No subject

18nov02

A lawyer for two foreigners detained in Indonesia's Aceh province for more than 
two months has urged prosecutors to immediately bring their case to court.

Briton Lesley McCulloch and her American travelling companion Joy Ernestine-
Sadler were detained by police on September 11 for alleged visa violations.
McCulloch, until recently a university lecturer in Tasmania, was a frequent 
contributor on the Aceh separatist revolt to Asian newspapers.

On November 8 Aceh police handed them over to the provincial district 
attorney's office. Chief provincial prosecutor Teuku Nasruddin Lufti said at 
the time his office would prosecute the case as soon as possible.

But as of today neither woman had been brought to trial, said Syarifah 
Murdiati, one of their lawyers. 

"The current reality is that the district attorney's office has not yet 
submitted the dossiers on our clients to court," she told reporters.

Prosecutors last week rejected a request that the women be put under house 
arrest for the sake of their health.

Authorities allege that McCulloch conducted research and Ernestine-Sadler 
engaged in humanitarian activities not in keeping with their tourist visas.

An estimated 10,000 people have died since the conflict began in the energy-
rich province on Sumatra island in 1976. Rights activists put the toll for this 
year alone at more than 1200. 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Jakarta Post.com
Headline News
November 19, 2002
Acehnese figures call for immediate peace 
Ibnu Mat Noor, The Jakarta Post, Lhokseumawe

A number of Acehnese figures called on the Henry Dunant Centre (DHC) to work 
hard to ensure that the two warring sides in the province signed the proposed 
peace agreement as soon as practicable.

The Acehnese figures made the call during an introductory meeting with HDC 
officers in Bireuen, some 130 kilometers east of Banda Aceh, the capital of 
Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, on Monday. 

Sofyan Ali, a member of the Bireuen regency legislative council, said the 
Acehnese people, who had suffered greatly during the almost three-decade-long 
war, wanted the conflicting sides to lay down their arms and make peace. 

"The HDC should work harder to bring the two conflicting sides to the 
negotiating table to sign the peace agreement. These three decades of 
hostilities must be halted to avoid any more victims among the people. We need 
to be sure about the peace agreement and law enforcement. 

"We are now only living skeletons. We are awaiting for peace to become real in 
Aceh. We need no more empty promises either from GAM or the government. We need 
only concrete action to make peace," he said during the gathering. 

Tengku Nuruzzahri, the director of an Islamic boarding school in the town, 
questioned the HDC's presence in Aceh while the killing kept on going. 

He said he was skeptical that the HDC would be able to facilitate peace. 

"The conflict may be only a ploy by each of the conflicting sides to take 
political advantage and steal Aceh's resources," he said cynically. 

Zulfikar, a local informal leader, regretted that the prolonged conflict had 
destroyed freedom of expression among local people. 

"It's impossible now for people to say the truth as they would be risking their 
lives. Those who speak the truth die at the hands of either the military or the 
rebels," he said, adding that the HDC should play a neutral role and provide 
protection for people telling the truth. 

Sean Paterson, the HDC's deputy project officer, said peace would only emerge 
in Aceh after the proposed peace agreement had been signed by the conflicting 
sides. 

"But, we are very optimistic that both sides will sign the peace agreement as 
both Indonesia and GAM are serious about ending the conflict despite 
differences on certain minor matters," he said. 

William Dowell, the HDC spokesman, called on the Acehnese people to be patient 
as the two sides had made progress toward bringing about permanent peace in the 
province. 

Separately, Maj. Gen. Djali M. Jusuf, chief of the Iskandar Muda Military 
Command overseeing security in the province, warned that his troops would 
continue to besiege the GAM headquarters in Cot Trieng, North Aceh, until GAM 
signed the peace deal. 

GAM has delayed the signing of the peace deal for an indefinite period, while 
the government is adamant that it must be signed on the 17th day of the Muslim 
month of Ramadhan (or Nov. 23 by the Gregorian calendar). 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Asia Times Online
November 18, 2002
Aceh rebels lose the plot, and the war 
By Richel Langit

JAKARTA - The news that the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) will soon sign a peace 
agreement with the Indonesian government came as a pleasant surprise to 
Indonesians who had long wanted to see the bloody conflict there to come to an 
end. 

