CRISIS CENTRE DIOCESE OF AMBOINA
Jalan Pattimura 32 -- Ambon 97124 -- Indonesia
Tel 0062 (0)911 342195 Fax 0062 (0)911 355337
E-mail: crisiscentre01@hotmail.com
Ambon, November 24, 2002
THE SITUATION IN AMBON / MOLUCCAS -- Report No. 331
GENERAL SITUATION – Not seldom we are asked about the real actual situation in
Ambon and the Moluccas: do people still live in fear? Have normal living conditions
more or less been restored? Etc. We may briefly answer as follows:
1. Since the Moluccas Agreement of Malino on February 12, 2002 (see Report 235)
both conflicting parties started to realize that in fact they share the same enemy,
namely the terrorists, whoever they are and on whose orders they carry out their
nefarious activities.
2. Most of Seram and Buru are ready now to restore normal relations. IDP-s are urged
and facilitated by the government to return to their original homesteads there. Local
TV shows places (such as Kairatu on the south coast of Seram) where Christians and
Muslims intermingle without restraint. Nevertheless, many IDP-s living in Ambon are
still wary and afraid to return to Seram and Buru, as in the past, time and again the
security forces have proved not to be able to anticipate riots: they often only enter the
place after the damage and the killings have been done.
3. Most precarious is the situation in the city of Ambon itself. Apart from some
intermingling of both communities at governmental level, via NGO activities, meeting
at several shared market places or following college together, each community keeps
to its own town areas.
Potential sources of conflict may be:
- The succession of the Governor and Vice-Governor. M.S.Latuconsina's and both of
his vice-governors' term ended last November 11th. The Minister of Interior Affairs
extended their term for another month. On December 12 a caretaking Governor is to
be appointed. Any election of a new Governor with its fierce competition might
jeopardize the actual relative calm situation.
- Many people, especially among the about 145.000 IDP-s that still are in Ambon,
have no job. This situation may breed unrest, especially under idling youngsters.
- A lot of weapons and explosives are supposed to be still hidden by both parties: just
in case they might be needed for defense.
- People feel discontented that hardly any justice has been done yet and many
criminals are being left alone.
- The planned returning of all refugees to their original homesteads by August 2003,
may trigger renewed violence, especially in sensitive places like Poka-Rumahtiga (on
the opposite side of the bay of Ambon), Kebun Cengkeh / Ahuru (at the outskirts of
the town, a former Laskar Jihad stronghold) and the large Christian totally destroyed
village of Waai on the island of Ambon (earlier claimed by Muslims as an originally
Muslim place and renamed Waai-Salam (see Report 63 no.4 – Sept.25, 2000).
4. The military has five battalions in the Moluccas and four in the North Moluccas. But
especially members of the Kopassus (Special TNI Army Forces) are mistrusted as
involving themselves (or having involved themselves) in acts of terrorism (landmines,
bombs, snipers), allegedly cooperating with the "Coker Gang" of Berty Loupatty.
C.J.Böhm msc,
Crisis Centre Diocese of Amboina |
