Bugis community apologizes for Timorese killing<\/p>\n
DILI, East Timor (JP): The Bugis community here has apologized
\nto the East Timorese people for the recent murder of a local
\ntrader by one of its members, an incident that triggered much
\npolitical tension during the APEC gathering.<\/p>\n
Members of this South Sulawesi community have sent a letter to
\nkey local government and military officials as well as bishop
\nCarlos Filipe Ximenes Belo in which they condemn the Nov. 12
\nkilling that took place in a Dili market.<\/p>\n
They apologized to the government, the military, the East
\nTimorese people and the family of the victim, Mario Vicente. In
\nit they also denounced the murderer, Mokhamad Sakir.<\/p>\n
They urged the authority to bring Sakir to court and asked
\nthem to provide security to all of the South Sulawesi immigrants
\nthroughout East Timor.<\/p>\n
The murder of Mario Vicente triggered ethnic rioting that
\ndeveloped into days of anti-government demonstrations in this
\ncapital of the former Portuguese colony.<\/p>\n
Local authorities said the Dili market incident was sparked by
\na mere misunderstanding between Sakir and Mario, who were
\nquarreling over the placement of their stalls.<\/p>\n
Provincial police chief Andreas Sugianto welcomed the South
\nSulawesi community's move, saying that the incident should become
\nan \"invaluable lesson\" for everyone in the youngest province of
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
He said all immigrants should try to adjust themselves to the
\nlocal customs. \"When in Rome do as the Romans,\" he said, adding
\nthat the police were committed to providing security to all
\ncitizens.<\/p>\n
Arrests<\/p>\n
Andreas yesterday clarified an earlier report from a police
\nsource who said that the authorities arrested 50 demonstrators on
\nTuesday night.<\/p>\n
He was referring to an anti-government demonstration staged by
\ndozens of youths in Komoro, about four kilometers from Dili.<\/p>\n
\"The police on patrol encountered and dispersed the crowd of
\nyouths,\" he said. But he acknowledged having arrested eight
\npeople in the village of Bairo for \"another case\" he declined to
\nspecify.<\/p>\n
The latest arrests brought the number of people detained by
\nthe police since the Dili market incident to 30. Andreas said the
\ndetainees would be prosecuted on charges of inciting unrest.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Bishop Belo said government officials should go
\nback to the drawing board and see what they could learn from the
\nrecent incidents in East Timor and in Jakarta, where 29 East
\nTimorese raided the U.S. embassy compound seeking asylum from
\nPortugal.<\/p>\n
\"The government should think of how to prevent similar
\nincidents from happening again in the future and what to do to
\nbring peace to East Timor,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He deplored the recent deportation of five foreign journalists
\nfrom East Timor, saying that such a move would \"lessen
\nIndonesia's credibility in the eyes of international media.\"<\/p>\n
\"The action would make foreign journalists write about East
\nTimor from afar and it's not good for the (Indonesian)
\ngovernment,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Indonesian government and military officials said they
\ndeported foreign journalists from East Timor because the newsmen
\ndid not have the proper permits from authorities.<\/p>\n
They also alleged that some foreign journalists fanned anti-
\ngovernment demonstrations. (yac\/pan)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bugis-community-apologizes-for-timorese-killing-1447893297",
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