Fire destroys Sampit market

Fire destroys Sampit market

PALANGKARAYA, Central Kalimantan (JP): Fire destroyed the
biggest traditional market in the blood-drenched town of Sampit
in Central Kalimantan on Wednesday, where otherwise the situation
had been gradually calming down after eleven days of mayhem which
claimed the lives of hundreds of Madurese migrants.

There was no official statement as to how the fire started but
rumors had it that it was the result of an arson attack.
Witnesses said that the fire started among the vacant kiosks that
had been looted during previous clashes.

The authorities speculated that the fire was started to
exacerbate the situation in the town.

No fatalities were reported but the fire, which broke out at
about 6 p.m., destroyed hundreds of kiosks.

Despite the fire, Sampit, and also the Central Kalimantan
capital of Palangkaraya, were reasonably calm on Wednesday.

The corpses of the dead have mostly been buried in a mass
grave in Sampit. However, there was still tension in the air
while the number of security forces personnel on the streets and
in public places was less than in previous days following the
gunfight between police and Army troops at the town's port on
Tuesday.

Twelve bodies were buried in a plot of land belonging to
Madurese H. Nur on Jl. Raya Pangkalan Bun, 13.8 kilometers west
of Sampit, bringing the total number of victims buried there to
121.

In an effort to maintain order, the Tanjung Pura Military
Commander Maj. Gen. Djoko Besariman said that his men would shoot
rioters on sight in both Sampit and Palangkaraya.

Coordinating Minister for Political, Social and Security
Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in Jakarta that, based on
reports from the provincial police chief and governor,
Palangkaraya was gradually returning to normal.

However, reports from Palangkaraya said that eleven homemade
bombs were found in separate vacant buildings on Jl. Dr. Murjani.
Nine of the bombs were found in a deserted shop which had been
burned down some days ago while the other two were found in an
Islamic school on Wednesday.

Quoting National Police chief Gen. Surojo Bimantoro from
Sampit, Susilo told a House of Representatives' hearing that no
fresh violence had taken place. Some shops were open but offices
and schools were still closed.

He said the government had yet to decide whether to declare a
state of civil emergency in Sampit, following the killing of more
than 300 Madurese allegedly by members of the province's Dayak
community.

Bimantoro's evaluation was that the situation in the riot-torn
area was improving, adding that a civil emergency could be
imposed if the clashes continued and the civilian administration
was no longer capable of functioning.

Minister of Defense Mahfud M.D. said in Abuja, Nigeria on
Tuesday that President Abdurrahman Wahid had rejected the
imposition of a civil emergency in Sampit and Palangkaraya "as
the local military commanders are still able to maintain order."
Mahfud is accompanying Abdurrahman on his overseas trip.

House Speaker Akbar Tandjung said during the hearing with
Susilo in Jakarta on Wednesday that what was happening in Sampit
and Palangkaraya was an ethnic conflict between the indigenous
Dayaks and Madurese migrants rather than a sectarian clash.

Megawati

Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri is scheduled to visit
Sampit today to see for herself what has been going on.

Akbar said the House appreciated Megawati's plan, adding that
several House members were ready to accompany her.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Medical Association (IDI) chairman
Achmad Djojosugito demanded security guarantees on Wednesday for
the medical personnel assigned to help the victims of violence in
Sampit and Palangkaraya.

"Given the unstable security situation in the field, we have
no other choice but to ask for assurances, not only for the
doctors and paramedics but also those transporting medical
supplies," he told The Jakarta Post after attending a hearing
with the House.

He also warned of possible outbreaks of epidemics as there
were now up to 15,000 refugees in Sampit with another 11,000
predicted to soon emerge from their hiding places in the jungle.

"These figures do not include some 11,000 refugees from
Central Kalimantan who have sought refuge in East Java.

Two more doctors and four paramedics from the state Cipto
Mangunkusumo hospital in Jakarta were being flown in to assist
Sampit's 12 doctors, he said.

Minister of Health and Social Welfare Achmad Sujudi said on
Wednesday that the riots in Central Kalimantan were the result of
prolonged economic and social disparities between different
groups in the community.

"This is an expensive lesson that we have to learn for
allowing unbalanced development to take place in the region,"
Sujudi said, adding that his ministry was paying Rp 1 billion per
day to support some 1.1 million internally displaced persons
(IDP) across the country.

Five refugees, two of them children, have already died in the
makeshift Sampit camps from diarrhea, AFP reported.

"They're suffering from diarrhea, some have already contracted
typhoid, and if it's not dealt with properly there will be a
massive outbreak," said Qomaruddin Sukhami, district health
officer in Sampit.

Some aid -- in the form of rice, noodles, fruit, sardines,
medicine and water -- has been provided by the Indonesian Red
Cross, the provincial government, local residents and the
Ministry of Health and Social Welfare.

"We still need antibiotics, anesthetics, more food and more
water," Qomaruddin said, adding that they had no disinfectant or
bedding. (team)