Indonesian police prepare 18,000 personnel to anticipate anti-Bush rallies

The Indonesian police would deploy 18,000 personnel to the capital city to anticipate rallies against the visit by U.S. President George W. Bush scheduled for Nov. 20.

Jakarta Police Chief Insp. Gen. Adang Firman said the number of personnel represents two-thirds of the strength of the Jakarta Police.

"No matter how big the rallies will be, the important message is to prevent them (from becoming) anarchy," he was quoted by the country's leading news website Detikcom as saying.

Adang said the security arrangement for Bush's visit would be handled by the Indonesian Military and the presidential security force (Paspampres).

Earlier in the day, House of Representatives Speaker Agung Laksono warned against the excessive deployment of security guards by the United States.

"That won't be necessary. This country is safe," he said.

During his second visit to Indonesia, Bush is slated to meet President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at the state palace in the Jakarta suburb of Bogor .

Bush first visited Indonesia in October 2003, when he made a three-hour stopover at the Ngurah Rai Airport on Bali island en route to Australia .

During the brief visit, he held talks on anti-terror cooperation with then president Megawati Soekaroputri.

Source: Xinhua