4 years in jail for Bashir: Court

An Indonesian court jailed Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir for four years on treason charges on Tuesday, but said the prosecution failed to p...

An Indonesian court jailed Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir for four years on treason charges on Tuesday, but said the prosecution failed to prove he led the Jemaah Islamiah network blamed for bombings in Southeast Asia.

The sentence was far less than the 15 years demanded by the prosecution in a case which has been widely seen as a test of the willingness of the world’s most populous Muslim nation to crack down on radical Islam.

Risk and political analysts described the sentence as light and one predicted it would make the US think twice before handing over suspected JI commander Hambali for trial in Indonesia.

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But Bashir himself, a 65-year-old preacher who has repeatedly rejected all charges against him, said he would appeal and urged his supporters to remain calm. ‘‘I cannot accept this, therefore I will appeal,’’ he said soon after sentencing, his voice rising. ‘‘I ask you to remain orderly, and be careful of provocateurs from America.’’

‘‘Although the treason acts were proven, there has not been enough evidence to prove Abu Bakar Bashir was the leader of treason acts of trying to oust the government,’’ said judge Muhammad Saleh.

‘‘The panel has an opinion that Bashir has not been proven as the leader of Jemaah Islamiah,’’ Saleh said. — Reuters

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