Nevertheless, it also invites curiosity as to why the rebels suddenly agreed to 
enter into a peace agreement with the government. The secessionist movement, 
which has been fighting for independence since 1976, had always refused to 
settle for anything less than a nation separated from the Republic of 
Indonesia. Over 10,000 people, mostly innocent civilians, have been killed in 
the conflict. 

A source familiar with the rebel group said the GAM leadership overseas was now 
fragmented, while field commanders in Aceh suffered a severe lack 
of "independence ideology". 

Rebel leaders in Switzerland and Malaysia, according to the source, are divided 
as to whether they should pursue independence or accept the special autonomy 
status introduced by the central government on January 1, 2001. Under the 
special autonomy status, Aceh would be allowed to implement Islamic laws, or 
syariah, and organize direct elections for heads of provincial and regency 
administrations. The rebels would be allowed to field their own candidates. 

Most GAM leaders overseas support the special autonomy status because they see 
it as minimizing the number of victims among innocent civilians. GAM first 
hinted at accepting the special autonomy scheme during peace talks in Geneva in 
May when it agreed to use the special status as the sole basis for future peace 
talks. 

Commanders of the rebels' armed wing in Aceh do not see eye to eye with the 
overseas leadership. The reason is that many of them entered the movement for 
the wrong reason. According to the source, many GAM fighters holding key 
positions in Aceh were wanted criminals who joined the movement between1988 and 
1998 when the province was put under a military operation status, just to avoid 
prosecution. 

These "wayward" GAM leaders now often go around terrorizing local people to 
extort money, particularly after the death of respected GAM commander Tengku 
Syafi'ie Abdullah, who was killed in a shootout with a joint military-police 
operation team early this year. 

The attitude of these rogue fighters is proving very costly to the movement. 
Local Acehnese people, and especially local religious leaders who were 
previously sympathetic to the movement, are growing antipathetic toward the 
rebels, whom they see as no better than government troops. Local people have 
also been giving information to security personnel about the whereabouts of 
rebels - something that never happened in the early 1990s. 

Still, no potential commanders are emerging from the rebels' rank and file, 
which means there is no end in sight for the current political disorientation 
among GAM fighters. When six religious leaders and public figures from the 
troubled province were invited by the Switzerland-based Henry Dunant Center to 
meet with GAM heavyweights in late October, they prodded the GAM leaders to 
sign without delay a government-authored peace accord, despite strong 
oppositions from the rebels on two issues of the draft. GAM leaders are 
reportedly reluctant to accept the demand by the Indonesian government that 
they hand over their weapons, and the unclear definition of the role of Mobile 
Brigade police in Aceh. 

If the Indonesian government is now literally dictating to GAM on the peace 
accord, it is because the government knows very well that GAM is at its weakest 
point. Indeed, the movement had unilaterally decided to delay the signing of a 
peace agreement until after the Muslim post-fasting Idul Fitri celebrations 
that fall on December 6 and 7. But judging by the reaction of Acehnese people, 
the GAM decision is seen as merely designed to create the impression that they 
are still calling the shots. 

On Thursday, religious leaders, youth organizations, students, and business 
people in Aceh urged the rebels to sign the government-prepared peace deal. 

The government has set a new date, November 23, for GAM to sign. Clearly, the 
government does not want to give the rebels time to consolidate. From the 
government side, it is now or never. If GAM refuses to sign the deal, 
government troops will go all out to finish off the rebels. That explains why 
the military continues besieging a suspected rebel headquarters in a swampy 
area in Cot Trieng village in Nisam district, north Aceh. Military leaders have 
openly said that the siege is aimed at forcing GAM to sign the peace accord. 

A GAM spokesman in Banda Aceh said last week that the siege might force the 
rebels to reconsider signing the peace agreement. "If they keep up this siege, 
it will be hard for us to sign a peace agreement," GAM spokesman Tengku 
Kamaruzzaman said on Saturday. So far there has been no official communication 
from GAM leaders in Switzerland. 

