"My client will undergo a series of health check-ups at the Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital in Jakarta in connection with the swelling in his legs," he revealed.
"Yes, Pak Kyai has been released from the Gunung Sindur (Lapas) due to swelling in his legs, and this condition had persisted since quite a long time," Mahendradatta said when contacted by Antara in Jakarta on Tuesday.
According to Mahendradatta, this examination was necessary to see the condition of Ba`asyir`s organs that were thought to have triggered swelling in his legs.
"He is indeed already aged, so his condition has declined. We need to examine further to see what triggers it (leg swelling)," Mahendradatta remarked.
Yusril Ihza Mahendra, lawyer for the National Campaign Team of Joko Widodo (Jokowi) and Ma`ruf Amin, had earlier stated while meeting inmates in connection with the case of terrorist convict Ba`asyir in the Mount Sindur Terrorist LP, Bogor Regency, West Java, that Ba`asyir would be released.
One of the reasons for Ba`asyir`s release was believed to be on humanitarian grounds due to his increasing old age and declining health conditions.
Meanwhile, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) affirmed that the government will abide by the applicable laws and regulations relating to the plan to parole terrorist prisoners, such as Ba`asyir.
President Jokowi stated that the parole for Ba`asyir is one of the legal mechanisms that must be passed.
He noted that one of the basic requirements for parole is being loyal to the Unitary Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) and Pancasila.
However, Head of the National Terrorism Mitigation Agency (BNPT) Police General Suhardi Alius stated that Ba`asyir was reluctant to sign a statement of loyalty to the NKRI and participate in the deradicalisation program.
To this end, Jokowi said that the government had continued to examine the parole for Ba`asyir.
"Moreover, this is a basic situation, loyal to the Unitary Republic of Indonesia, loyal to Pancasila, something fundamental," Jokowi affirmed.
In the meantime, Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin called on the public to not harbor fears over Ba`asyir`s release, as he lacks the clout he earlier held when he mobilized people in using funds to commit acts of terrorism.
The Ba`asyir effect is no longer as strong as it was earlier, Saifuddin pointed out.
"In the past, I may have been subjective in giving an assessment, but I am of the view that he is certainly different from (what he was) five or 10 years ago," the minister remarked.
"His condition is like that. We just think, people as old as him still have the potential to then spread religious teachings (radical) like that," Saifuddin said.
However, he believed that the security forces and law enforcement had special instruments to monitor Ba`asyir`s movements after release.
"Our security forces are far away to understand the impacts or implications of the release. They certainly have their own instruments to be able to calculate how big the impact is," he pointed out.
He noted that Ba`asyir`s rising age and deteriorating health condition were among the main considerations to free the convict of a terrorist case.
Hence, Saifuddin believes it was time that the people forgave Ba`asyir for his past mistakes.
"As the minister of religion, from my understanding of religion, I believe it teaches to prioritize forgiveness for anyone, who has committed mistakes, especially older people," he emphasized.
Some people in the country opined that Baasyir`s release could not be separated from the role played by Yusril Ihza Mahendra, legal advisor of the presidential and vice-presidential candidate pair Jokowi-Amin, saying that Ba`asyir has the right to obtain parole because there are more than two-thirds of his sentence. This means Ba`asyir has the right to receive parole on December 13, 2018.
"Since the conditions for parole are regulated, among others, ministerial regulations are in accordance with Pancasila, UUD 45, and various things if they are not signed, they cannot go out," Yusril remarked at a press conference in Jakarta on Saturday.
After uploading on the @ yusrilihzamhd Instagram account, Yusril said the president opined that Ba`asyir must be released due to humanitarian considerations.
However, Yusril noted that Ba`asyir was reluctant to sign a statement to be loyal to Pancasila when released.
"The requirement for parole is, among others, to be loyal to Pancasila. Ustadz Abu said `I do not want to sign it and better that I remain in prison until it ends.` This is the matter of the Aqidah," Yusril remarked during a press conference on Saturday.
To this end, Yusril has also reported to President Jokowi, and he said an agreement had been reached to replace the condition of "being loyal to the Pancasila" with only being "obedient to Islam."
Editing by Suharto
Reporter: Eliswan Azly
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
