Fresh riot kills eight in Poso

Fresh riot kills eight in Poso

La Remmy, The Jakarta Post, Palu, Central Sulawesi

Fresh violence broke out in Poso regency, Central Sulawesi,
killing at least eight people and injuring seven others on
Sunday, sparking fears of the resurgence of sectarian fighting in
the religiously divided town.

Police claimed only eight people died when a group of gunmen,
wearing face masks, attacked the three villages of Saatu,
Pantangolemba and Pinedapa at dawn.

However, doctors at a Poso hospital put the death toll at
nine, while local Muslim figure Sulaiman Mamar, who led the peace
taskforce, said the number killed was 15.

"The attacked villages are Christian-dominated areas, and I
have received a report that 15 people died in the incident," he
told The Jakarta Post.

Central Sulawesi Police chief Brig. Gen. Taufik Ridha said the
rampage was linked to Friday's attack on the neighboring regency
of Morowali, in which three people were killed, five others badly
injured and 30 houses and a church burned.

Also on Sunday, firefight erupted in Morowali between police
and a group of at least 13 attackers, he said, adding that one of
the gunmen was shot but escaped arrest when he jumped into a
river.

"We continue to look for the shot gunman. If he is arrested,
it will help unveil the identity of the attackers and their
motive," Taufik told a news conference in Palu, Central Sulawesi
after arriving back from Poso.

He said the renewed attack in Poso forced local villagers to
flee to safety. "(But) even though people were running, the
gunmen targeted them."

Taufik said the perpetrators fled to the mountain shortly
after the attacks on the three villages.

The nine killed were identified as Traniadi, Allo and Lisman
from Saatu village; Yohanes, Marwas, Patrian, Martina, Ayub and
Sinta of Pantangolemba village, doctors said.

All the seven injured had been shot or stabbed and are being
treated at the Poso General Hospital.

Taufik admitted that they could not identify the attackers nor
the motive behind the violence that shattered the fragile peace
accord made between Muslim and Christian leaders in December
2001.

The fresh attack came months after reinforcement troops were
pulled out of Poso as peace was largely restored there.

Sulaiman further said it was almost hard to believe that local
people were behind the renewed violence, arguing that they had
long exhibited evidence that they were sick of fighting.

"The attackers must be outsiders (attempting) to incite fresh
rioting. We suspect that jealousy among security officers is the
reason behind the latest violence," he remarked.

The local Muslim figure said there were unconfirmed reports
that the military forces assigned to Poso were jealous as most of
the assistance from the local administration was channeled to the
police.

"The police have just received 120 motorcycles and seven cars
to help smooth their duties in Poso, while none of the local
military personnel has got anything. But, it is an unconfirmed
report... we do not know anything yet," he said.

To prevent the violence from spreading, the police were
deploying three companies of around 100 personnel, including
those from Jakarta, to Poso, Taufik said.

He said the police were also checking the IDs of all those
entering or leaving the regency in an attempt to restore security
and find the attackers.

Poso was plagued by two years of religious conflict since
2000, killing some 2,000 people and forcing thousands of others
to flee.

The militant Laskar Jihad group was blamed for worsening the
fighting in Poso, before it left the regency last year.

Sunday's attack was the most serious incident after the peace
deal.

"We are afraid that it will bring back the horrifying
experience of fighting among ourselves, just as it was before,"
Sulaiman said.