Support for GAM from the international community seems to have also weakened. 
Most foreign governments, including the United States and European countries, 
have pledged to help Indonesia maintain its territorial integrity. This is 
clearly the outcome of numerous whirlwind foreign trips by incumbent President 
Megawati Sukarnoputri and her predecessor Abdurrahman Wahid. 

Members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have also tightened their 
borders and sea security to prevent arms smuggling to Acehnese rebels. GAM's 
weapons were previously believed to have arrived from southern Thailand and 
Mindanao in the Philippines. 

Clearly, the rebels have lost both the battle and war in Aceh. The options left 
for them now are ending the war with dignity by signing a peace agreement with 
the government, or with crashing humiliation by refusing to ink the accord. 
-- (©2002 Asia Times Online Co, Ltd.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Laksamana.net
Regions: Prospects Shaky for Aceh Peace 
November 17, 2002 11:32 PM, 
 
Laksamana.Net -  As international mediators last week put forward a peace plan 
that may finally end the 26 years of fighting in Indonesia's Aceh province, the 
military continued its nine-day siege of what they say is a stronghold of Free 
Aceh Movement (GAM) rebels, to attempt to get them to surrender. 

Jakarta had been ready to sign a peace deal late last month or before the 
Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, now in its second week, whilst GAM says it 
only agreed to halt military operations during Ramadan and sign a deal later 
this month. 

The new plan would give more autonomy to the embittered province's four million 
people and allow elections for a provincial legislature and administration. 

The first members of the proposed 150-member team of monitors from Europe and 
Southeast Asia arrived in Aceh. Spokesman for the Geneva-based (HDC) Henry 
Dunant Center for Humanitarian Dialogue, which is brokering the peace talks, 
said “each side must agree not to shoot these monitors”. 

The move toward peace follows a week in which the military escalated its 
offensive. On Monday (11/11/02) military spokesman Lt. Col. Firdaus Komarno 
confirmed that over the weekend they had fired mortars at the trapped group. He 
told Reuters "GAM is hiding behind civilians. This attack was necessary in 
order to separate the rebels and the civilians.” 

Witnesses said six civilians as well as two members of Indonesia's Kopassus 
special forces were killed in the attack. A spokesman for the rebels, however, 
said the group was prepared for the assault and had not suffered any 
casualties. 

Soyfan Daud told Reuters “we are ready for the military attack, the mortar 
blast missed the targets and many didn't explode.” 

Top security minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he hoped the stand off 
would end and a deal be signed as soon as possible. On a flying visit to Aceh 
to rekindle the negotiations Yudhoyono expressed surprise that the rebels were 
considering backing out of the deal. “For Indonesia, the sooner the better,” 
Yudhoyono told reporters. 

His words highlight yet again an apparent contradiction of policy in trying to 
reach peace through a dialogue with simultaneous military operations. In 
Jakarta the minister had said, “What we are doing is in the spirit of peace, 
not the spirit of war.” 

Indonesian military commander Gen. Endriartono Sutarto, however, told the press 
after a cabinet meeting Monday that the military would keep the rebels 
encircled until there is a peace agreement. 

Sutarto, in case there was any doubt about just what was at stake, said the 
rebels need to be “wiped out”, but insisted he supported efforts to resolve the 
conflict through dialogue. 

“If GAM is then hit by a helicopter rocket that's a reminder to them that we 
can finish them off,” Agence France Presse quoted him as saying. 

There is fear that the continued military action to put pressure on GAM might 
backfire and set off further conflict. Abu Sofyan Daud, the North Aceh 
commander for GAM said Wednesday (13/11/02) “we don't see any seriousness on 
the Indonesian military's part in resolving this conflict peacefully”. 

Fighting between separatists and government troops in Indonesia's northernmost 
province, some 1,700 km northwest of Jakarta, has seen the deaths of an 
estimated 12,000 people in the past decade, including some 1,500 this year. 

Separately in Banda Aceh, the Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam District Court on 
Wednesday (13/11/02) ruled out any break in detention of foreigners Lesley 
McCulloch and Joy Lee Sadler, held on as yet unspecified charges. 

Their lawyer Syarifah Maulina said the reason was that the court wanted to 
finalize the case immediately as it was concerned for the safety of the two 
detainees. Syarifah told reporters that he had hoped the request would have 
been granted, considering the reported state of health of the two women. 

