Khabar Southeast Asia

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Terrorists may try to disrupt Indonesian elections: officials

By Maeswara Palupi and Zahara Tiba for Khabar Southeast Asia in Jakarta

April 09, 2014

National Police Chief Gen. Sutarman leaves a March 21st Jakarta press conference. He told reporters every citizen needed to watch out for threats of violence in the run-up to April 9th national and regional legislative elections. [Maeswara Palupi/Khabar]

National Police Chief Gen. Sutarman leaves a March 21st Jakarta press conference. He told reporters every citizen needed to watch out for threats of violence in the run-up to April 9th national and regional legislative elections. [Maeswara Palupi/Khabar]

Indonesian security officials are calling on citizens to watch out for and help authorities uncover any terrorist threats against April 9th elections.

"We need to continue to be vigilant," National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) head Ansyaad Mbai told Khabar Southeast Asia.

"Terrorists/radicals do not like democratic thoughts, and elections are one of the democratic values. This is based on a radical understanding that elections are incompatible with Islam," he added.

Indonesian police foiled a terrorist plot late last month by intercepting three packaged homemade bombs being delivered by a courier service.

The bombs likely were part of a plot to disrupt the coming elections, Ansyaad said. Indonesia's presidential election, set for July 9th, follow this month's legislative elections.

Police in East Java seized the bombs being shipped from Surabaya to Makassar. Three suspects were arrested, National Police Chief Gen. Sutarman told a Jakarta news conference March 21st.

"We are still investigating the motive for the attacks," Gen. Sutarman later told Khabar. Because elections were approaching and "many areas" were vulnerable to terrorist attacks, people should be alert to such threats, he said.

"It is important for everyone to be ready. If you observe any suspicious packages or suspicious behaviour, please report it to the closest authorities immediately," he added.

Terrorists not interested in elections: observer

Counterterrorism experts expressed contrasting opinions on whether extremists would target elections.

According to one, Central Sulawesi's, Poso was particularly prone to that kind of threat because Indonesia's most wanted terrorist operates from the province's jungles.

"Geographically, Poso is difficult to monitor and therefore Santoso's network uses the region as their stomping ground. The group can use any moment during the elections to launch attacks," The Roots of Terrorism in Indonesia author Solahudin told Khabar.

For his part, Malikus Saleh University of Aceh and terrorism expert Al Chaidar suggested radical groups were unlikely to target general elections at all.

"Threats might come from anywhere. It can be participating parties' sympathizers who are not satisfied with the results. It is as dangerous as religious-based terrorism," Chaidar told Khabar.

In the case of South Sulawesi, there had been chaos in a past election, "but that did not come from any of these groups", he said.

"They refuse [to accept] democracy and have a specific mission, to apply Islamic sharia law across the nation," Chaidar told Khabar. "Therefore, they have specific enemies to fight: government offices, multi-national companies aligned with enemy nations, and embassies of enemy countries. General elections are not an interest."

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