Abdul Wahid Kadungga Denies Involvement in Jamaah Islamiyah

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:Abdul Wahid Kadungga, who is alleged to be a senior member of the Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) organization, has denied even knowing of the organization. The police here have cleared me and the Netherlands Embassy in Indonesia has said that Im not involved in any crime in the Netherlands, he told reporters after reporting to the National Police headquarters in Jakarta on Thursday (2/1). Kadungga, who is a Dutch citizen, also said that he did not know anything about the bombing incidents in Indonesia Regarding his relationship with Abu Bakar Baasyir, who is also alleged to be a JI senior member, Kadungga said that he had met Baasyir twice. The first meeting, he added, was in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 1985, while the second one was in Jakarta in 2001. Kadungga stated that when they first met in Kuala Lumpur, he had come from the Netherlands and Baasyir had just fled from Indonesia. Kadungga also admitted that he had met Abdullah Sungkar, another Indonesian whos alleged to have founded the JI. He has to report to the National Police HQ twice a week because of he has a forged Indonesian identity card. Kadungga is a Dutch citizen but he also has an Indonesian identity card from the Tangerang region. As soon as his lawyer comes from the Netherlands, Kadungga plans to return to the Netherlands immediately. According to Kadungga, he made an ID card in Tangerang as he planned to return to Indonesia. Im an old man. I want to be an Indonesian citizen again, he said. Kadungga also regretted the bombing incidents in Indonesia, saying: The younger generation shouldnt have committed such bombings. The younger generation he was referring to were Imam Samudra and his friends, who now suspects in the Bali bombing case. Kadungga denied that he knew Samudra, saying he had never been in contact with Samudra or any of his friends, even by e-mail. (Wahyu Mulyono-Tempo news Room)