Police Processing FPI Members

Jakarta (Antara) - Police said they are still processing the three Islam Defenders' Front (FPI) members who have been named suspects in connection with a recent clash with community members in Kendal, Central Java. "What the police are doing is enforcing the law. Laws have been broken in the incident," National Police Chief General Timur Pradopo said here on Wednesday. In view of that he called on the public not to take the law into their own hands because police have already taken comprehensive actions from appealing, counseling, preventing to law enforcement. "We have arrested, processed and detained them. We hope people would respect the process considering that now is the holy month," he said. The police had named three FPI members from Temanggung, Central Java, suspects following a clash in Kendal on July 18 namely Satria Yuwono (22), Bayu Agung Wicaksono (22) and Soni Haryono (38). Kendal resort police chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Asep Jenal Ahmadi said Satria and Banu were named suspects for possessing sharp weapons while Soni for causing death while driving a car. The police have also named four villagers suspects for vandalizing an FPI car in connection with the incident. The regional board of the FPI chapter in Temanggung denied that FPI had conducted a sweep that had led to the clash in Sukorejo village in Kendal. "We never intended to conduct a sweep in Kendal. At the time we only conducted a 'sympathetic rally'," the chairman of the board, Burhanuddin said. A mother was killed after she was hit by a car carrying FPI members in the incident. (*)