AsiaNews, 24 October, 2006
Man killed and church set on fire as police clash with Muslims in
Poso
by Benteng Reges
A Muslim village reacted angrily to police searches on the eve of Idul Fitri. People
were instigated by “false” alarms via SMS that accused police of attacking a
Muslim school.
Poso (AsiaNews) – In Indonesia, the end of the sacred month of Ramadan saw fresh
violence in Poso, Central Sulawesi. Over the weekend, one man was killed and four
wounded in clashes between Muslim residents and police, and a Protest church was
set on fire yesterday.
Everything started on Saturday, 21 October, with a search operation by police in
Gebang Rejo village in Poso! Kota. Police officers went from door to door, asking
Muslim residents if they had “anything to declare”. The operation was aimed at
finding and confiscating illegal material like weapons, false documents and even
unregistered means of transport. The officials later started to hunt for a man who fled
during the search.
The razia, as such searches are dubbed in the area, continued the following day, but
this time, the residents reacted violently, attacking the local police station. The
situation degenerated when someone called more people who fired against the
policemen who intervened.
Syaifuddin, a local, died during the clashes while two policemen and two children
were wounded. Similar unrest broke out yesterday during the funeral service of the
slain Muslim: some people who attended threw stones at a checkpoint on the street.
Shortly afterwards, an arson attack on a local Protestant place of worship, Ekklesia
Church, was reported. The attack did not leave any injuries or serious damage in its
wake.
According to police statements during a press conference in Jakarta yesterday,
Gebang Rejo village “has been preparing an attack against the police for some
time”. A spokesman for the security forces said: “The searches were aimed at
rooting out suspected terrorists and limiting their potential activities, but residents
showed deep hostility towards the police.”
The situation gives cause for concern, not least because the violence appears to have
been instigated by groups or individuals intent on bringing back chaos to the region,
already shaken by a conflict between Christians and Muslims from 1999 to 2001. In
fact, people gathered to attack the police after they received false alarms via SMS
about a police attack on a Muslim school.
Copyright © 2003 AsiaNews All rights reserved.
|
