparently required more than four hectares of land.