The Jakarta Post, 13 May 2002
Fresh melee break out in Ambon
AMBON, Maluku (JP): A fresh incident occurred at the bordering Mangga
Dua-Diponegoro area in the violence-torn Maluku capital of Ambon on Sunday
afternoon.
A soldier, identified as Pvt. Erdiyanto of the 741 Infantry Battalion, was injured by
bomb shrapnel in the clash, which involved fire exchanges and bombs.
The incident broke out when residents of Mangga Dua tried to repair their houses
which were damaged during a melee back in July 2001. The local residents were
accompanied by four members of the 741th Infantry Battalion during the repair work.
A witness, Anna Pattiasina, said that while residents were repairing their houses, a
group of men from the Diponegoro area, clad in white robes and Arabic-style head
scarfs, told the residents to stop renovating the houses.
Diponegoro used to be a neutral ground in Ambon but after three years of conflicts
between the Muslims and the Christians has fallen under Muslim control.
The locals were then told by the military officials to go back inside their houses for
safety but soon after that the men from Diponegoro came back and attacked with
homemade bombs and guns.
As of late Sunday evening the situation was still tense. Security forces were deployed
to prevent further chaos. (49/edt)
All contents copyright © of The Jakarta Post.
|
