Acehnese flee to Banda Aceh due to fear of raids
JAKARTA (JP): Throngs of people from three regencies in Aceh have flooded into the provincial capital of Banda Aceh to seek shelter, following mounting tension in their hometowns as the military steps up operations against separatists, Antara reported on Monday.
The residents -- men, women and children of Pidie, East Aceh and North Aceh -- left their homes carrying only necessary basic items such as mattresses and clothes.
A large number of private cars and public buses headed to Banda Aceh on Monday, heavily packed with passengers from the three regencies. Many people could be seen standing in the buses.
The news agency did not give an estimate of the number of refugees.
It was not clear where the people were heading, but some of them said they were going to stay in their families' houses in Banda Aceh until the situation returned to normal.
Some people said they felt compelled to leave their hometowns after witnessing many of their neighbors being killed and abducted in the past few days. The identities of the killers and abductors was not apparent.
"Shooting could be heard from everywhere. Many people have been abducted and tortured. All those incidents forced us to temporarily leave our hometowns," said a refugee, who asked not to be named.
Officials at Banda Aceh administration offices could not be reached for comment on what preparations are being made for the refugees.
Tensions increased in the three regencies following a series of clashes between -- according to the military version -- security troops and the Free Aceh separatist guerrillas.
Last night, an officer told The Jakarta Post by telephone that an armed group of people fired upon the Banda Sakti Police substation in Lhokseumawe.
"The group of people fired at the police station from two different directions, starting at 8 p.m," Lt. First Class M. Wahyu Syarif, head of the substation, said.
The group of people fired their guns from the nearby Asuransi Bumi Asih Jaya building and a tennis court located behind the police station, the officer explained.
No fatalities were reported.
Two trucks packed with members of the joint military Crack Riot Troop (PPRM) task force rushed to the scene.
One of the trucks chased away the attackers, while the other truck safeguarded the police substation and staff.
One of the latest incidents in the troubled province took place in the early hours of Monday when a group of unidentified people threw a homemade Molotov cocktail at a transmigration office in Bukit Rata village in Blang Mangat district, North Aceh.
Fire swept through the 600-square-meter building, destroying at least two rooms containing several computers, documents and furniture.
No fatalities were reported and material losses had not yet been calculated.
At least six families of transmigration office employees who lived nearby left their homes and fled to the North Aceh capital of Lhokseumawe.
On Saturday, nine soldiers were killed and seven others were injured in a bloody clash between separatist rebels and the military.
According to Indonesian Military (TNI) spokesman Maj. Gen. Syamsul Ma'arif, the clash took place after 30 Free Aceh guerrillas, armed with weapons including a light machine gun and two M-16 rifles, launched an assault on security personnel returning from operations in Gunung Malem hamlet in Setia Bakti subdistrict, about 30 kilometers to the south of the West Aceh capital of Meulaboh.
On May 25, a violent clash took place near the resettlement area of Peudada district in North Aceh, claiming the lives of two transmigrants, two security personnel and two medical workers.
Early last month, heavily armed military troops fired into a crowd of villagers in the Krueng Geukueh area, killing 41 residents and seriously wounding more than 100 others.
After the incident, security authorities conducted a massive raid in an attempt to net members of the Free Aceh movement.
The military maneuvers apparently terrorized the people, who have lived through a traumatic decade during which a bloody military operation in the province killed many Acehnese.
Last Friday, about 20,000 residents from Peudada and nearby Jeumpa and Samalanga districts fled to public buildings following raids against the separatist rebels by the joint-military Crack Riot Troop (PPRM) task force.
The refugees said they feared fresh violence following the fatal clash at Peudada between PPRM personnel and Free Aceh separatist guerrillas.
The residents rushed to shelter in nearby mosques and high school buildings.
Greater Aceh area police chief Lt. Col. Deddy Suryadi said his men have been dispatched to the edge of the city of Banda Aceh to prevent "irresponsible people" from entering Banda Aceh.
"We have found many residents of North Aceh and Pidie regencies flocking to Banda Aceh today," he said. (asa/46/bsr)