19 killed in fresh clash in Ambon

JAKARTA (JP): Sectarian violence struck Ambon again resulting in the death of at least 19 people, prompting the Indonesia Communion of Churches (PGI) to demand international peacekeepers in riot-torn Maluku province if security forces refuse to be held accountable for the escalating violence.

The fresh violence in the last 48 hours belied the calm in the provincial capital on Christmas Day, leading the communion to claim that the intensifying fury was tantamount to genocide.

In a statement issued here on Monday afternoon the communion expressed its "deep concern" over what it claimed were escalating attacks on Christian congregations over the past two weeks in Maluku, including Sunday's burning of Silo Church.

"The massive attacks against Christian congregations is a direct consequence of the lack of transparency in the handling of the conflict in Maluku by the Indonesian Military (TNI) and Police," the statement said.

The military and the police must be held accountable for the unresolved and escalating conflict, it added.

"If accountability is not undertaken, then, taking into consideration the continuing violence and heeding the people's strong feelings, it would be best if TNI and police forces were pulled out of Maluku and replaced with international peacekeepers.

"We consider this conflict, which has been given a religious label, as an extermination of the indigenous Maluku people along with their social institutions to be replaced by another society whose form we cannot yet ascertain," said the statement signed by Bishop Sularso Sopater and the communion's general secretary J.M. Pattiasina.

Deaths

Spokesman for Maluku Military Command Lt. Col. Iwa Budiman told The Jakarta Post by telephone from Ambon that the violence broke out after an unfortunate traffic accident on Sunday afternoon in an area which had actually been declared neutral.

He said a 14-year-old Muslim boy who was riding his bicycle was hit by a public transport van driven by a Christian.

He said the boy was then rushed to Haulusi General Hospital, which was known to locals as a Christian hospital.

When news broke out of the accident and that the boy had been taken to a Christian hospital, a mob, identified by Iwa as an angry Muslim crowd, began to assemble and violence soon erupted.

He said security officials tried to maintain calm but the crowd began throwing petrol bombs and shots were also reportedly fired.

Violence lasted throughout Sunday night until Monday afternoon.

"There was a fury of gunfire, both from security officials trying to control the situation and other parties involved in the conflict," Iwa recounted.

"Things didn't stop till about 2:30 p.m. The situation is calm but tense," he said, adding that so far 19 were dead with four seriously injured.

"Silo Church was also burned down at 11 p.m. on Sunday night along with a few other buildings," he added.

Silo is Ambon's largest Protestant church.

Witnesses claim that as many as 40 people could have died in the latest violence, however no independent confirmation could be obtained.

Iwa said security forces in the area may need additional assistance to anticipate further outbreaks.

They are fighting with guns that are quite "sophisticated" albeit homemade, he added.

Security forces on Monday set up roadblocks with barbed wire to divide the warring groups.

Maluku has been the site of bloody sectarian violence since the beginning of the year. Over 800 people have died.

In a related incident in Larat, North Tanimbar, another clash broke out late on Sunday night resulting in the burning down of over 100 houses. There were no reports of casualties.

The mayhem broke out after news of the burning of Silo Church filtered to the small town about 550 kilometers from Ambon.

The almost daily orgies of violence have left most people dumbfounded on resolving the crisis. Calls by President Abdurrahman Wahid and Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri during a visit to Ambon has failed to bring peace.

Just last week at least two dozen people died when violence erupted in the neighboring remote island of Buru. (byg/mds)