VP uninformed of al-Qaeda member arrest

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In another example of poor coordination in President Megawati Soekarnoputri's administration, Vice President Hamzah Haz admitted on Tuesday he had no knowledge of the arrest of an alleged al-Qaeda operative in Indonesia.

"Please if there is any data, give it to the government," Hamzah said.

The Vice President was commenting on CIA reports that Indonesian intelligence agents had arrested Omar al-Faruq, 31, in Bogor on June 5 and handed him over to United States officials. He is currently being detained in Afghanistan.

Al-Faruq claimed he had attempted to assassinate President Megawati Soekarnoputri twice in 1999 and 2001.

Previously, National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said his officers had not arrested and deported al-Faruq and were not aware of an operation to nab him.

Cracks have been found in Megawati's Cabinet on several issues, including the recent deportation of undocumented workers from Malaysia, protection of workers, bank privatization and mining in protected forests.

Hamzah said any party who had knowledge about the presence of al-Qaeda members in the country should inform the government. "If there is an al-Qaeda network here, we will take actions."

In an interview with Time magazine, Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono confirmed the arrest of al-Faruq.

The magazine reported in its issue dated Sept. 23 that al- Faruq had admitted to being the senior representative for al- Qaeda in the region. He was arrested for obtaining a fake Indonesian passport.

"Yes! The arrest was made in Indonesia and since he was not an Indonesian citizen, he was handed over to the international authorities for further legal process," Yudhoyono said when asked to confirm al-Faruq's arrest.

Speaking on the sidelines of a seminar here, Yudhoyono said Jakarta was currently "working in a meticulous and serious manner" on intelligence reports provided by other countries, including the United States.