Military

DATE=4/21/03

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=INDONESIA MILITANT (L-O)

NUMBER=2-302399

BYLINE=PATRICIA NUNAN

DATELINE=JAKARTA

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: The leader of a small Indonesian radical group, who was arrested for defying police orders to remain in Jakarta, has surrendered, after escaping prosecutors' custody. Patricia Nunan has more from Jakarta.

TEXT: Standing outside his home, Muslim leader Habib Mohammed Rizieq Shihab railed against the authorities seeking to prosecute him.

/// ACT SHIHAB IN INDONESIAN, ESTABLISH, FADE ///

He says the government is so brave that it dares to arrest, capture and punish Muslim leaders and activists. But he says officials do not have the courage to capture those engaged in corruption or the gambling mafia, who, he says, destroy the country's moral structure.

Mr. Shihab is a leader of the Islamic Defenders Front, known in Indonesia as the F-P-I. The small radical group is best known for attacking bars and nightclubs in the Indonesian capital Jakarta, which they say should not serve alcohol.

Dozens of his supporters helped him flee the custody of prosecutors earlier in the day. Islamic Defenders Front members surrounded officials, grabbed Mr. Shihab, and commandeered a local bus to drive to his house. After several hours, during which Mr. Shihab met with his lawyers, Islamic Defenders Front members organized a convoy to take him back into custody.

Late last year, police ordered Mr. Shihab to remain in Jakarta, while he awaited trial on charges of vandalism. During that time, the Islamic Defenders Front said it was recruiting volunteers to go to Iraq to fight the United States.

Mr. Shihab left the country for what local media reported was a "humanitarian mission" in Iraq. It is not clear whether Mr. Shihab actually went to Iraq, or whether any other Indonesian volunteers did.

/// ACT SHIHAB IN INDONESIAN, ESTABLISH, FADE ///

He says he is sure that he can prevail - and that truth will win out against evil.

Indonesian news media quote police as saying they could have prevented him from being snatched by his supporters, but did not want to provoke violence. (SIGNED)

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