Fire destroys Sampit market<\/p>\n
PALANGKARAYA, Central Kalimantan (JP): Fire destroyed the
\nbiggest traditional market in the blood-drenched town of Sampit
\nin Central Kalimantan on Wednesday, where otherwise the situation
\nhad been gradually calming down after eleven days of mayhem which
\nclaimed the lives of hundreds of Madurese migrants.<\/p>\n
There was no official statement as to how the fire started but
\nrumors had it that it was the result of an arson attack.
\nWitnesses said that the fire started among the vacant kiosks that
\nhad been looted during previous clashes.<\/p>\n
The authorities speculated that the fire was started to
\nexacerbate the situation in the town.<\/p>\n
No fatalities were reported but the fire, which broke out at
\nabout 6 p.m., destroyed hundreds of kiosks.<\/p>\n
Despite the fire, Sampit, and also the Central Kalimantan
\ncapital of Palangkaraya, were reasonably calm on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The corpses of the dead have mostly been buried in a mass
\ngrave in Sampit. However, there was still tension in the air
\nwhile the number of security forces personnel on the streets and
\nin public places was less than in previous days following the
\ngunfight between police and Army troops at the town's port on
\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
Twelve bodies were buried in a plot of land belonging to
\nMadurese H. Nur on Jl. Raya Pangkalan Bun, 13.8 kilometers west
\nof Sampit, bringing the total number of victims buried there to
\n121.<\/p>\n
In an effort to maintain order, the Tanjung Pura Military
\nCommander Maj. Gen. Djoko Besariman said that his men would shoot
\nrioters on sight in both Sampit and Palangkaraya.<\/p>\n
Coordinating Minister for Political, Social and Security
\nAffairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in Jakarta that, based on
\nreports from the provincial police chief and governor,
\nPalangkaraya was gradually returning to normal.<\/p>\n
However, reports from Palangkaraya said that eleven homemade
\nbombs were found in separate vacant buildings on Jl. Dr. Murjani.
\nNine of the bombs were found in a deserted shop which had been
\nburned down some days ago while the other two were found in an
\nIslamic school on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Quoting National Police chief Gen. Surojo Bimantoro from
\nSampit, Susilo told a House of Representatives' hearing that no
\nfresh violence had taken place. Some shops were open but offices
\nand schools were still closed.<\/p>\n
He said the government had yet to decide whether to declare a
\nstate of civil emergency in Sampit, following the killing of more
\nthan 300 Madurese allegedly by members of the province's Dayak
\ncommunity.<\/p>\n
Bimantoro's evaluation was that the situation in the riot-torn
\narea was improving, adding that a civil emergency could be
\nimposed if the clashes continued and the civilian administration
\nwas no longer capable of functioning.<\/p>\n
Minister of Defense Mahfud M.D. said in Abuja, Nigeria on
\nTuesday that President Abdurrahman Wahid had rejected the
\nimposition of a civil emergency in Sampit and Palangkaraya \"as
\nthe local military commanders are still able to maintain order.\"
\nMahfud is accompanying Abdurrahman on his overseas trip.<\/p>\n
House Speaker Akbar Tandjung said during the hearing with
\nSusilo in Jakarta on Wednesday that what was happening in Sampit
\nand Palangkaraya was an ethnic conflict between the indigenous
\nDayaks and Madurese migrants rather than a sectarian clash.<\/p>\n
Megawati<\/p>\n
Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri is scheduled to visit
\nSampit today to see for herself what has been going on.<\/p>\n
Akbar said the House appreciated Megawati's plan, adding that
\nseveral House members were ready to accompany her.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Indonesian Medical Association (IDI) chairman
\nAchmad Djojosugito demanded security guarantees on Wednesday for
\nthe medical personnel assigned to help the victims of violence in
\nSampit and Palangkaraya.<\/p>\n
\"Given the unstable security situation in the field, we have
\nno other choice but to ask for assurances, not only for the
\ndoctors and paramedics but also those transporting medical
\nsupplies,\" he told The Jakarta Post after attending a hearing
\nwith the House.<\/p>\n
He also warned of possible outbreaks of epidemics as there
\nwere now up to 15,000 refugees in Sampit with another 11,000
\npredicted to soon emerge from their hiding places in the jungle.<\/p>\n
\"These figures do not include some 11,000 refugees from
\nCentral Kalimantan who have sought refuge in East Java.<\/p>\n
Two more doctors and four paramedics from the state Cipto
\nMangunkusumo hospital in Jakarta were being flown in to assist
\nSampit's 12 doctors, he said.<\/p>\n
Minister of Health and Social Welfare Achmad Sujudi said on
\nWednesday that the riots in Central Kalimantan were the result of
\nprolonged economic and social disparities between different
\ngroups in the community.<\/p>\n
\"This is an expensive lesson that we have to learn for
\nallowing unbalanced development to take place in the region,\"
\nSujudi said, adding that his ministry was paying Rp 1 billion per
\nday to support some 1.1 million internally displaced persons
\n(IDP) across the country.<\/p>\n
Five refugees, two of them children, have already died in the
\nmakeshift Sampit camps from diarrhea, AFP reported.<\/p>\n
\"They're suffering from diarrhea, some have already contracted
\ntyphoid, and if it's not dealt with properly there will be a
\nmassive outbreak,\" said Qomaruddin Sukhami, district health
\nofficer in Sampit.<\/p>\n
Some aid -- in the form of rice, noodles, fruit, sardines,
\nmedicine and water -- has been provided by the Indonesian Red
\nCross, the provincial government, local residents and the
\nMinistry of Health and Social Welfare.<\/p>\n
\"We still need antibiotics, anesthetics, more food and more
\nwater,\" Qomaruddin said, adding that they had no disinfectant or
\nbedding. (team)<\/p>",
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