Paras Indonesia, February, 21 2006 @ 09:31 am
Police Vow To Punish FPI Over US Embassy Attack
By: Roy Tupai
National Police chief General Sutanto says the Islamic Defenders' Front (FPI) will face
"legal sanctions" for staging a violent demonstration at the US Embassy in Jakarta.
"Whoever disturbs security must be given legal sanctions," he was quoted as saying
Monday (20/2/06) by state news agency Antara. He said police were still investigating
the case and the specific breaches of law committed by the FPI.
About 400 FPI members rallied outside the US Embassy at 10am Sunday to protest
the depiction of the Prophet Muhammad on a marble relief at the US Supreme Court
building. The relief has existed since 1932 but had not sparked any protests in
Indonesia until now.
The protesters hurled stones, rotten eggs and traffic cones at the embassy's gate,
fence and security post. They succeeded in smashing the windows of the post but
failed to break through the gate.
The relief at the US Supreme Court was designed by German sculptor Adolph A.
Weinman (1870-1952) as a representation of secular law. Divided into two friezes, the
relief is located on the walls above a mahogany bench of nine justices and shows 18
of history's most prominent lawmakers. Muhammad, shown holding a sword and the
Koran, is located is between Charlemagne and Justinian.
The first part of the frieze depicts lawmakers from the pre-Christian era: Menes,
Hammurabi, Moses, Solomon, Lycurgus, Solon, Draco, Confucius and Octavian
(Caesar Augustus). The second part depicts later lawmakers: Napoleon Bonaparte,
John Marshall, William Blackstone, Hugo Grotius, Louis IX, King John, Charlemagne,
Muhammad and Justinian.
The FPI members demanded the relief be destroyed. They also bizarrely claimed the
US had masterminded a Danish newspaper's controversial publication of cartoons
depicting Muhammad. The cartoons, published by the Jyllands-Posten in September
2005, have in recent weeks prompted a wave of often violent protests in Muslim
countries.
The protesters at the US Embassy burned a poster of US President George W. Bush
depicted as a pig. They also burned some US flags and carried a banners with
slogans such as 'We Are Ready to Attack the Enemies of the Prophet', "Stop the
Visualizations of the Prophet' and 'Crush Those Offend the Prophet'.
"They want to destroy Islam through the issue of terrorism... and all those things are
engineered by the United States," one of the protesters, Maksuni, was quoted as
saying by the Associated Press.
"We are fighting America fiercely this time. And we also are fighting Denmark," he
added.
The FPI was established in 1998 has gained notoriety for attacking bars, nightclubs,
brothels, pool halls and other entertainment venues deemed an affront to Islam. The
group has only a few thousand members and little public support.
The US Embassy issued a statement deploring Sunday's attack. Ambassador B.
Lynne Pascoe said it was a "premeditated event that was staged for television by a
small group which seeks to disrupt the relationship between the United States and
Indonesia by attempting to inflame popular opinion".
"This sort of thuggery is unacceptable and needs to be treated as what it is. We are
confident that their efforts will fail, and we share President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono's statements and commitment that the cartoon issue should not be used
as a wedge between cultures," said the statement.
The heavily fortified embassy compound was closed on Monday in observance of
President Day. Guards outside the compound ordered passing pedestrians to use the
other side of the street, while inquisitive reporters were told to return on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, several workers were busy replacing the smashed windows of the security
post.
Suspect Arrested
Jakarta Police spokesman Senior Commissioner I Ketut Untung Yoga Ana said
officers had detained three FPI members for questioning over the vandalism at the
embassy.
He said one of the men, identified only by his initial of M., had been declared a
suspect. "It seems the suspect will be only M. Two others, namely A.H. and N., will
only be witnesses," he was quoted as saying by Antara.
"The number of those who committed vandalism is quite large so we are still
searching for other suspects. One has been declared a suspect because there is
strong evidence against him," he said.
"The suspect will be charged under Article 170 of the Criminal Code regarding
vandalism in a public area," he was quoted as saying by detikcom online news portal.
If police are having trouble identifying the other members of the mob, they need only
view local television networks' footage of the attack.
Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Yuri Thamrin said he was certain the FPI protest
would not result in the closure of the US Embassy or damage ties between Jakarta
and Washington.
The Danish Embassy closed earlier this month after a series of relatively peaceful and
small protests. The Danish government has also withdrawn its ambassador and
diplomats from Indonesia.
Thamrin said the US would not follow the Danish example. "The trend is not going in
that direction. It's not going as far as that," he said.
He said that although freedom of opinion, including demonstrations, is a natural part of
democracy, demonstrators must obey the law and refrain from acts of violence.
The spokesman said the Foreign Ministry was coordinating with police to increase
security at the US Embassy to prevent a repeat of Sunday's violence. "Because it is
our obligation to protect all foreign delegations in Indonesia," he said.
