Ambon council rejects RMS team

AMBON, Maluku: Maluku Provincial Legislative Council chairman Jopie Papilaya rejected the planned visit of a group of Dutch citizens from the self-declared South Maluku Republic (RMS) to the troubled territory, Antara reported on Thursday.

The proposed visit by the RMS representatives is reportedly being sponsored by Abdurrahman Wahid, chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama, the country's largest Muslim organization.

Opposition to the visit is based on the belief that the conflicts in Ambon must be resolved by the people of Maluku without any outside intervention, Jopie said.

"The RMS members are Dutch citizens and we, as resident of Maluku, do not recognize or agree with the RMS organization," Jopie said.

Jopie said the people of Maluku must be allowed to work out the province's problems by themselves, adding that the involvement of the RMS would only add to the possible political disputes. (edt)