Sadler had been suffering from a stomach complaint, which is causing concern, 
he said. “Her condition is very weak and what's more, the specialist medicine 
she needs to get from America is running out,” said Syarifah. 
*******************
Poso killing of Official 
Although a man has died following yet another shooting in Poso, Central 
Sulawesi, there has been no impact on every day life in the community, 
according to reports. 

Central Sulawesi police confirmed Sunday (10/11/02) the death of government 
official Yosep Makahobe, 52. He was shot in the back of the head as he was 
riding a motorcycle along a main road in Poso. 

Three years of religious violence has claimed an estimated 2,000 or more lives, 
and thousands of injured and many more refugees. 

Scores of churches and mosques have been razed to the ground. An estimated 
100,000 have fled their homes. 

A recent peace pact carved out in Malino, South Sulawesi, has yet to be fully 
implemented. 
*******************
Land dispute at Ambon airport site 
A planned upgrade for Ambon's Pattimura Airport may be delayed following last 
week's claim by Laha villagers to the ownership of some 145 hectares of land 
that the local government has added to the existing airport's area. 

Though the dispute has been going on for some years, the village head has told 
a local TV station that villagers will surround the disputed area starting 
Monday (18/11/02). 

Villagers are demanding 35 billion rupiah ($3,250,000) in compensation for the 
disputed land. 

Meanwhile, in an incident in the village of Lokki, in south west Seram Island, 
security forces fired warning shots Thursday (14/11/02) to prevent a full-scale 
conflict between Muslim villagers and another group of some 200 Christians who 
had secured permission from the Seram local authority to lay the ground for a 
project to rebuild the village. 

The setback comes amid a climate of improving mutual trust between Christians 
and their Muslim neighbors, after the village had been razed to the ground in 
an attack on August 18, 1999, forcing the villagers to take refuge in the 
nearby town of Piru.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Jakarta Post.com
Across the Archipelago
November 19, 2002
Manado police know bomb suspect 

MANADO, North Sulawesi: Manado police claimed on Monday that they knew the 
identity of a suspect who placed homemade bombs next to a KFC outlet on Jl. Sam 
Ratulangi and a Protestant church here.

The two bombs, placed inside plastic bags, were discovered by locals on Friday 
and Saturday respectively. 

Chief of Manado police detectives Ad. Comr. Anom Widodo said that the police 
were hunting down the alleged perpetrator. 

However, he refused to name the identity or reveal the distinguishing 
characteristics of the suspect, saying that such information would impede the 
investigation. 
-- JP 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Jakarta Post.com
National News
November 19, 2002
Instability in Ambon prompts govt to prolong emergency state 

The central government looked set to maintain the two-year-old state of civil 
emergency in Maluku due to the unstable situation in Ambon, the province's 
capital, and surrounding areas.

Maj. Gen. Djoko Santoso, chief of the Pattimura Military Command overseeing 
Maluku and North Maluku, insisted that the power to lift the emergency was in 
the hands of the central government, and would depend on the order and security 
situation in the province. 

He admitted that the situation in certain parts of the province was already 
normal, while that in other parts was gradually returning into normal. 

"But the situation in Ambon City and on Ambon Island remains tense while 
security personnel from the military and the police are still on alert for 
possible disturbances," he said after a closed-door meeting with the provincial 
legislative council to evaluate the situation in the province. 

The government imposed the civilian emergency state on July 22, 2001 because of 
the mounting situation in the province. 

Ambon Mayor Jopie Papilaya urged the central government over the weekend to 
lift the emergency in light of what he saw as a more "conducive" situation in 
the province. 

But Maluku Governor Saleh Latuconsina said the time was not yet right, warning 
that all components of society, including locally recruited police and military 
personnel, were involved in the conflict. 

Under Law No. 23/1959, the president has the power to lift the emergency 
following consultation with the provincial administration and legislative 
council if the situation in the conflict-torn province has returned to normal. 

Djoko, who is also the commander of the security restoration operation in the 
province, said he would continue to work hard with the police and the 
provincial administration to restore security and order, and with law 
enforcers, including the special investigative team, so as to bring all legal 
violations that occurred during the conflict before the courts. 

