DENPASAR, Bali (JP): A sixty-year-old man was killed and five

DENPASAR, Bali (JP): A sixty-year-old man was killed and five
others were severely injured on Tuesday morning during a violent
attack by hundreds of residents of Desa Adat Culik traditional
village against the residents of Banjar Kebon in Karangasem, some
80 kilometers northeast of here, a report said.

The attackers also burned down at least 30 houses and two
motorcycles belonging to Banjar Kebon residents.

The victims were all residents of Banjar Kebon, with the dead
man identified as Nengah Migun.

The attack, which occurred at around 7 a.m., occurred so
suddenly that the outnumbered residents of Banjar Kebon were not
able to defend themselves. Most of them fled to the safety of
nearby hills and villages.

The attack was apparently triggered by the recent openly-
expressed desire of the residents of Banjar Kebon to secede from
Desa Adat Culik and establish a new Desa Adat of their own. Desa
Adat is an autonomous territorial-based traditional community
group comprising several smaller traditional neighborhood units,
known as a Banjar.

Residents of Banjar Kebon and Desa Adat Culik have been
involved in a bitter legal feud for years over the ownership of
600 hectares of land. Angered by the rebellious stance of Banjar
Kebon's residents, Desa Adat Culik expelled them from the Desa
Adat's membership last April.

Security troops were unable to immediately reach the site of
the incident because the 1.5-kilometer road that leads to Banjar
Kebon was blocked at numerous points with huge trees apparently
felled by the attackers prior to the attack. The presence of
groups of men armed with sharp weapons at various points along
the road also hampered the movement of the troops.

Only after reinforcements from the police's elite Mobile
Brigade joined them from Denpasar, did security forces manage to
reach the village. -- JP

Medan loses its historical buildings

MEDAN, North Sumatra: The capital of North Sumatra, Medan,
will soon lose its rich legacy of historical buildings because
they are being demolished at an alarming rate, say non-
governmental organizations (NGOs).

Medan city administration has failed to heed provincial ruling
No. 6/1988 which bans demolition of historical buildings, Hasti
Tarekat told reporters in Medan on Tuesday after meeting the head
of provincial legislators.

The executive director of the Sumatra Legacy Body was
accompanied by representatives of seven other NGOs.

Hasti said almost 90 percent of Medan's 42 buildings under
government protection had either been modified or demolished. The
local government declared 42 buildings and areas to be of
significant historical value or only about half of the 73
buildings and areas that the body considered should be
untouchable.

In their meeting with legislator Tom Adlin Hajar, the
activists cited three buildings that have been demolished;
Kerapatan building on Jl. Brig. Jen. Katamso, a bank building on
Jl. Pemuda and the Public Works office on Jl. Listrik.

One building the body believes to be of historical value but
had not been protected by the provincial government was the Mega
Eltra building, which was constructed in 1912 and belonged to a
resident.

The city government claimed it was not on the list of
protected buildings and so had been sold for Rp 26 billion to
make way for a shopping center. The building has now been
completely demolished. --JP