MISNA - Missionary Service News Agency, 6/2/2003 16:50
Indonesia
Moluccas: Religious Of Crisis Centre, "Islamic Guerrillas Are
Returning To Ambon"
Church/Religious Affairs, Brief
New groups of Islamic guerrillas that acclaim 'Jihad' (holy war), are returning to the
Island of Ambon, administrative capital of the Indonesian archipelagos of the
Moluccas, which since January 1999 up until the first months of 2002 was theatre to a
sanguinary conflict between Muslims and Christians.
It was reported to MISNA by the Fathers of the Crisis Centre Diocese of Amboina,
specifying that one of their Crisis Centre members witnessed some 50 to 60 Laskar
Mujahidin disembarking from the Bukit Siguntang passenger ship at Yos Sudarso
harbour, Ambon, last Saturday, February 1. The religious assume that they have
come for social and religion-related activities in the local Muslim community.
In any event, their testimony is a confirmation of the rumours circulated in the past
few days in Ambon on the arrival of the guerrillas. In response to the inferences, the
military chief commander Djoko Santoso said that he had instructed his intelligence
section – in cooperation with police intelligence personnel – to explore on the
veracity of these rumours.
Since the beginning of the Moluccas triennial inter-religious conflict, hundreds of
members of the Islamic extremist group 'Laskar Jihad' poured into Ambon. Accused of
fomenting the clashes, the extremists remained 'on site' until a few months ago, to
then leave the Island following the Bali attack in which at least 200 people were killed.
[BP]
Copyright © MISNA
|
