Feisal downplays border closure

JAKARTA (JP): Armed Forces Commander Gen. Feisal Tanjung said yesterday there was no problem with Malaysia closing its border checkpoints with Indonesia following ethnic riots in West Kalimantan.

Malaysia, Feisal said before attending a cabinet meeting, has every right to close the border and Indonesia should not be offended.

"We should not be offended if our neighbor closed their door for security reasons. We have no right to raise objections to it," the general said.

Malaysia reportedly closed 12 border checkpoints in Sarawak earlier this week following reports of sporadic, ethnically motivated clashes involving native Dayaks and Madurese migrants in West Kalimantan.

Sarawak also has a large Dayak population. The Malaysian government is worried the continuing conflict might spill over the border.

A major conflict erupted in Sanggau Ledo in late December. Four people were killed and another 21 are still missing. In addition, hundreds of houses and shops were burned, prompting more than 5,000 people to flee.

Malaysian officials said yesterday the border posts will be reopened only once after the ethnic violence has calmed down on the Indonesian side.

"We are still monitoring the situation in Kalimantan. We will only open up the roads once the situation is declared safe by the Indonesian authorities," the National Security Council in Sarawak state said in a statement as quoted by AFP.

"They (the Malaysians) have Dayaks and others there (in Sarawak). That (border closure) is not our business," Feisal said.

The general stressed that the authorities were determined to take harsh action against convicted rioters, irrespective of their backgrounds.

On the same occasion, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas said he hoped Malaysia would reopen the border checkpoints as soon as the situation was brought under control.

"I hope that this (border closure) is temporarily," he said, adding that the situation in West Kalimantan was improving.

Thousands of Indonesians have reportedly been stranded in Sarawak and Malaysians in West Kalimantan.

Meanwhile, Antara reported from Kuala Lumpur that the Malaysian government has deployed more troops to secure the closure of the whole border between Sarawak and West Kalimantan.

Quoting government sources in the Sarawak city of Kuching, Antara said the troops secured all checkpoints along the border, including the one in Tebedu, the busiest border post. (pan)