Trial of tawheed flag burning case begins at Garut court

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, GARUT -- Almost 600 security personnel are deployed to safeguard the first trial session of the recent case of the burning of a black flag bearing the Arabic writing of "Tawheed" at Garut District Court here on Monday. The flag burning case, which has triggered massive protests in different parts of Indonesia over the past week, involves two suspects only identified by their initials as M and F as well as a suspected bearer of the flag, identified as U.

According to Garut Police Chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Budi Satria Wiguna, the deployment of 595 police and military personnel was aimed at securing the court's room, the court's yard, and an area outside the court building. Wiguna noted that the security personnel took necessary measures by temporarily closing access to the Merdeka Road in front of the district court as a precautionary measure against any unwanted eventuality, so the local community members were expected to respond to the trial wisely.

In connection with the flag burning case, the defendants, found guilty of violating the Indonesian Criminal Code's Article 174, are liable to face a maximum sentence of three weeks in jail.

Thousands of people staging a rally on Defend Tawheed 211 thronged the road around the National Monument (Monas) horse statue towards Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat, Jakarta, Friday (Nov 2).