Camelia Pasandaran – Analysts on Friday said an uproar over the burials of three terrorists in Central Java stemmed from a residents' deep aversion to being labeled as extremist areas.

Bagus Budi Pranoto, Ario Sudarso and Susilo, suspected members of a violent splinter cell of Jemaah Islamiyah, were killed in a raid along with terror mastermind Noordin M Top near Solo on Sept. 17.

Some villagers in the three men's hometowns have rejected plans to bury the men. Islamist supporters clashed with protesters on Thursday in one of the proposed cemeteries in Solo.

The reaction of those protesters contrasts with that of supporters during funerals for two suspected terrorists shot dead in a police raid last month, in which hard-line Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir staged a "hero's burial" that was attended by throngs of people.

Imam Prasojo, a sociologist from the University of Indonesia, said people in Central Java were concerned their towns be tainted by the terrorism.

"With the comprehensive media coverage, people worry that their villages or districts will be named as the hometown of terrorists," Iman told the Jakarta Globe. "They are also anticipating even bigger coverage during the burials."

Imam said the local government may also be playing a role in the grass-roots rejection of the burials because of fears that associations with terrorism could hurt the local economy.

"It may hamper investment," he said. "This is a global era and the government as well as local citizens are concerned about how their area will be branded. It is important for them to project the sense that their areas are safe, environmentally friendly and free from terrorism."

However, respected Muslim scholar Azyumardi Azra said, from a purely religious perspective, the rejection of the burials was intolerable.

"They are upset about terrorism," Azyumardi said. "Probably they based their actions on the principle of 'not in my backyard.' People may be afraid that many supporters of terrorists will visit the graves later, or that their hometowns would carry the stigma of a terrorist hometown."

He said that instead of rejecting the burials, residents should pay more attention to strangers. "This will be a good lesson for those who want to be terrorists. Don't expect to get into heaven when even the earth on which they were born rejects them."

Given the objections, Azyumardi suggested that family members and the government should consider laying them to rest in a neutral area. "Despite the fact that we should not tolerate the people's rejection, family should also understand people's feelings," he said.

Azyumardi said the bodies could be interred in a cemetery in Jakarta. "They can be buried in a public cemetery which no village or certain group lays claims to," he said.