
Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro has said he regrets a diplomatic incident on Wednesday in which two Indonesian marines wore the names of the two perpetrators of a 1965 Singapore bombing, while on duty at an international defense event in Jakarta on Wednesday.
The minister said the incident at the Jakarta International Defense Dialogue (JIDD), which prompted the Singaporean delegation to walk out of the talks, was inappropriate and he had ordered the Navy to fully investigate the embarrassing behavior of the two Indonesian marines involved.
“We have asked the Navy to investigate who they are and who sent them,” Purnomo said at the State Palace on Friday.
The two men posed as Usman bin Haji Muhammad Ali and Harun bin Said, the two Indonesian marines who were executed in 1968 for the deadly 1965 MacDonald House bombing in Singapore, during the period of Indonesia’s Konfrontasi (Confrontation) against the Federation of Malaysia — of which Singapore was a part.
The men, dressed in vintage uniforms and purple berets, with “Usman” and “Harun” on their chests, were seen at the defense exhibition during the JIDD, an international event attended by 45 countries, including Singapore.
Their presence attracted attention from visitors, many of whom posed with the two marines. The men reportedly looked confident about their behavior and seemed to enjoy the public attention.
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/03/22/minister-orders-probe-usman-harun-stunt.html


