BY RIZA OZ
Banda Aceh, (TAG) – The caused of journalist’s death
in southeast Aceh district believed murdered related to his reports. It’s
known after a team of Aceh Journalists Association (PWA) investigated case in
the area, the organization said Wednesday.
Muhammad AH, the chief of PWA, said that based on
their investigation, they concluded the death of Darma Sahlan, 43, a journalist
who working for north Sumatra capital Medan’s based Monitor weekly newspaper allegedly murdered, not in traffic
incident as police stated earliers.
“We interviewed local residents whose houses just
three meters from the scene. They admitted that they never heard collision to
believed as a traffic incident,” he said.
Darma’s body was found in trenches near his motorcycle
in a remote Lawe Dua village of Bukit Tusam sub-district in southeast Aceh, on
February 5.
“His body sustained a blow to the head from a blunt
object and injuries to the face. Skid marks were also found near the body,”
Muhammad said.
“We also interviewed his family. They believed he was
murdered and that the body was then placed in a ditch where he was found. So
the cause of his death not in the traffic incident.”
Muhammad urged police to fully investigate and arrest
the murderers. He also called all journalists’ organizations to advocate the
case of Darma’s death.
Meanwhile a southeast police detective officer Muhammad Firdaus said the
cause of Darma’s death still unclear yet because there was no single witness
who seeing at the late midnight. Police, he said, still investigating the case.
“It’s
still no clear yet. All alibi
still exploring and we need the time to reveal this case,” Firdaus said, adding
that this case would be as a priority of local police’s tasks.
Police
so far has verified with some witness at the scene, victim’s family and also
his friends. “This case could not be revealed in the near future. We have to
evaluate all facts, evidence and witness’s information,” he said.
Reporters Without Borders, a non-profit France based
media organization, over the weekend urged authorities to fully investigate the
death of Darma. It offered their condolences to Darma’s family
“We urge the authorities to do everything possible to
shed light on his death, and to not rule out the possibility that he was
murdered in connection with his work,” Reporters Without Borders said in a press
statement.
Banda Aceh’s Alliance of Independent Journalist (AJI)
previously called the police to seriously investigate the Darma’s death.
“Police must work hard to investigate and unravel this case,” Mukhtaruddin
Yacob, the chairman of AJI Banda Aceh, said.
"AJI condemned Darma's murder or anyone else that
causes to pressure the freedom of the press" in Aceh. Police have to
reveal the caused of the Darma’s death so the case will be clear. By seriously
investigating the case, it also hope that the similar case not happen again in
the future.”
AJI calls people that directly related or not to
protect the works of journalism and respect the press freedom, Mukhtar said,
adding the Aceh journalists and press organizations to oversee the case.
"We called journalists in Aceh to be on alert
because terror and intimidation has been increasing recently," he said.[]
Aceh Journalist’s Death Believed Murdered: PWA
![Aceh Journalist’s Death Believed Murdered: PWA]()
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February 15, 2012
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