The Jakarta Post, 8/15/2002 8:16:03 PM
Trial of Laskar Jihad leader adjourned
JAKARTA (AGENCIES): The trial of the head of Laskar Jihad, Ja'far Umar Thalib, at
the East Jakarta District Court has been adjourned, AP reported.
Judge Mansur Nasution adjourned the trial until Aug. 29, when Indonesian prosecutors
are expected to present their case.
Ja'far's trial was scheduled to start Aug. 1, but a panel of judges of the East Jakarta
District Court postponed the hearing because the defendant was ill.
Ja'far is charged with inciting hatred and religious violence in the strife-torn Maluku
islands. He could face a maximum sentence of six years in prison if convicted. He is
also charged with insulting the President and Vice President and trying to provoke
violence against authorities.
Police arrested Ja'far in May for a speech in the Maluku provincial capital of Ambon,
during which he allegedly implored his followers to ignore a peace agreement in the
Maluku islands.
More than 6,000 people have been killed in sectarian clashes there since arly 1999,
although a peace pact signed earlier this year has managed to keep a lid on major
outbreaks of violence.
Ja'far has claimed the trial against him is discriminatory, arguing that he only carried
out his duty as a religious leader.
The Indonesian Mujahidin Council (MMI) once questioned the police's discriminative
stance for not arresting Theo Syafei, a former general who is a prominent figure in the
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), for a speech he made that
allegedly incited hatred and religious violence in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, in
1999.
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