The Jakarta Post, July 06, 2007
RMS incident a serious threat: Lemhannas
Tony Hotland and M. Azis Tunny, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta, Ambon
National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas) Governor Muladi said Thursday those in
charge of the President's security during a separatist flag-waving incident in Ambon,
Maluku province, last Friday should immediately resign.
He said the incident should be taken seriously since it posed a "first-level" threat.
"The President could've been hurt and those responsible should resign without waiting
to be dismissed. Stop blaming each other," Muladi said in Jakarta.
Separatism, he said, should be combated through social approaches that ensure
improvements in the economies of those areas where the movements are rooted.
"Social injustice fuels separatism. When people in remote areas get to enjoy what
development has brought to other parts of the country, such movements will vanish,"
he said.
Meanwhile, a Maluku official being questioned by police over the incident denied
Thursday he had anything to do with what happened.
Head of the Maluku provincial administration's general affairs division, Michael
Rumandjak, denied accusations the activists -- posing as dancers -- responsible for
the incident were provided with ID cards by the organizer of the National Family Day
event.
He said the organizing committee never included the dance performance as one of the
events scheduled to be presented in front of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
"This is just slander. The dance was never included in the schedule," Michael told
journalists after six hours of questioning Thursday at Maluku Police headquarters.
"I've provided clear information. Now let the prosecutors investigate the case
thoroughly."
Michael was in charge of arranging the event schedule and participants.
He said after being checked, officials registered the event's performers and issued
them with ID cards before they could enter the event grounds.
However, each ID card -- after being signed by Maluku provincial secretary A. Assagaf
and receiving an official stamp -- still needed to be checked and stamped again by the
commander of the VVIP security task force from the military's intelligence unit, Lt.
Col. Frisky Y. Suatan.
"All ID cards and the list of invited guests were checked by the military. The people on
the list received ID cards and invitations from us. So its highly unlikely I issued ID
cards to the activists," he said.
Pattimura Military Commander Maj. Gen. Sudarmaydi, during a hearing with members
of the Maluku Legislative Council on Tuesday, said an internal investigation had been
launched into the incident.
He said the investigation, led by military and intelligence officers, would determine
whether military personnel were involved in the incident.
The incident was allegedly the responsibility of supporters of the South Maluku
Republic (RMS) separatist group, who rushed the field in Ambon where last Friday's
ceremony was taking place and unfurled a banned RMS flag.
A source from the Maluku Police said the ongoing investigation into arrested RMS
suspects found that none had been issued with an ID card.
Sudarmaydi blamed the breach of security during the event on the issuance of ID
cards, which one of the activists had allegedly used to access secure areas.
The ID card issue will also be investigated by a team led by the secretary of the
Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, Lt. Gen. Agustadi
Sasongko Purnomo.
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