Army personnel arrest eight rioters in Poso

POSO, Central Sulawesi (JP): Eight armed men were detained on Wednesday as they were allegedly about to attack residents working on a cacao plantation in Batugincu village, Poso, Central Sulawesi, an official said.

Tadulako Military spokesman First Lt. Abdul Haris said the eight men were spotted by patrolling soldiers as they took aim with their homemade guns at the residents.

"They (the would-be assailants) were caught red-handed aiming their homemade weapons at three persons who were working in a cacao plantation near Batugincu village," Abdul said.

The soldiers confiscated three assembled guns, a Colt 38 pistol, 29 rounds of ammunition for an SS1 rifle, a Kenwood handy-talky, 60 arrows, three homemade bombs and one machete.

Poso, located some 225 kilometers southeast of Palu, the capital of Central Sulawesi, has been the scene of violence perpetrated by an unknown armed group since last week.

The gunmen, wearing ninja outfits, are believed to be from outside Poso.

Uneasy calm has now started to return to Poso town although residents are still watchful for any sudden attacks.

However, in several villages like Masani, Tokorondo, Sa'atu and Pinedapa in Poso Pesisir district, gunfights occurred from late Tuesday through Wednesday afternoon.

Three people, all from the attackers' side, were reportedly killed and dozens of others were injured during the violence.

The gunfights broke out following attacks by unknown gunmen on residential areas. While the attacks were sporadic, the villagers were expecting them and put up resistance.

Fitri, an official at the state-run Poso Hospital, admitted that there had been fatalities as a result of the shooting. "It's true that there are three civilians dead and one of the injured is the head of Pinedapa subdistrict who was shot in the leg."

Fitri added that there was no information on the dead as they had been rushed by their fellow attackers to the Tentena area -- a district south of Poso.

Central Sulawesi Police spokesman Adj. Sr. Comr. Agus Sugianto said he was unaware of any fatalities from the gunfights as he had yet to receive a report from the Poso Police.

"We have not received any reports about fatalities among the attackers," he said, adding that the telephone lines from Palu to Poso had been cut since the morning.

Meanwhile, Poso Police deputy chief Comr. Wahyono declined to confirm the deaths, saying it was outside his authority to make public statements.

Poso was the scene of bloody communal clashes between Muslims and Christians which claimed the lives of more than 250 people last year.

Meanwhile, Antara reported from Pontianak, West Kalimantan, that local residents grouped in the provincial Malay Youth Communications' Forum threatened to attack Madurese refugees if they refused to be relocated.

They set five days as the deadline for the relocation.

The Madurese refugees, who are camped in a sports stadium in the city, rejected the government's offer of relocation to Tebang Kacang and Sungai Asam, insisting that they wanted to mend ties in Sambas and Pontianak.

Tandililing, a professor of political and social sciences at Tanjungpura University in Pontianak, said that for the time being relocation was the best solution because it would take years for the Madurese to be accepted by the locals.

He regretted the fact that the Madurese refugees, in fear of fresh attacks, always carried weapons with them, a situation which could provoke the locals.

The clashes between Madurese refugees and locals that erupted on Saturday have claimed five lives so far. (24/emf)