Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
06JAKARTA5040
2006-04-20 11:01:00
SECRET
Embassy Jakarta
Cable title:  

PROSECUTORS UNFAZED BY AMROZI'S TESTIMONY FOR

Tags:  PTER PREL PGOV KJUS KISL KVPR ASEC AS ID 
pdf how-to read a cable
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PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHJA #5040/01 1101101
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
P 201101Z APR 06 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY JAKARTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3032
INFO RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS PRIORITY
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA PRIORITY 9353
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON PRIORITY 0770
RUCNFB/DIR FBI WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC PRIORITY
RHHMUNA/USCINCPAC HONOLULU HI PRIORITY
S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 JAKARTA 005040 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP/MTS AND S/CT
DOJ FOR CTS THORNTON, AAG SWARTZ
FBI FOR ETTIU/SSA ROTH

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/20/2026
TAGS: PTER PREL PGOV KJUS KISL KVPR ASEC AS ID
SUBJECT: PROSECUTORS UNFAZED BY AMROZI'S TESTIMONY FOR
BA'ASYIR

REF: A. JAKARTA 02848 AMROZI TESTIMONY

B. 05 JAKARTA 16574 PARIS CT SEMINAR

C. 05 JAKARTA 16515 LAWYERS FOR BA'ASYIR CLAIM "NEW
EVIDENCE"

D. 05 JAKARTA 16215 BA'ASYIR SEEKS RELEASE

E. 05 JAKARTA 10681 BA'ASYIR LOSES SUPREME COURT
APPEAL

F. 05 JAKARTA 06895 BA'ASYIR LOSES APPEAL TO HIGH
COURT

G. 05 JAKARTA 04077 WHAT JUDGES REALLY SAID ABOUT
BA'ASYIR

Classified By: Political Officer Tim Hefner For Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

Summary
--------

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 JAKARTA 005040

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP/MTS AND S/CT
DOJ FOR CTS THORNTON, AAG SWARTZ
FBI FOR ETTIU/SSA ROTH

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/20/2026
TAGS: PTER PREL PGOV KJUS KISL KVPR ASEC AS ID
SUBJECT: PROSECUTORS UNFAZED BY AMROZI'S TESTIMONY FOR
BA'ASYIR

REF: A. JAKARTA 02848 AMROZI TESTIMONY

B. 05 JAKARTA 16574 PARIS CT SEMINAR

C. 05 JAKARTA 16515 LAWYERS FOR BA'ASYIR CLAIM "NEW
EVIDENCE"

D. 05 JAKARTA 16215 BA'ASYIR SEEKS RELEASE

E. 05 JAKARTA 10681 BA'ASYIR LOSES SUPREME COURT
APPEAL

F. 05 JAKARTA 06895 BA'ASYIR LOSES APPEAL TO HIGH
COURT

G. 05 JAKARTA 04077 WHAT JUDGES REALLY SAID ABOUT
BA'ASYIR

Classified By: Political Officer Tim Hefner For Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

Summary
--------------


1. (S) Convicted Bali bomber Amrozi appeared in the Cilacap
District Court on April 19 to testify on behalf of Jemaah
Islamiyah Emir Abu Bakar Ba'asyir in the months-old Judicial
Review request process. With hundreds of Ba'asyir supporters
in tow, Amrozi repeated his previously submitted testimony
but added an allegation of torture by the Indonesian National
Police to his denial of Ba'asyir's involvement in terrorist
activities. Former lead prosecutor against Ba'asyir, Salman
Maryadi, told us he does not believe Ba'asyir will see
freedom before his scheduled prison release date in June.
Maryadi hand-picked knowledgeable prosecutors to travel to
Cilacap and maintains regular involvement in the Judicial
Review request process. Prosecutors and defense attorneys
must submit final arguments to the South Jakarta District
Court before the court drafts its recommendation to the
Supreme Court on the Judicial Review. It remains very
unlikely the Supreme Court will reach a decision prior to
Ba'asyir's scheduled release, but the outcome remains
important nonetheless -- a future repudiation of Ba'asyir's
conviction would strike a serious blow to Indonesia's CT
efforts. End Summary.

New Twist to Old Defense
--------------


2. (C) The months-old Judicial Review request process for
convicted Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) Emir Abu Bakar Ba'asyir
resumed on April 19 in Cilacap District Court in Central Java
with the appearance of Amrozi, one of the terrorists
responsible for the 2002 Bali bombing which killed 202
people. Local press reported hundreds of Ba'asyir supporters
attended the court session, many of them alumni of Ba'asyir's
Pondok Ngruki pesantren in Solo, Central Java and members of
Majelis Mujahidin Indonesia (MMI),JI's political wing.
Prosecutors who attended the session noted nearly 400
security personnel maintained order at the district
courthouse.


3. (C) As previewed in the initial Judicial Review request
documents, attorneys for Ba'asyir offered Amrozi's testimony
as "new evidence" for the defense (ref C). Muslim Defense
Team (TPM) attorneys previously included this "new evidence"
in their arguments to the Appeals and Supreme Courts in the
form of a letter dated March 24, 2005 (ref D). In the
letter, Amrozi denied speaking with Ba'asyir about a bomb and
denied telling Mubarok about a conversation with Ba'asyir
about doing work in the field (ref G). Despite this denial,
both the Appeals and Supreme Courts upheld Ba'asyir's
conviction and initial 30-month sentence.