Visiting US Congressman Jim Kolbe described the incident as "unfortunate" and said
governments could not stop media from publishing the cartoons. "The media should
go through self censorship, but in our society it should not be the responsibility of the
government to say what can and cannot be printed," he was quoted as saying by the
Associated Press.
Regret
Several members of parliament expressed regret over the FPI's anarchic protest,
saying it had tarnished the image of Islam.
Yusron Ihza Mahendra, deputy chairman of parliament's Commission I on foreign
affairs, said the action could also damage bilateral relations. "Why don't we have a
wiser attitude, not brutality, which only projects an image of Muslims as anarchists.
Islam is not only the FPI," he was quoted as saying by detikcom.
He urged the government to intensify security at embassies targeted by
demonstrators so that Indonesia will not appear unsafe to foreigners.
The Crescent Star Party legislator said concern over the Danish cartoons and the
image of Muhammad in the US Supreme Court should be expressed in a rational and
civilized manner.
Regret was also expressed by National Mandate Party legislator Djoko Susilo, who
said the FPI's action was counterproductive and made Muslims look bad. "That sort of
action was wrong and must be criticized. It gives Indonesian Muslims a bad image. In
fact, Islam does not justify methods like that," he said.
He accused the FPI staging the protest as a publicity stunt because it has chosen
high-profile targets, such as the US and Danish embassies, rather than local
publications that have reproduced some of the Muhammad cartoons.
Susilo urged police to take legal action against the organizers of the protest in order
to discourage similar demonstrations.
United Development Party legislator Arief Mudatsir Mandan said demonstrations
should be staged to defend Islam from insults, provided they are conducted
peacefully.
Parliament speaker Agung Laksono concurred, saying the FPI's protest was a
discredit to Islam. "People can make a demonstration, as long as they do not engage
in vandalism that borders on anarchy. This does not benefit bilateral relations."
Lamongan Protest
In the Central Java city of Lamongan, about 100 people gathered outside the local
legislative assembly building on Monday to burn a Danish flag in a protest against the
Danish cartoons.
'No Resemblance'
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in 1997 protested the Supreme
Court's Muhammad sculpture. According to a report by WorldNetDaily.com, CAIR's
annual report said: "While appreciating the fact that Muhammad (p.b.u.h.) was
included in the court's pantheon of 18 prominent lawgivers of history, CAIR noted that
Islam discouraged its followers from portraying any prophet in paintings, sculptures or
other artistic representations."
CAIR also expressed concerned that Muhammad "was shown with the Quran, Islam's
Holy Book, in one hand and a sword in the other, reinforcing long-held stereotypes of
Muslims as intolerant conquerors".
Then chief justice William Rehnquist responded by saying the relief could not be
altered and that swords were used throughout the court's architecture as symbols of
justice. "Altering the depiction of Muhammad would impair the artistic integrity of the
whole. Additionally, it is unlawful to remove or in any way injure an architectural
feature in the Supreme Court."
The Supreme Court's subsequent tourist brochures explained: "The figure is a
well-intentioned attempt by the sculptor to honor Muhammad, and it bears no
resemblance to Muhammad. Muslims generally have a strong aversion to sculptured
or pictured representations of their Prophet."
Brochures that had previously called Muhammad the "founder" of Islam were changed
to say Muslims believe "the divine word of God... was revealed to Muhammad".
South Park
While the Danish Embassy and now the US Embassy have been targeted by
demonstrators over images of Muhammad, the FPI seems to be unaware that many
Indonesian vendors of pirated DVDs are selling a cartoon show that contains an
animated version of Muhammad.
The Prophet is depicted as a superhero in Season 5 of South Park in an episode
called 'Super Best Friends'. The episode involves Jesus teaming up with Moses,
Buddha, Krishna, Muhammad, Joseph Smith (founder of the Mormons), Lao Tzu
(founder of Taoism) and Sea-Man (who is the butt of semen jokes and has a small
bird sidekick named Swallow) to defeat the powerful magic of television illusionist
David Blaine.
Other episodes of South Park depict God as a small half-cat, half-hippopotamus
creature.
Following is an excerpt from the Super Best Friends episode:
JESUS: Stanley, I want you to meet some of The Super Best Friends!! [As Jesus
introduces the Super Best Friends, we move down the line and see each character
strike an impressive pose].
JESUS (CONT'D): Buddha, with the powers of invisibility. Muhammad, the Muslim
prophet with the powers of flame. Krishna, the Hindu deity. Joseph Smith, the
Mormon Prophet, Lao Tzu the founder of Taoism and Sea Man, with the ability to
breathe underwater and link mentally with fish.
STAN: So you mean to tell me that even though people fight and argue over different
religions... You guys are all actually friends?
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