LAKSAMANA.Net, November 17, 2003 11:57 PM
Troops on Alert Amid More C. Sulawesi Unrest
Laksamana.Net - Thousands of security personnel have been tasked to prevent
religious violence in Central Sulawesi province from spreading after the weekend
murder of three Christians.
Poso Police deputy chief Rudi Trenggono said Monday (17/11/03) the forces are on
alert in Poso and Morowali districts, which have been the scene of violent attacks by
masked gunmen over recent weeks.
Most recently, a Christian church official Oranye Tajoja and his nephew were dragged
from their car and killed by attackers in the Poso Pesisir area on Saturday; while in a
separate incident an angry mob of Muslims hacked a 23-year-old Christian man to
death during a protest.
The killings took place shortly after police shot dead a Muslim man, Hamid Suddin,
suspected of involvement in deadly October attacks on Christian villages near Poso.
Poso District Security Restoration chief Senior Commissioner Muhammad Rum said
Suddin was shot as he tried to escape arrest during a police raid on his house in
Tabalo village, Poso Pesisir subdistrict.
But rumor quickly spread that police had gunned down Suddin without warning,
prompting thousands of Muslims to besiege the local police station.
An estimated 1,000 people were killed in sectarian violence in and around Poso over
2000-2001.
The government sponsored a peace deal in December 2001 that largely put an end to
the carnage, but intermittent killings have continued.
Bus Attacked
On Monday, an armed gang attacked a public bus near Kuku village in Poso's North
Pamona area, Antara reported.
The gang fired shots at about 4am to stop the bus, which had been heading from Palu
to Morowali. All of the passengers were reportedly ordered to step out of the vehicle
and then led to a place not far from the road
One of the passengers, Hussain Garusu (43), has since been reported missing.
Poor Law Enforcement
Poso peace activist Sulaiman Mamar on Monday said violence is continuing because
many of those involved in past religious conflicts are yet to be brought to justice.
"Until now, perpetrators of the violence in the past conflict in Poso have remained
legally scot-free," said Mamar, who chairs a group working to publicize the 2001
peace accord.
He said the offenders remained free because they were being protected by "certain
quarters" and police were therefore "finding it difficult to collect the necessary
evidence against them".
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