HTML pages designed & maintained by Alifuru67 Copyright © 1999/2000 - 1364283024 & 1367286044		Want to Help? CRISIS CENTRE DIOCESE OF AMBOINA Jalan Pattimura 32 - Ambon 97124 - Indonesia Tel 0062 (0)911 342195 Fax 0062 (0)911 355337 E-mail: compro@ambon.wasantara.net.id Ambon, December 15, 2000 THE SITUATION IN AMBON / MOLUCCAS - Report no. 109 From many sides our reports meet much appreciation, perhaps because they are concise, do not use abusive language, and restrict themselves to merely providing information on facts without any commentary. We can understand however that outsiders are often puzzled, which to believe: the reports of the Crisis Centre and of websites such as www.maluku.org/hain and www.egroups.com/group/masariku or – on the other hand – the reports that are spread by the Laskar Jihad Ahlus Sunnah wal Jama’ah ( www.laskarjihad.or.id ). The reader might possibly be guided by noticing slanderousness of language or by ostensibly false accusations, such as the allegation from the side of the jihads that christians are RMS separatists. Everybody knows that since the early sixties there has not been any RMS movement any more in the Moluccas. Besides, RMS in the Moluccas was always restricted to the Lease Islands only (the island of Ambon and its small neighbours to the east). And if there are any separatists here, well that is none of the jihads’ business: the government will take care of that. Do they fight separatism in Aceh and Papua?   In this context we read on laskarjihad@mailandnews.com, December 12 2000, about the conflict on the island of Keswui/Kasui (we quote just a small part of it). “Church Liars Team Lying Again”. On November 27 the RMS christians of Kasui launched a surprise attack. This aroused a jihad fighting spirit among the local residents [why should this christian minority launch an attack on their ethnic brothers?]. These christians got international sympathy. The Church Advocacy Team [TPG in Ambon] managed to make the residents of Kasui that had feigned to convert to islam and were evacuated on the freighter “Shinta”, report to the Human Rights Commission in Ambon, that grave violation of human rights was underway on Kasui…. As soon as the christians were cornered and defeated, their (protestant) minister hastened to flee to safety. That was an eye-opener for the christians to realize the rottenness of the christian religion and its minister, and they preferred to go over to islam [Mind: the majority of the local christians is catholic!]. However, the christian militia of Kasui was so fraudulent that – when interviewed by the Colonial Dutch Radio [meant is Radio Nederland Wereldomroep / Dutch Radio World Service] – they said that they had been forced to convert to islam, because their lives were being threatened….[Thus the twisting of facts goes on and on. For what really happened, see our reports starting at Report 96].   On the other hand the cause of the Moluccas is not promoted either by exaggerating the other way round. Today via internet we and others were invited to sign a petition, created by the “Australian Peace Committee”, to Mrs.Mary Robinson, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and H.E. Kofi Annan, Secretary General United Nations, in which is said that “23.000 Indonesian soldiers backed by 30.000 Laskar Jihad mercenaries and some hundreds of Taliban mercenaries are waging a full-scale war against the innocent Moluccan people… Moluccans report that 40.000 of their people have been killed and thousands more injured.” Etc. We very much appreciate the world’s concern, but are not helped by such exaggerations, which – of course – will simply be put aside by those addressed, since they are too clever to believe such nonsense. C.J.Böhm MSc, Secretary of Crisis Centre Diocese of Amboina   Received via e-mail from : Crisis Centre Diocese of Amboina Copyright © 1999-2000  - Ambon Berdarah On-Line * http://www.go.to/ambon HTML pages designed and maintained by Alifuru67 * http://www.oocities.org/maluku67 Send your comments to alifuru67@egroups.com