Banda Aceh – A lawyer Saturday demanded the release of an anti-corruption activist who was allegedly beaten while in detention after being accused of stealing aid in the tsunami-hit Aceh province.

The beating of Farid Faqih, whose swollen and bruised face has appeared in newspaper photographs and television footage, has refocused attention on widespread concerns about police and army highhandedness in Indonesia.

"We demand that the police release him. We reject the police accusation that Farid had stolen aid donation," his lawyer, Daniel Panjaitan, told The Associated Press.

He said Faqih is in obvious pain after the beating and there is no reason to keep him in custody as he cannot flee Banda Aceh. "He can stay outside the police station," said Panjaitan.

Indonesia's military said Friday it was questioning an army captain for allegedly beating Faqih, who was detained on Wednesday on suspicion of stealing two truckloads of food, medicine and computers. He was later handed over to the police.

However, Faqih, who heads the Government Watch group and had been working for the UN World Food Program, said he was assaulted by several soldiers, not just one.

By law, a suspect can be kept in custody a maximum of 24 hours. But if the police determine that they have substantial evidence of the alleged crime, the suspect can be held without charge for 20 days.

Indonesian soldiers have a history of abusing suspects in their custody, human rights groups say. They also accuse the military of not doing enough to punish those who break the law.

WFP spokeswoman Heather Hill said Faqih was working for the agency under a short-term contract to help build a tent city for UN agencies in Aceh when he was detained. Bo Asplund, the United Nations representative in Indonesia, said Friday he believed that Faqih had been wrongly accused and would be released soon.

More than 50,000 soldiers and police are stationed in Aceh, where they are fighting insurgents belonging to the Free Aceh Movement.