The Australian, May 06, 2004
Two shot in Indonesian riots
FRESH fighting between Muslims and Christians in Indonesia's Maluku islands has
left two people dead, say official news reports.
The clashes took place on Buru island yesterday, the Maluku governor is reported to
have said.
The report from Antara news agency said the two victims were shot while fishing in
the island's Wamkana district, but gave no more details.
Clashes in the provincial capital Ambon last week killed nearly 40 people, raising
fears the region could plunge back into a Muslim-Christian war which killed 9,000
three years ago.
The fighting on Buru is the first incidence of violence outside of Ambon, which since
has been relatively peaceful since Sunday.
About 80 per cent of Indonesia's 210 million people are Muslims, but Maluku's two
million inhabitants are evenly divided between Islam and Christianity.
Last week's fighting was sparked when the region's small separatist Christian group
paraded through Ambon's city centre - act regarded as a provocation by Muslims.
The region, which was known as the Spice Islands during Dutch colonial days, is
2,600 kilometres east of Jakarta.
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