Demonstrations for Maluku province division die down

Demonstrations for Maluku province division die down

AMBON, Maluku (JP): Calm prevailed on Friday in Ternate, the
capital of North Maluku regency, following the government's
statement that a draft law on the expansion of Maluku into two
provinces will soon be submitted for deliberation at the House of
Representatives.

Residents, who had been demonstrating for the expansion, were
apparently mitigated by the Director General of Public
Administration and Regional Autonomy Ryaas Rasyid's promise to
submit the draft next week. Ryaas said the bill was intended to
seriously meet the demands for Maluku to be separated into two
provinces.

Earlier, residents of the predominately Muslim North Maluku
and Central Halmahera vowed to continue demonstrations to push
for a separate province from their southern neighbors. Tensions
rose in the areas which were recently hit by months of conflicts
between Muslims and Christians which killed more than 400 people
since it first erupted in January.

A local journalist, Sahlan Heluth, said by telephone from
Ternate that business and offices reopened on Friday while
security personnel remained posted at various strategic areas.
During demonstrations on Wednesday, only the local
telecommunication and post offices, a photo studio and a
restaurant were open for business.

In Ambon, hundreds of students from North Maluku and Central
Halmahera called off their plan to rally at the provincial
chapter of Golkar over the matter.

"We are still waiting to see whether the government is really
serious in handling the matter," Soleman, a student, said. "If it
deceives us again, we'll really protest."

Separately, Maluku Police chief Col. Bugis M. Saman said his
officers have so far questioned at least 700 suspects from the
religious conflicts. He promised to step up the legal process and
bring the suspects to court.

Saman said 321 of the suspects were detained in Ambon and its
surroundings, while the rest were from Southeast Sulawesi. In
addition, 117 dossiers on the suspects were submitted to the
local prosecution, with 64 of them completed by the Ambon
District Court.

The suspects received jail terms ranging between three and
seven months.(48/swe)