New police chief to focus on handling terrorism

New Police Chief General Tito Karnavian has said he will focus on handling crimes such as terrorism and conflicts caused by intolerance. 

"Crimes such as terrorism, intolerance-triggered conflicts, and mass conflicts with implications of contingencies will be my main focus," Tito Karnavian said at the State Palace, here Wednesday.

The police would be proactive, step up intelligence functions, and community development, he said.

The new general also promised to intensify preventive measures and promote professional law enforcement.

He also reiterated his commitment to arrest Santoso, the alleged terrorist, hiding in Central Sulawesi.

"Clearly, it still remains our main target," he added.

The Santoso group has been under pressure and can no longer launch attacks thanks to military operations such as "Camar", and "Tinombala" conducted by the government, he noted. 

The group initially had 47 members, and now only 21 remained, he remarked.

The fact shows that military operations have been successful, he said, and added that arresting Santoso, dead or alive, was just a matter of time.

He would, however, use a soft approach for the sake of the community, and force terrorists to face the legal process in line with the existing laws, the former chief of the counter-terrorism agency said. 

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) appointed Tito Karnavian as the new police chief to succeed General Badrodin Haiti at the State Palace here Wednesday afternoon.

Karnavian, previously chief of the National Counter-Terrorism Agency, joined the police academy in 1987 and had earlier held posts, including that of the Jakarta Police chief and head of the Special Detachment 88 counter-terrorism squad. 

Born in Palembang, South Sumatra Province, on October 26, 1964, Karnavian graduated from the Exeter University in Great Britain and earned his masters degree in Police Studies in 1993, among others.

In 1998, Karnavian graduated from the Massey University in Auckland, New Zealand, with Strategic Studies as a major subject. Later, Karnavian got his PhD from the Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, in Singapore in 2013.(*)

Source: ANTARA