BPNews.Net, May 5, 2004
Muslim-Christian violence flares again in Ambon, Indonesia;
more than 25 killed
By Staff
LONDON (BP)--Sectarian violence has erupted again in Ambon, one of Indonesia's
Maluku Islands, dealing a blow to the tentative Muslim-Chrristian dialogue that had
brought several months of relative peace to the area, Compass Direct news service
reported May 5.
The flashpoint for the latest outbreak came April 25 when the independence party
FKM-RMS (Moluccas Sovereignty Front) celebrated its 54th anniversary by hoisting
banned flags. The ensuing violence has left more than 25 dead, 80 wounded and 200
homes burned down, according to Compass Direct.
Muslims see the RMS as an arm of the Christian community, seeking independence
from the central government. Churches have denied any involvement with the RMS,
but their denials have gone unheeded, leading to renewed fighting between Muslim
and Christian communities.
Two churches were destroyed in the recent violence, the most recent being the
Nazareth Church, which went up in flames the night of May 3. The Christian University
in Ambon city, largely rebuilt after attacks in previous conflicts, was set afire April 27.
National television broadcasts showed Christians gathering outside police
headquarters with tears in their eyes, singing national songs in an attempt to
demonstrate their allegiance to the undivided Republic of Indonesia. Spokesmen for
the crowd said Christians were not second-class citizens and should have their rights
protected against activists and criminals.
A meeting of national religious leaders took place in Jakarta on April 27, according to
the Jakarta Post. Muslim, Protestant, Catholic, Hindu, Buddhist and Confucian
leaders from the Indonesian Committee for Religion and Peace cited "provocation" by
"third parties" as the best explanation for the recent violence in Ambon, the
newspaper reported, according to Compass Direct.
Sigit Pamudji of the Bishops Council of Indonesia (KWI) said he believed "certain
parties" had provoked the conflict for their own benefit and were trying make other
people think that the Moluccan people could not solve their own problems.
Religious leaders also met with Ambonese authorities and political leaders on April 27
to discuss strategies to end the conflict. Christian leaders were quick to point out that
the small independence faction FKM-RMS was not at the center of the violence; its
protests were peaceful and members had no resources or arms for such activity.
However, Compass Direct noted, Mozes Tuanakotta, the general secretary of the
FKM-RMS, was detained by police after the flag-raising incident.
Some observers believe activists are taking advantage of the confusion to burn, kill
and loot in order to halt the peace process. At present, the violence appears to be
restricted to the city of Ambon and has not spread to outlying villages.
The Jakarta-based newspaper Republika quoted Ja'far Umar Thalib, the leader of
Laskar Jihad (a banned Muslim activist group), as saying he was ready to send his
men to Ambon to protect the undivided Republic of Indonesia if police and other
security forces could not control the conflict. Observers say that Thalib's intervention
with Laskar Jihad troops in the previous conflict prolonged the violence, rather than
resolving it.
In recent days, hundreds of Muslims and Christians have fled their homes in the
still-divided Ambon city, leaving them at the mercy of wandering arsonists. Small
groups armed with machetes and sticks, meanwhile, stood guard at hastily erected
street barricades at the entrance to the Muslim and Christian sectors of town. Only a
few stalls in the market dared to open for business, selling only the essentials.
Thirty-one doctors have been sent to Ambon to help with the crisis, Compass Direct
reported, and a contingent of 400 military police also has been dispatched to the area,
three of whom are now numbered among the casualties. The government also planned
to bring in approximately 600 soldiers as reinforcements.
Authorities continue to cope with the numerous after-effects of sectarian violence that
first erupted in 1999. They have built housing for a large number of the estimated
36,000 refugees still living in refugee camps. However, camp residents say the new
houses are too small for families and water and electricity supplies are inadequate.
Many of them have refused to leave the refugee camps, which they claim have better
amenities.
Refugees have been warned to leave the temporary camps and move into the new
housing within the next two months or face eviction. An influx of new refugees from
the current fighting may cause further headaches for local authorities.
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Copyright 2004 Compass Direct, a news service based in Santa Ana, Calif., focusing
on Christians worldwide who are persecuted for their faith.
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Copyright (c) 2001 - 2004 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press
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