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Indonesian Muslim radicals
to protest Powell visit
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Reuters
Wednesday July 31, 2:59 PM
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Indonesian Muslim radicals to
protest Powell visit
JAKARTA, July 31 (Reuters) -
Hardline Indonesian Islamic groups said on Wednesday they would
try to disrupt a visit by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell to
Jakarta this week with street protests at key locations.
Powell, on a swing through Asia, is
to meet President Megawati Sukarnoputri on Friday to discuss ways
to help the world's most populous Muslim nation fight terrorism.
"We are coordinating with 19
Muslim (groups) to disrupt Powell's visit to Jakarta," said
Suaib Didu, chairman of the Islamic Youth Movement.
"We've organised groups to
demonstrate at the airport, the
(presidential) palace and the U.S.
embassy...The U.S. says it wants to combat terrorism -- they're
the terrorists."
Some 85 percent of Indonesia's 210
million people are Muslim but the vast majority are moderate. The
radical groups have only a minor following and their threats of
large-scale public action in the past have usually proven to be
overblown.
Even so, police have begun to
tighten security in front of the U.S. embassy in central Jakarta,
partially cordoning off the road with barbed wire barricades and
rope and stationing extra personnel outside.
National Police spokesman Saleh
Saaf told Reuters that, if demonstrations were peaceful and
democratic, security forces would not interfere.
"However, if that's not the
case then we'll take some action. If the demonstrations end up
disrupting public facilities, Powell's route and accommodation,
we're prepared to secure (the situation) at any cost," he
said.
Powell will present ideas to
Indonesia on how to fight terrorism during his one-day trip. He is
also due to meet leaders of groups from Indonesia's moderate
Muslim mainstream.
FOOT-DRAGGING
After much foot-dragging in the
aftermath of the September 11 attacks on U.S. cities, Indonesia
has stepped up its anti-terror cooperation since the start of the
year despite fears of a Muslim backlash, diplomats and foreign
security analysts say.
But they add that Indonesia could
still do more.
One radical Muslim group said
Jakarta should sever ties with Washington.
"We don't want (Powell's)
presence in Indonesia...we don't want the Indonesian government to
have relations with the Bush government," said Islamic
Defenders' Front chief Muhammad Rizieq.
"Bear in mind what the United
States is doing to Muslims around the world, in Somalia,
Afghanistan and Palestine."
Indonesia-U.S. relations have
warmed since a wave of violence surrounding East Timor's
independence vote in 1999, carried out by militias backed by the
Indonesian armed forces, which prompted Washington to cut military
links.
The Bush administration has
recently expressed hope that military ties could soon be renewed.
Powell is expected to discuss that
subject during his trip.
Despite praise from Washington for
its cooperation in the war on terror, Indonesia has been
criticised by its neighbours for not doing enough to get tough on
Islamic militants.
Powell's visit will follow his
participation at a meeting of foreign ministers attending an
Asia-Pacific security forum in Brunei on Wednesday. The 23-member
ASEAN Regional Forum is expected to focus on rooting out terror
networks and clamping down on their funding.
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