"The provincial police chief and I will continue to work together with the 
government so as to restore security so that all the people can live their 
lives without fear of violence," he said. 

Meanwhile, the deputy chairman of the legislative council, John Mailoa, said an 
evaluation of the situation was being undertaken following the extension by the 
home minister of Governor Saleh Latuconsina's tenure for one month until Dec. 
11, 2002. 

Home minister Hari Sabarno extended Latuconsina's term to give him time to 
appoint a caretaker to prepare for the election of a definitive governor for 
the 2002-2007 period. 

The government has decided to delay the gubernatorial election following a 
series of violent incidents in the province over the past six months. 

In another development, the chief of the local office of the social affairs 
ministry, Ishak Umarella, said the provincial administration had established a 
task force to repatriate all displaced persons, now living outside Ambon, to 
their home villages in the province. 

"The task force will directly coordinate with the governor in handling the 
refugee problem so that it can be resolved in 2003. The refugees in Ambon will 
be dealt with by a special team," he said. 

The provincial administration has decided to provide financial assistance for 
refugees who want to return home so as to allow them to survive for at least 
three months and construct simple homes. 

The conflict, which erupted on Jan. 19, 1999, had at one stage displaced around 
750,000 people, although some of them have since returned home at their own 
initiative or with the local administration's assistance. 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Laksamana.net
Encircling the Special Forces Network
November 17, 2002 11:42 PM, Editor
 
Laksamana.Net -  While the security authorities are still preoccupied with the 
nationwide hunt for terrorist suspects in the Bali bombing tragedy, the 
Attorney General’s Office named special forces (Kopassus) Commander Maj. Gen. 
Sriyanto over his role in the killings in Tanjung Priok on 12 September 1984. 

Military analysts say the naming of Sriyanto suggests a crucial test for 
Kopassus. 

Sriyanto was a captain in the North Jakarta Military command in charge as 
operational section chief under the direct command of the North Jakarta 
Military Commander, Lt. Col. Rudolf Butar-Butar. 

Authority for the decision to fire on the Muslim protesters was in the hands of 
Armed Forces Commander Gen. L.B. Murdani and Jakarta Military Commander Maj. 
Gen. Try Sutrisno. Neither have yet been named in the case, in which some claim 
that nearly 400 people died. 

Sriyanto is also alleged to have played a role in the May 1998 riots, when he 
was local military commander at Solo in Central Java. 

He is a classmate of former Strategic Reserve (Kostrad) Commander Lt. Gen. 
Prabowo Subianto. 

More significantly, Sriyanto and his superior in 1984, Lt. Col. Butar-Butar, 
are closely linked to Try Sutrisno. 

The signing of a reconciliation pact or Islah in March 2001, between the 
relatives of the Tanjung Priok victims and the military officers involved, saw 
Try Sutrisno, Sugeng Subroto, Pranowo, Soekarno, Butar-Butar and H. Mattani 
turn out. 

This suggested that Try Sutrisno’s network was closely connected with former 
President Suharto and Murdani and remained powerful. Military officials said at 
the time that the group would be carefully monitored by the high brass. 

Dr Thamrin Tamagola, who has conducted an intensive study of violence in Ambon, 
told a seminar in Jakarta that the regional or district military commands 
controlled by officers with links to Kopassus have often been the locations for 
covert operations. 

The transfer of command of the Maluku region to former Kostrad Second Division 
chief Maj. Gen. Djoko Santoso, proved it was possible to bring the conflict 
under control, Tamagola said. 

The recent case of insubordination shown by the Airborne unit in Binjai, North 
Sumatra, strengthens Tamagola’s analysis. 

North Sumatra Commander Maj. Gen. Idris Gasing was replaced earlier this month. 
He is a former classmate of Prabowo and Sriyanto and was deputy commanding 
general of Kopassus in 1998. 

In Papua, deputy police chief Brig. Gen. Raziman Tarigan disclosed Thursday 
(14/11/02) that 11 Kopassus soldiers are implicated in the ambush which killed 
two Americans and an Indonesia at the Freeport gold and copper mining site 
August 31. 
Kopassus troops are also believed to have been involved in the kidnap and 
murder of Papua Presidium leader Theys Eluay. 

