Getting Shot by Terrorists is to be Expected: Police Commissioner

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Comr. Gen Sutarman, head of the criminal investigation unit at the National Police Headquarters, said that - for police officers - getting shot at is not something out of the ordinary. Sutarman said that the police's efforts to combat terrorism have put the agency at the top of terrorist groups' list of enemies.

"So, yes, we have to defend ourselves," he said at the National Police Commission, Thursday, September 5.

Police officers have recently become the target of shooting by people suspected of being members of terrorist groups. The most recent incident happened in mid-August, when two policemen were shot dead by two men on a motorcycle in Pondok Aren, Tangerang.

According to Sutarman, the police realize that they have become the target of terrorist groups. He also claimed that the police force are capable of combating terrorism by capturing suspects, although he admitted there are still wanted men out there. He asserted that the police are still in pursuit of these wanted terrorist.

Another way to combat terrorism, Sutarman said, is by curbing the distribution and ownership of illegal weapons. Some time ago the police managed seized 12 illegal guns, which, according to him, were dismantled split into separate pieces when entering Indonesia.

"We continue to look for illegal weapons distribution," he said.

TRI ARTINING PUTRI