Ulma Haryanto – Members of radical Muslim group Jemaah Ansharut Tauhid say they took offense at being labeled terrorists following a weekend incident in which residents of an East Java town vandalized property because they believed it was owned by the group.

Ahmad Arief, JAT's regional secretary for East Java, told the Jakarta Globe on Monday that police officers had repeatedly tried to frighten the public by labeling his organizations as hard-liners.

"In Surabaya and in Malang, officers went to the public and told them that our events are filled with hard-liners and terrorists," he said. "The mosques and the event organizers have become scared."

But Ahmad said his organization, which was founded by convicted terrorist Abu Bakar Bashir, would continue its work. "This is a test for us," he said. "People are slandering us by calling us terrorists."

His remarks came after dozens of villagers in Mojokerto went on a rampage, vandalizing a property they believed was the branch office of JAT.

"We don't want our neighborhood to be labeled a stronghold for terrorists, so we destroyed the fences so any activity in the lot would be visible to residents here," a villager, M. Imron, was quoted by Antara news agency as saying on Sunday. He said the residents also destroyed a shack on the property.

"So before a terrorist camp was established, we chose to destroy the place first so it wouldn't disrupt the peaceful environment here," Imron said.

Ahmad said the site was not JAT's branch office, but acknowledged the damaged property belonged to a former member. "It was not a JAT office, but rather it was a property owned by Sutrisno," Ahmad said, a former member of the organization.

Ahmad said he and several other JAT members went to the location on Sunday to investigate the case and said the attack was caused by a personal dispute. "It was triggered by a feud between Sutrisno and another resident named Ali Imron," he said.

Sutrisno's first wife is related to Ali, who provoked other residents when Sutrisno wanted to take a new wife, Ahmad said. The relationship between M. Imron and Ali Imron is not clear. "Sutrisno used to be an active [JAT] member until six months ago when he violated the organization's policy," Ahmad said.

Sutrisno told Antara he planned to run a business on the land and had no intention of setting up an Islamic school. "I can't accept the accusations by residents that we are involved in terrorist activities," he said.