The statement by Tarigan suggests the police are prepared to take on Kopassus 
officials or criminals protected by the unit.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Indonesia Schools Shut After Threats
The Associated Press
Jakarta, Indonesia Nov. 18 

Major international schools remained shut in the Indonesian capital Monday amid 
reports they are being targeted by al-Qaida operatives who were behind last 
month's bombings in Bali.

The U.S. and Australian embassies said Friday they had received "credible 
information" that schools attended by foreign students were at risk of 
terrorist attack.

Police said they had not been told of the details of the threat.

The New York Times reported Monday that al-Qaida members allegedly responsible 
for the Oct. 12 bombings on Bali that killed nearly 200 people were behind the 
school threats.

Quoting unidentified Western and Indonesian officials, the report said the plot 
was uncovered in the last few days and was based on Western intelligence 
reports.

The three largest schools closed because of the warnings. They plan to decide 
whether to reopen on Tuesday evening, a message posted on the web site of the 
British International School said.

National police spokesman Col. Prasetyo said police had not been told of the 
threat in detail, but acknowledged that al-Qaida operatives might be behind it.

"If it comes from intelligence sources then this is possible," said Prasetyo, 
who like many Indonesians only uses one name.

U.S. embassy officials declined to give further information about the warning.

Earlier, Jakarta police spokesman Col. Bahrul Alam said officers planned to 
meet with school officials to discuss their concerns, but insisted there was 
nothing to worry about.

"We say it is safe," Jakarta police spokesman Alam said. "There is no problem."

Since the Bali attacks, Indonesia has been accused of ignoring warnings from 
its neighbors and the United States that Islamic extremists were targeting the 
country.

The bombings have been blamed on Islamic extremists with links to al-Qaida. 
Police have so far arrested one person in the attacks.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
New York Times
November 18, 2002
Bali Bomb Plotters Said to Plan to Hit Foreign Schools in Jakarta
By Raymond Bonner with Jane Perlez

Jakarta, Indonesia, Nov. 17 — The Qaeda network that carried out the terrorist 
attack in Bali is responsible for past plots against the United States in 
Southeast Asia, and is now planning to strike at Western students at 
international schools in Jakarta, Western and Indonesian officials said today.

The plan to attack the schools was uncovered in the last few days, and 
officials said the schools would be closed until at least Wednesday. 

Officials declined to say precisely how they had learned of the plot, but the 
United States and Australia have stepped up their electronic surveillance and 
intelligence gathering here since the Bali attack on Oct. 12, which killed more 
than 180 people, many of them Australians.

The intelligence about the plot against the schools was as "specific in detail 
and of similar seriousness" to that which caused the Bush administration to 
order the closing of the American Embassy here in September, the diplomat said. 
That threat caused the United States to go on a heightened alert.

Based on the latest information gathered by Western intelligence agencies, 
diplomats said the planned attack was directed primarily at the Jakarta 
International School. The school has 2,500 students, about a third of whom are 
Americans, on three campuses across this teeming city. It has classes from 
kindergarten through high school.

The Australian and British schools also plan to close, diplomats said tonight. 
They are to remain closed until the Indonesian police provide adequate 
security, a diplomat said. 

Protecting students is difficult not only at the schools, officials said, but 
also on their way, because they typically travel on buses that take designated 
routes, or are driven by their parents in cars that bunch up outside the 
schools before the class day. 

The plotters are a cell within a larger Qaeda network that has carried out 
several terrorist actions in Indonesia, and nearly succeeded in blowing up the 
American, Australian, British and Israeli Embassies in Singapore last December, 
officials said today. 

That plot was thwarted by the Singaporean authorities. Investigators have 
concluded that the planners of the failed Singapore plot had moved their 
resources and efforts to Bali. 

"It has all the similarities, the same modus operandi," said a Western 
intelligence official in the region. 

A local cell bought the explosives and carried out surveillance; foreigners 
came in to provide expertise; and a high degree of secrecy or 
compartmentalization kept the locals from knowing who the foreigners were, 
intelligence officials say. 

In the investigation of the Bali bombing, the Indonesian police identified six 
new suspects today, who are at large. The police said a 35-year old computer 
expert, Imam Samudra, was the "field commander, planner and executor" of the 
attack. They said he learned about explosives in Afghanistan in the mid-1990's 
and spoke English and Arabic.

