Baasyir Could Be Involved in Bali Bombing

TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta:Vice President Hamzah Haz has said that Abu Bakar Baasyir, the Indonesian Mujahiddin Council (MMI) supreme leader and alleged leader of the Jamaah Islamiyah organization could have been involved in the Bali bombing on October 12, 2002. However, any such possibility, according to Hamzah, must first be proven through the court mechanism. So, we should honor what has already been carried out by the National Police. All this time, they have worked as hard as possible to capture the perpetrators of the Bali bombing, Hamzah told reporters following a dialogue session with participants of the Indonesian Children Congress III at the Merdeka Selatan Palace in Jakarta on Friday (31/01). Speaking in Denpasar on Thursday (30/01), the investigation team chief Insp. Gen. I Made Mangku Pastika said that his team was currently gathering evidence of Baasyirs involvement. Baasyir will also be named as a possible suspect in the Bali bombing, together with 21 others. According to the vice president, the public should not be pessimistic about the results of the police investigation in the bombing. Hamzah added that the public should give support to the police bearing in mind their efforts to uncover any terrorism network in Indonesia. Its not a matter of believing or not believing, said Hamzah when asked whether or not he believed Baasyirs was involved in the Bali bombing and the Jamaah Islamiyah organization. According to Hamzah, the measures taken by the police investigation team must be honored.(Deddy Sinaga-Tempo News Room)