PM warns of powder revenge By John Kerin June 03, 2005 From:
Jakarta Post / newsagent Big story ... the embassy attack was front-page news in Bali.
JOHN Howard yesterday warned Australians in Indonesia could still face retaliation over the attack on Jakarta's embassy even though the white powder sent in a threatening letter may have been talcum powder. Despite triggering a full-scale emergency and evacuation of the embassy on Wednesday, and the Prime Minister claiming the incident was "murderously criminal", The Australian has learned the letter contained talcum powder laced with a the bacterial agent bacillus. Although anthrax has been ruled out, police were continuing to test it to establish its exact nature last night.
As Indonesians reacted in outrage over the apparent retribution for Schapelle Corby's 20-year sentence for drug smuggling, Mr Howard said: "Just as we cannot guarantee that a random act of stupidity with an evil intent from among our 20 million people will not occur, equally I cannot expect a guarantee from the Indonesian Government that some evil act of retaliation will not occur in that country."
A water cannon has been set up outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta and security is being reviewed amid fears extremists will seek revenge.
Mr Howard said there was a chance that terrorists could hit Australian interests in Indonesia in revenge for the intimidatory action.
The Australian embassy in Jakarta was hit by a car bomb last September, killing nine Indonesians. Indonesian authorities have also promised to boost security for Corby at her Bali jail.
Three Indonesian National Police officers and an Indonesian agriculture ministry official have joined the Australian Federal Police hunt for the hoaxer, who could face up to 10 years in jail for the crime.
"The sending of that particular letter was designed to cause major disruption and instil fear," AFP ACT chief police officer John Davies said yesterday. However despite Mr Howard's claim on Wednesday that the letter contained a harmful substance, Mr Davies said: "It's unlikely to contain bacteria of pathological significance."
"Of course we are still awaiting the final results but I have reported this news to my people," he told The Australian.
All were well at this stage.
Mr Cotan said he did not want to comment on the investigation but said it was "now fair to assume the attack was related to the Corby trial".
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said while the relations between the two governments had probably never been better, the damage to people-to-people relations had probably already been done.
"First of all there's outrage among many people in Australia over the Schapelle Corby conviction, but in Indonesia the reaction by ordinary people to this sort of abuse and denigration of the Indonesian judicial system ... it's not going to go down well there," Mr Downer said.
Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd went further, predicting the incident could provoke extremists in Indonesia.
"My concern about this particular event is that it may set that cause back quite some considerable way," he said.
The attack is believed to be a retaliation for the 20-year sentence for drug-smuggling handed out to Corby, with Mr Downer also warning yesterday that it would make Australia's task of negotiating a prisoner swap agreement all the more difficult.