Mr. Samudra stood out because he wore a hat and carried a laptop computer bag, 
said the head of investigation, Gen. I Made Mangku Pastika. Mr. Samudra was 
daring enough to stay on in Bali for several days "looking at what we were 
doing a the crime scene," General Pastika said at a news conference in 
Denpasar, the Bali capital, today. 

It appeared that Mr. Samudra's movements in those four days were known because 
of intercepts of his mobile phone messages.

Mr. Samudra, and the five other Indonesians who were also identified as 
suspects today in the Bali attack, are believed to be hiding in Java, the main 
island of Indonesia, General Pastika said. 

He said he believed that Mr. Samudra was involved in the failed attack on the 
American Embassy in Singapore. Western diplomats agreed with that assessment. 

The Indonesian authorities said at the time that none of its citizens were 
involved in the Singapore plot last December, and long insisted that there were 
no terrorists here, making it easy for the Qaeda network to regroup and plan 
attacks inside Indonesia, Western officials said.

The arrest by the Singaporean and Malaysian authorities in December of more 
than 30 men on suspicion of plotting to blow up the embassies and for being 
members of a radical Islamic group, Jemaah Islamiyah, was considered a 
breakthrough in the campaign against Al Qaeda.

Within two months, two of the most important Al Qaeda operatives for that 
attack were in custody: Fathur al-Ghozi, an Indonesian who was picked up in the 
Philippines and has been convicted there of illegal possession of explosives, 
and Mohamad Mansour Jabarah, a Kuwaiti national, who was seized in Oman and 
turned over to the United States.

They were the "directing figures" of the plot, Singaporean officials have said. 
The two carried out video surveillance of the embassies and arranged the 
purchase of explosives.

For all its success, it now appears that the arrests failed to crimp Al Qaeda's 
operations in Southeast Asia, counterterrorism experts and diplomats say. Al 
Qaeda members have been able to run, hide, regroup and strike again.

"No matter who gets arrested, there are others out there ready to move into the 
plan," the Western intelligence official said. "That's the scary thing. There 
could be several more Bali operations planned." 

Even with key men in custody, members of the network went on planning the Bali 
attack, the investigators said. At a meeting in southern Thailand in January, a 
few weeks after the Singapore plot was foiled, senior Qaeda members decided to 
turn from embassies, which were becoming better protected, to so-called soft 
targets like resorts and schools, according to Americans who have interrogated 
Mr. Jabarah.

Besides him, the United States has had another senior Qaeda operative in 
custody, Omar al-Faruq. He was seized in Jakarta in June. 

Mr. Faruq said he was Al Qaeda's senior operative in Southeast Asia, according 
to the investigators, and confessed to plots against American targets and a 
series of bombings across Indonesia on Dec. 24, 2000. 

Mr. Samudra, the Bali suspect identified today, took part in the Dec. 24 
bombings, the Indonesian police have said. Also taking part was a man named 
Amrozi, who has been in police custody for 10 days in connection with the Bali 
attack.

Before he was caught, Mr. Faruq had already established a network, which 
remains in place, the Western intelligence official said.

The roots of Indonesia's Qaeda network have been traced to Malaysia in the 
early 1990's, when young men like Mr. Amrozi and Mr. Samudra joined other 
radical Islamists who fled there from Indonesia to escape the repression of the 
Suharto government. 

The most prominent member of the group was Abu Bakar Bashir, who is the 
spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiyah. He is now in police custody in Indonesia 
on suspicion of involvement in terrorist activities. The two Bali suspects, Mr. 
Samudra and Mr. Amrozi, are followers of Mr. Bashir, the police said.

One of Mr. Bashir's closest associates in Malaysia was Riudan Isamuddin, better 
known as Hambali; his fingerprints are on just about every terrorist action 
against the United States in the region for the last decade, including the 
Singapore plot, investigators have concluded.

Mr. Hambali made the arrangements for men like Mr. Samudra to go to Qaeda camps 
in Afghanistan, securing false documents and setting up the travel, men who 
were in the group have said in interviews.
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