The Jakarta Post, July 10, 2007
Police off the hook over Dujana arrest
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The South Jakarta District Court ruled out Monday a case filed by terror suspect Abu
Dujana's wife, Sri Mardiyati, against the National Police over the manner of her
husband's arrest.
Judge Wahjono said the capture was conducted in compliance with the Criminal Code
Procedures and that preliminary evidence showed that the suspect was alleged to
have strong links to groups involved in terrorism.
"The plaintiffs could not prove that the defendants violated the Criminal Code
Procedures. Besides, the arrest warrant had already been signed and accepted (by
Dujana's wife)," said Wahjono.
However, the Muslim Defender Team (TPM), as joint plaintiffs, said the court's ruling
was irresponsible.
"The court only saw the evidence of the defendants and did not consider our
evidence," Akhmad Kholid from the TPM said outside the courtroom after the ruling.
Akhmad said the TPM had been pessimistic of its chances of winning the lawsuit.
The TPM filed the lawsuit with the district court last month, claiming the police
violated human rights laws during Dujana's arrest.
Dujana was detained June 9 in Banyumas, Central Java, and is believed by police to
be the head of the military wing of Jamaah Islamiyah, a group blamed for several
deadly bombings in Indonesia including those in Bali in 2002 and 2005.
Dujana, along with his 8-year-old son Yusuf Sidiq Abdullah, was riding a motorbike
home when police swooped.
Insisting his father did not resist arrest, Sidiq has repeatedly said the police ordered
his father to squat with both hands on his head before shooting him in the leg.
The TPM brought Sidiq to the House of Representatives' law commission, which put
its faith in the child's testimony and condemned the shooting, and to the National
Commission on Child Protection, which confirmed Sidiq's attestation as valid.
The House asked for the case to be thoroughly investigated and insisted that if Sidiq's
testimony proved true, this would be confirmation the National Police's Special
Detachment 88 anti-terror squad would have been in violation of the Criminal Code
Procedures.
In last Thursday's hearing, both the plaintiffs and the defendants used media reports
to back up their arguments due to the absence of solid evidence and witness
testimonies.
The TPM used a news report from private television station ANTV, in which Dujana's
neighbor said the terror suspect did not resist arrest. However, the police showed a
recorded post-arrest interview with Dujana and private television station RCTI in which
Dujana admitted to resisting police efforts to detain him.
Akhmad told reporters after the ruling that the TPM would file an appeal with the
Supreme Court on July 12.
Lawyer Rudy Heriyanto, representing the police, said his clients were pleased with
the ruling.
"It is a very good verdict," he said.
National Police spokesman Insp. Gen. Sisno Adiwinoto has repeatedly said the police
were ready to counter any charges of human rights abuse relating to Dujana's arrest.
National Police chief of detectives Comr. Gen. Bambang Hendarso Danuri said last
month that proper procedures had been followed in the arrest and that it did not
constitute a violation of human rights. (08)
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