Eight injured in Maluku clash

Eight injured in Maluku clash

AMBON, Maluku: At least eight people were injured in a clash
between two rival villages in Central Maluku regency on Maluku
Islands, where some 6,000 people were killed in sectarian
fighting from 1999 to 2001.

Police and residents said on Thursday that the victims
sustained injuries from bomb explosions during the clash on
Wednesday evening between rivals in Kabauw and Rohomoni villages.

Most of the wounded people were from Rohomoni and only one was
from Kabauw. All eight were hospitalized, including Asapati
Sangadji, 38, who sustained serious injuries.

It was not clear what caused the fighting that started when
local people were slaughtering animals at a mosque in Rohomoni
during Idul Adha celebrations.

According to Muslims in the two rival villages, this year's
Idul Adha fell on Wednesday, not Sunday as set by the government
and recognized by others across Indonesia.

At the time, a homemade bomb was suddenly thrown into the
crowd by suspects allegedly from Kabauw. A number of people later
collapsed, witnesses said.

A few hours later, another bomb exploded near the area
bordering the two villages that have often been involved in
clashes, they added.

The blasts sparked tension among them, but the situation was
immediately brought under control after police deployed dozens of
personnel to the scene. --JP

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Relocation-Squatters-Palu
Squatters to be moved from park
JP/5/DONGI

Squatters to be moved from park

PALU, Central Sulawesi: At least 200 families of squatters
will this year be relocated from the Lore Lindu National Park
(TNLL) in the Dongi-Dongi area, Central Sulawesi.

Central Sulawesi manpower and transmigration office head
Taufik Tiangso said on Thursday the squatters would be moved to
Sabang and Lende areas on the west coast of the province.

The squatters are among at least 1,030 families from four
villages of Kamarora A, Kamarora B, Kadidia and Rahmat in Palolo
subdistrict, Donggala regency, who have been illegally occupying
the Dongi-Dongi area, a vital water catchment, since July 2001.

The squatters claim that they occupied the area because they
had difficulty finding farming land in Palolo, which according to
them was mostly controlled by migrants and local officials.

The occupants then occupied around 4,000 hectares of forest
areas inside the park, where they planted cacao and other crops.
--JP