ReliefWeb, 24 Nov 2005
New violence breaks out in eastern Indonesia, one dead
Jakarta (dpa) - A clash between rival villagers broke out in Indonesia's troubled eastern
province of Maluku, with at least one person reported killed and 15 others wounded,
local media reports and police said Thursday.
Local government authorities said the incident erupted on Wednesday and continued
until Thursday morning between residents of two villages - Mamala and Morela - in
Leihitu sub-district of Central Maluku regency, 2,100 kilom! etres northeast of Jakarta
During the clash, rival residents, mostly youths, used home-made bombs and other
weapons, reported the El-shinta private radio station.
Maluku police spokesman Adjunct Commissioner Arsyanto Darmawan confirmed the
fighting left at least one person dead and 15 others wounded. At least seven houses
were set on fire, he said.
Darmawan said the situation in the area was under control by mid-day on Thursday,
adding that an investigation was underway to discover the cause of the violence.
It was the latest in a sting of violent incidents, mainly stemming from rivalry between
Moslems and Christians.
Senior Adjunct Commissioner Leonidas Braksan, chief of the Maluku's Lease and
nearly Ambon district police! , told the radio that three platoons of police were being
deployed to the area in an attempt to maintain order.
The Maluku islands, also known as the ``Spice Islands'' during Dutch colonial rule,
was ravaged by fighting between Moslems and Christians from 1999 to 2002 before
rival religious leaders signed a peace accord in February 2002 to end the conflicts that
claimed more than 6,000 lives.
The fighting in 1999 was intensified with the arrival of Moslem militant volunteers
belonging to Laskar Jihad - or Holy War Troops -from Indonesia's main island of Java.
dpa sh jh
Source: Agence France-Presse (AFP)
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