Vice President's aide clarifies

On Wednesday (May 29) evening, I was contacted by one of your journalists, Moh. Nafik, for information regarding the program of Vice President Hamzah Haz at the Al-Mukmin Islamic boarding school, Ngruki, Surakarta.

In the Thursday (May 30) edition of your paper, my statement was quoted under the one-column report on page 1, column 7, titled Arrest me, not clerics, says VP.

I deny that I stated, as reported in paragraph 4, that: "The Vice President made the statement during an unexpected meeting with Abu Bakar Ba'asyir in Central Java, a controversial Muslim cleric linked by Singapore and Malaysia with a regional terrorist network."

On the other hand, I explained that the visit to the Al-Mukmin Islamic boarding school, Ngruki, was one of four agendas of the Vice President in Central Java and Yogyakarta on Wednesday, which was open in nature and had earlier been reported by the mass media. The Vice President was received in a gathering attended by hundreds of Muslims, with a welcome speech and a report on the history and activities of the school, headed by director KH Farid Ma'ruf.

I also made it clear that the Al-Mukmin Islamic boarding school was managed by the Foundation for Islamic Education and Orphanage (YPIA), whose leadership comprises a director, KH Farid Ma'ruf, and four assistant directors.

In this way, part of paragraph 6 of the news, which appears as if it had come from my statement, "... Islamic boarding school run by Ba'asyir at Ngruki in the town of Sukohardjo, Central Java", is not true.

M. SAID BUDAIRY

Special Assistant to Vice President

Jakarta

Note: Paragraph 4 was a general description. Paragraph 6 was based on information from aides.

--Editor