JAKARTA (Reuters): Indonesia is considering parole for two former leaders of the Jemaah Islamiyah militant network and amnesty for its jailed members, senior officials said, after 1,300 former members pledged their loyalty to the country.
The al Qaeda-linked JI was accused of orchestrating some of the deadliest attacks in Indonesia's recent history, including the bombing of Bali nightclubs in 2002 that killed more than 200 people, mostly foreigners, and of a Jakarta hotel in 2003 that killed 12 people.
The plan follows the announcement by senior members in June that the network was being disbanded.
Eddy Hartono, head of Indonesia's counter-terrorism agency told Reuters there were 115 former JI members currently imprisoned and the agency might propose to the government parole for ex-leaders Abu Rusdan and Para Wijayanto.
Abu Rusdan led JI at the time of the Bali bombings and was jailed in 2003 for three years for sheltering a militant who carried out the attack and was later executed.
He was jailed again in 2022 for six years because he remained an active member of a banned network.
Para Wijayanto, JI leader from 2009 to 2019 was sentenced for seven years in prison in 2020.
"We will consult with the ministry. If they meet the legal requirements, we will propose (the parole)," Eddy said.
INFLUENCE WANED
Adhe Bhakti, a security expert at the Center for Radicalism and Deradicalization Studies, said proposed parole for two former leaders would reflect their cooperation in exposing the remaining networks and convincing former members to pledge their loyalty to Indonesia.
At its peak, JI was one of Asia's most feared extremist networks, with cells in Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines, but its influence and support waned after a sustained crackdown by authorities and de-radicalisation programmes.
The ministry for law and penitentiary affairs is collecting data on how many former JI members will be given parole or amnesty, senior minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said on Monday.
President Prabowo Subianto wanted to grant amnesty to young convicts at an age when they can be productive members of society, the minister said, adding procedures were underway to hold the amnesty and drop outstanding charges.
"God willing, it will be implemented in the first months of 2025," he said in a statement.
Two operatives jailed for life for their involvement in the Bali attack, its planner Hutomo Pamungkas, or Mubarok, and bomb-maker Ali Imron, are among those still in prison.
Prabowo also plans to pardon 44,000 prisoners, from drug offenders and activists jailed for defamation, and has said he might also allow people who engaged in graft to go unpunished if they return what they stole.
(Reporting by Ananda Teresia; Editing by Martin Petty) - Reuters
