The Jakarta Post, April 17, 2004
11 migrants missing in Poso
Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post, Palu, Central Sulawesi
Eleven men, most from Java, have disappeared from the restive regency of Poso in the
past six months, according to a police memo at the Detective and Crime Directorate
of the Central Sulawesi provincial police headquarters.
Ten of the men were born in Tegal municipality in Central Java and another was born
in Makassar, the memo states. It was made public on Friday in an attempt to enlist
the assistance of people who might know them.
The missing are: Abu Khair, 25, Daruji bin Muin, 28, Joko Suprianto, 30, Siswanto,
25, Suwarno, 30, Muhammad Tosim bin Darmin, 30, Untung bin Kliwon, 25, Warna
bin Marwo, 25, Aryo, 30 and Saidi, 25. The only non-Javanese in the group is Muchlis,
27.
The public announcement, signed by Sr. Comr. Tatang Somantri, added that the men
were last seen in a Daihatsu Zebra minivan together in Poso in October last year.
Muchlis was apparently hired as their driver.
The Javanese were said to be "iron bed traders", who departed from Gorontalo
province to Makassar through Poso regency.
Whether they were victims of a crime or in hiding after committing a crime is still
unclear. The purpose of their journey was in question as well.
The police announcement was prompted by a notification letter from Tegal police
department a few days ago, stating that the 10 Tegal residents had been reported
missing since October last year in Poso regency.
Separately, chief of Central Sulawesi provincial police Brig. Gen. Taufik Ridha said
that the police questioned on Thursday 13 traders from several different areas of Java.
However, none of them had any connection with the 10 missing Javanese.
The 13 were seasonal traders from Java, selling various kinds of things in Luwuk, the
capital of Banggai regency in Central Sulawesi, said Taufik.
They were discovered while riding public transportation in Poso regency, on their way
to Luwuk.
"We hauled them down to the station house after a routine road block to check for
identity papers. We initially suspected that they were involved in the recent spate of
shootings in Poso, because they emerged in group shortly after the fatal shootings.
But, we released them due to lack of evidence," said the one-star general.
Two people were killed, one a church minister, and eight others severely injured after
a string of shootings in the past three weeks in Christian villages of the regency.
Police have questioned several people in those cases, and they declared one of them,
Risman, a suspect in the case.
However, the investigation into the case was reportedly going at a snail's pace, as
Risman said there were no new leads.
This has become a cause for concern for the police, because it was hoped that
Risman's statements would implement his cohorts as well as the commander in
charge of seemingly well-organized paramilitary raids.
"The suspect has not said a thing. It makes it difficult for us to do much if he doesn't
sing," he said.
Sectarian conflicts have been an ugly feature of Poso regency since 2000. At least
2,000 Muslims and Christians have been killed in the sporadic, but bloody battles.
The situation has been relatively calm since the beginning of 2003 when a peace deal
was implemented by leaders of the two warring religions.
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