4. (S) Throughout the Judicial Review process, TPM has pushed
to have Amrozi testify in open court. According to our court
monitor (strictly protect, as TPM attorneys do not know this
contractor's embassy affiliation),senior Muslim Defense Team
(TPM) attorney Achmad Michdan traveled to Cilacap in
February. The Cilacap District Court had arranged to hear
Amrozi testify on February 22, but Amrozi refused to appear.
Amrozi instead gave a statement to Michdan who later read
this into evidence at the South Jakarta District Court.
Michdan told our court monitor that he and three other TPM
attorneys returned to Cilacap prior to Amrozi's April 19
appearance "to reexamine" Amrozi's testimony. During his
court appearance, Amrozi added a detail to his previous
statement and claimed the Indonesian National Police (INP)

JAKARTA 00005040 002 OF 003


tortured Mubarok (legal name Utomo Pamungkas) into
implicating Ba'asyir in terrorist activities. Amrozi claimed
the INP also tortured him and others into making statements
against Ba'asyir. Mubarok has not alleged torture at the
hands of the INP, and TPM has not mentioned their intent to
call Mubarok to the stand to verify this claim.

Prosecutors Unfazed by Lawyer Tricks, Ba'asyir Supporters
-------------- --------------

5.(C) Central Jakarta District Prosecutor Salman Maryadi, the
former lead prosecutor in both trials against Ba'asyir, and
three prosecutors who attended the Cilacap session concurred
that TPM has no new evidence. Maryadi warned the three
prosecutors to be aware of TPM's tricks and public relations
stunts. He said TPM, as with Amrozi's newest statement,
tries to pull attention away from the law by introducing
extraneous information to make their case. Prosecutors said
that Ba'asyir's supporters made the session "lively" and
called on prosecutors to withdraw from the case. Ba'asyir's
people also denounced the prosecutors as "kafir," or
infidels, for persecuting their Emir.


6. (S) Maryadi remains heavily involved in the Judicial
Review despite holding positions in both Jakarta and Bali,
and he maintains lengthy daily communications with
prosecutors. Maryadi told us the review cannot fall to
someone in the Attorney General's Office based on their
position but must remain with prosecutors whom he can trust
and who have experience with Ba'asyir's case. He also said
he hand-picked prosecutors from Jakarta to travel to Cilacap
to oversee the Amrozi session. The AGO sent Kuntadi (2005
International Visitors Program participant),Narendra Jatna
(2005 Paris Program participant, ref B),and Nanang Sigit
(2006 IV Program participant). (Note: Maryadi has never
traveled to the US but has mentioned his desire to do so on
several occasions. End Note.)

Next Procedural Steps in Judicial Review Request
-------------- --------------


7. (U) South Jakarta District Court, the court of first
instance for the Ba'asyir trial, seconded the responsibility
for hearing defense evidence to Cilacap, the district court
closest to Nusakembangan prison where Amrozi awaits his
execution. Cilacap District Court must now forward written
documentation of Amrozi's testimony to South Jakarta where
the review process will continue. Before concluding the
Judicial Review request, the South Jakarta District Court
will receive final arguments from the prosecution and the
defense. It will then draft a written opinion for the
Supreme Court on the Judicial Review and submit this opinion
along with all other documents related to the request. The
Supreme Court will then deliberate on the Judicial Review
request.


8. (C) Maryadi personally will submit the prosecution's
closing argument against the Judicial Review request. He
plans to draft this document next week. Although the South
Jakarta District Court determines when to submit the request
to the Supreme Court, Maryadi expects South Jakarta court to
complete its work in two to three weeks. Indonesian law
governing the Judicial Review process does not stipulate how
long the Supreme Court may take to make its decision, and the
review process does not need to be completed prior to
Ba'asyir's scheduled release from prison.

9. (S) Maryadi told us he is not worried about the Judicial
Review because he does not believe the process will result in
Ba'asyir's early release from prison. He confirmed that
Ba'asyir's scheduled release date falls in June, and at this
time, he has no knowledge of any legal actions planned by the
AGO against the twice-convicted cleric. He added that the
INP has responsibility for monitoring or otherwise acting
against Ba'asyir after his release, but Maryadi has not heard
of any INP plans to do so at this time. Maryadi cautioned
that any steps against Ba'asyir would need to be bulletproof
before the GOI would move against him a third time.

Comment
--------------


JAKARTA 00005040 003 OF 003



10. (C) Maryadi's personal involvement in the case remains
the GOI's best tactical asset for keeping Ba'asyir in prison,
and Maryadi remains the most knowledgeable person regarding
Ba'asyir and his activities. TPM seems to have played a role
in altering Amrozi's testimony. Regardless, Amrozi's
statements likely will not change any minds regarding
Ba'asyir's guilt or innocence. Several steps remain before
the Supreme Court could rule on the Judicial Review, and with
less then two month before Ba'asyir's scheduled release date,
it appears unlikely the Review process will conclude before
he walks out of prison. Nevertheless, a complete acquittal
and repudiation of Ba'asyir's conviction, even after his
release, would strike a serious blow to GOI CT efforts.

PASCOE