Bomb explosions disrupt peace ahead of Poso regency election
Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post, Tentena
As Poso residents brace for regency elections on Thursday, the peace was again shattered when a bomb exploded in an empty kiosk at the city's Pasar Central market on Wednesday morning.
No casualties or significant physical damage were reported in the incident.
Another bomb exploded in the city on Tuesday night near the campaign office of a pair of candidates in the upcoming regency elections. There were no casualties.
Another bomb was found on Wednesday night, at 7:43 p.m., in a garbage bin outside the state court building. Five minutes later an explosive device was discovered in the Bank Rakyat Indonesia office.
Police have questioned six witnesses over the incident on Tuesday, which took place near the campaign headquarters of Piet Inkiriwang and A. Muthalib Rimi, who are backed by the Prosperous Peace Party.
Police have yet to name any suspects in the cases or to provide detailed information on the bombs.
"We are still investigating the incidents," Poso Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Moh. Sholeh Hidayat said on Wednesday.
The two explosions follow the twin explosions in a Tentena market in May that killed 21 people, the deadliest attack since the Bali bombings in 2002 that killed 202 people, and have raised fears of possible conflict in Thursday's elections.
These fears are not groundless. Two-years of communal violence in the province killed over 1,000 people before an uneasy peace was reached in 2001.
Poso residents, however, are trying not to be distracted by the explosions.
Yan Patris Binela, head of the legal office of the Central Sulawesi Christian Church Synod, said the Christian community in Tentena, some 60 kilometers south of Poso, was ready to help ensure successful elections.
"I believe people here will actively take part in the elections as part of their political participation," he told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
Residents, he said, were working together to set up an "early warning system" to prevent conflicts before and after the elections. Part of the system is the beefing up of security in every neighborhood.
Aswad, a Poso city resident, said Muslims in the city would not be affected by the explosions. "There is nothing to worry about. It is safe here."
Acting Poso regent Andi Azikin Suyuti said the situation in the city was under control and urged people to go about with their normal activities. After meeting with the Poso General Elections Commission (KPUD), he said the elections would go ahead as scheduled.
"The KPUD reported that the elections preparations are finished, including security. We are being assisted by 100 police officers from the Banggai Police," Azikin said.
After the explosions, Central Sulawesi Governor Aminuddin Ponulele inspected the elections preparations in Poso and is scheduled to watch the voting in Tentena.
Syamsul Alam, director of the Law and Advocacy Development Study Institute, however, said the police and military had "failed" to maintain security, evident in the widespread violence and acts of terrorism in the city.
He said Poso residents hoped the elections would result in democratic leaders capable of dealing with the regency's many problems. "People hope that the elections will be the starting point for the resolution of the many problems in Poso."