Indonesian
police say they will not ban an Islamist group branded a terrorist organisation
by Washington, while a member of the group said US sanctions against him are 'a
joke.'
 |
| Indonesian police say they will not ban an Islamist group branded a terrorist organisation by Washington. |
The United
States on Thursday officially labelled Islamist firebrand Abu Bakar Bashir's
Jemaah Anshorut Tauhid (JAT) group a foreign terrorist organisation, linking it
to several attacks in Indonesia.
The State
Department accuses the group of being behind a church bombing in Java last
September, deadly attacks on Indonesian policemen and bank robberies aimed at
raising money for weapons and bomb materials.
'It is the
right of the United States to make such a statement, but the group is allowed
to carry on in Indonesia as long as it is not breaking the law,' National
Police spokesman Saud Usman Nasution told AFP on Friday.
'We will
keep monitoring their activities,' Nasution said, adding that Indonesian police
had still not finished investigations into the church bombing.
The US
Treasury also announced that it was placing sanctions on three leading members
of the group, banning US citizens and businesses from any transactions with
them.
The trio
are JAT acting emir Mochammad Achwan, spokesman Son Hadi bin Muhadjir, and
recruiter and fundraiser Abdul Rosyid Ridho Ba'asyir.
Muhadjir
told AFP the US sanctions were 'a joke that does not deserve a reply.'
'This shows
America's foolishness, since there was no evidence in court that proved we are
guilty (of terrorism)', he said.
'The United
States is looking for a new target for its fight against terrorism and it wants
to enlarge its hegemony in Indonesia,' he said, adding he would 'never do
business' with the US irrespective of the sanctions.
JAT was
founded in 2008 by 73-year-old Bashir, who was sentenced to prison last year on
charges of funding terrorist activities. It says it is a legitimate group to
help Muslims and promote Islamic law in Indonesia.
Upon appeal
last October the Jakarta High Court slashed Bashir's 15-year jail sentence to
nine, citing lack of evidence and old age.
Bashir was
the alleged founder and chief ideologue of the better-known violent group
Jemaah Islamiya, responsible for a string of attacks, including the 2002 Bali
bombings that killed 202 people, most of them foreign tourists.
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