The Jakarta Post, 4/28/2004 4:29:48 PM
Indonesian police seize weapons in restive Poso
JAKARTA (AFP): Indonesian police said on Wednesday they had seized large
numbers of guns, bombs and ammunition in recent months from the eastern regency
of Poso, which is plagued by Muslim-Christian violence.
Poso, in Central Sulawesi province, was the scene of sectarian fighting which left
more than 1,000 dead in 2000-2001. The government brokered a peace deal in
December 2001 but sporadic violence continues.
Officers seized or discovered 168 crudely-made bombs, 102 firearms and 485 bullets
from January to March, said Poso police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Abdi Dharma. Weapons
seizures were also made this month but Dharma said he did not know the number.
Dharma said police had suspects in several attacks on Christians this month and in
March but had only arrested one person. Two people were killed and eight wounded in
those attacks.
"We don't have adequate evidence and witnesses. We believe the suspects are still
here," he told AFP.
Another part of eastern Indonesia, Ambon in Maluku province, has also been hit by
Muslim-Christian violence, with 5,000 killed between 1999 and 2002 and a fresh
outbreak this week claiming at least 36 lives since Sunday.
Indonesia's population is 87 percent Muslim but Christians and Muslims live in roughly
equal numbers in Poso and the Maluku.
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