Business Times, May 25, 2002
Dow Jones Newswires
Four Dead In Boat Shooting In Indonesia's Maluku Islands
AMBON, Indonesia (AP)--An unidentified group of men in a motorized boat fired at a
passenger boat Saturday killing four people - including a policeman - in Indonesia's
violence-wracked Maluku islands, police said.
The victims, all of whom were Christians, were traveling from Waimita village on
Saparua island early Saturday morning, said Maluku Police Chief Brig. Gen.
Soenarko Danu Ardanto. He added police were investigating the case but had no
suspects yet.
Up to 9,000 people have been killed in the archipelago, 2,600 kilometers east of
Jakarta, since fighting between Muslims and Christians started in 1999. Violence has
flared up in recent weeks despite a peace deal signed in February.
Fighting intensified when hardline Muslim Laskar Jihad fighters arrived in Maluku from
Indonesia's main island of Java in 2000.
The group has rejected the peace deal and has been refusing to hand in its weapons.
A senior security official called for the expulsion of Laskar Jihad from Maluku two
weeks ago but so far they have defied such calls. The paramilitary group, which
denies targeting Christians, enjoys strong support in Indonesia, the world's most
populous Muslim nation.
While the majority of Indonesians are Muslims, in Maluku - which has a population of
about 2 million - the balance between Christians and Muslims is almost even. (END)
Dow Jones Newswires 25-05-02 0805GMT
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