LAKSAMANA.Net, August 26, 2004 07:09 PM
Jakarta Police Launch Anti-Terror Squad
Laksamana.Net - The Jakarta Police on Thursday (26/8/04) unveiled a special new
squad tasked to help protect the capital city from terrorist attacks.
Named 'Anti-Terror Detachment 88', the 75-member squad comprises police officers
from the Mobile Brigade (Brimob) fast reaction unit, the detective unit, bomb squad
and intelligence division.
After undergoing intensive training for three months outside Jakarta, the new unit
demonstrated its skills on Thursday by reacting to a mock car bombing in a field
behind city police headquarters.
Witnessed by senior security officials and some foreign dignitaries, the officers
evacuated the "driver" of the car, gathered evidence and quickly sealed off the scene
of the bombing with a police line.
Dressed in gray uniforms and armed with US-made automatic rifles, the squad also
conducted a mock raid on a house.
"Jakarta has a greater risk to bomb attacks and mass disturbances compared to
other cities, therefore as ordered by the [national] police chief, we need to set up
Detachment 88," Jakarta Police chief Inspector General Firman Gani was quoted as
saying by Reuters.
Jakarta has been the scene of several terror attacks over recent years. The most
deadly was in August 2003, when 12 people were killed in a suicide bombing at the
JW Marriott Hotel in Mega Kuningan, South Jakarta.
In September 2000, a bomb blast at the Jakarta Stock Exchange killed 10 people.
Bombings have also occurred at churches, malls, government buildings and the office
of the United Nations.
The attacks have been blamed on a range of groups, including regional terrorism
Jemaah Islamiyah, disgruntled former soldiers, and the separatist Free Aceh
Movement.
Security has been tightened at major hotels, office blocks and international schools in
Jakarta following the October 2002 Bali nightclub bombings that killed 202 people.
Gani said the new squad would work with existing law enforcement agencies and the
public to defend Jakarta from terrorists.
"Our obligation is to work side by side to eradicate terrorist actions. Greater preventive
efforts must also be made by civilian security groups," he was quoted as saying by
detikcom online news portal.
Gani said the risk of bombings in Jakarta would increase ahead of the September 20
run-off presidential election. "It could happen at any time. The threat of terrorist
bombings and mass disturbances certainly increases around the second round of the
presidential election. Therefore, the Jakarta Police must boost the capacity of its
personnel to anticipate terrorist bombings and increase their performance."
Asked about the progress of investigations into the July 26 explosion at the
headquarters of the General Elections Commission, Gani replied that his officers were
yet to find or identify the perpetrators.
He denied there would be an overlap of duties between the new Jakarta squad and the
National Police's recently formed anti-terror squad, called Special Detachment 88.
"There must synergy. The Special Detachment of National Police headquarters has
responsibility for all over Indonesia. The National Police chief ordered the formation of
[Jakarta's] Anti-Terror Detachment 88."
Gani said the new squad was not funded by foreign assistance, but by the National
Police.
Asked whether the formation of the squad would lead to more arrests of Muslim
radicals, he replied: "We will increase the capture of people who pose a danger to the
public. As for people who do not pose a danger to the public, they will be protected by
police."
Anti-Terror Squads In All Provinces
A senior police official announced Thursday that similar anti-terror squads will soon be
formed at all provincial police headquarters across the country.
Brigadier General Pranowo Dahlan, director of the National Police's anti-terror division,
said the formation of the provincial Detachment 88 units would bolster the fight against
terrorism.
"After the units have been set up at all regional headquarters they will be backed up
by National Police headquarters," he was quoted as saying by state news agency
Antara.
Dahlan said Detachment 88 was named after the 88 Australian casualties in the Bali
bombings.
He further said the digit 8 resembles a pair of handcuffs and represents an
uninterrupted flow, indicating the provincial detachments should work ceaselessly to
combat terror.
The National Police's Special Detachment 88 has reportedly received large amounts
of US aid for training and equipment.
Dutch Donation
The Netherlands on Thursday reportedly pledged to provide Indonesia with 5 million
euros to help combat terrorism.
"The Dutch government plans to send a team of experts to Indonesia to cooperate in
anti-terrorism law enforcement and will donate 5 million euros for dealing with the
problem of terrorism," Foreign Affairs Minister Hasan Wirajuda was quoted as saying
by detikcom after a meeting with his visiting Dutch counterpart Bernard Rudolf Bot.
Wirajuda said they also discussed security in the pirate-infested
Copyright © 2000 - 2004 Laksamana.net, All Rights Reserved.
|
