LAKSAMANA.Net, May 25, 2004 08:10 PM
One Killed, 16 Injured in New Ambon Blast
Laksamana.Net - One person was killed and 16 injured when a bomb ripped through a
crowded outdoor market in the religiously divided city of Ambon, Maluku province, on
Tuesday (25/5/04).
The bombing was the third in the port city within three days. It took place exactly one
month after a renewed outbreak of clashes between Muslims and Christians that left
38 people dead.
"From the bomb, which exploded near the open market, one person was killed and 16
others injured, and out of those 16, two suffered serious injuries," Maluku Police
spokesman Endro Prasetyo was quoted as saying by Reuters.
State news agency Antara reported that most of the injured sustained wounds to the
chest and head after the bomb went off at 10:35am local time in the predominantly
Christian neighborhood of Batu Meja in Sirimau subdistrict.
Antara quoted locals as saying the explosion could have been avoided if nearby police
had responded faster to a report on the discovery of the bomb.
One shopper, identified as Lexi, said the bomb was found at about 10am in a small
kiosk near the market. "We reported the bomb to the police station, which is about 50
meters away from the scene. The police however were too slow in taking action."
The past month's communal fighting was the worst in the Maluku islands since
religious clashes that left about 6,000 people dead over 1999-2002.
Some reports said police in Ambon had defused three other "bombs" found near a
church, a supermarket and the city's tax office. But National Police spokesman
Inspector General Paiman later said the suspicious items were merely black plastic
bags containing harmless objects, planted in an effort to cause public alarm.
"The placing of these objects was aimed at intimidating and provoking the people of
Ambon," he was quoted as saying by detikcom online news portal.
He said the city's residents had been urged not to react violently to the latest
bombing. "We have made a plea for the public to stay calm and not be provoked. We
also hope the public will help police to catch the perpetrators," he added.
Paiman said there were no plans to send police reinforcements to Ambon or to place
the city under martial law.
President Megawati Sukarnoputri, during a brief visit to Ambon on Saturday, denied
the recent violence was religiously motivated, saying it was merely a political problem
sparked by the efforts of a small separatist movement, the Maluku Sovereignty Front
(FKM), to secede from Indonesia.
But some observers have speculated the unrest may have been orchestrated in an
effort to cause chaos ahead of the July 5 presidential election. They point out that
most of the recent killings in Ambon were perpetrated by unidentified snipers,
possibly indicating the involvement of rogue elements of the military.
Paiman insisted the unrest was not linked to the upcoming presidential election.
"Even though the political temperature in Indonesia is rising due to the election, this
[violence] should not be connected to the election," he said.
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