Bomb blasts have rocked two Jakarta churches during Sunday morning services, wounding more than 25 people on the eve of a showdown between the top assembly and President Abdurrahman Wahid.
Police said the blasts were caused by bombs. One woman's legs were blown off and at least 24 other people were wounded at one of the churches. Witnesses said several people were hurt in the other explosion.
"These (attacks) were done by people who want to cause chaos and create insecurity in Jakarta during the special session," police spokesman Mr Anton Bahrul Alam said, referring to an impeachment hearing by the top assembly set to resume tomorrow.
A defiant Wahid has said he will refuse a summons by the supreme People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) to appear tomorrow to answer allegations of corruption and incompetence.
Instead, he is threatening to declare a state of emergency that would allow him to dissolve the MPR and call a snap election. And he has warned that his angry supporters could take to the streets.
Apart from the bombs, the capital was peaceful today. Families filled the central Merdeka (Freedom) square and strolled or cycled down the main street which is closed to traffic on Sunday mornings.
More than 40,000 extra police and soldiers have been deployed amid fears the crisis could erupt into bloodshed. Hundreds of armed personnel are guarding the parliamentary complex where the assembly will meet on Monday behind razor wire barricades and protected by armoured personnel carriers.
Authorities have drawn up evacuation plans for the assembly and foreign diplomats, and Australian Foreign Minister Mr Alexander Downer said today Canberra was ready to evacuate Australians if the situation turned ugly as it did in 1998 when former leader Suharto was forced from power.
Mr Wahid is almost certain to be impeached and is almost completely isolated politically.
MPR chief Mr Amien Rais, the kingmaker who engineered Mr Wahid's surprise election in October, 1999, yesterdayurged him to resign and said Vice President Mr Megawati Sukarnoputri would make a better president.
"I don't see any miracles at all. He's finished," Mr Rais said in an interview.
Mr Megawati, who would automatically replace Wahid and whose party backs impeachment, was meeting senior political leaders todayover the crisis.