Fresh violence rocks Maluku

JAKARTA (JP): Fresh communal violence erupted on Wednesday in the Southeast Maluku town of Tual, where at least seven people were wounded by bullets, arrows and machetes.

Roy Taha, a Muslim resident, told The Jakarta Post by phone from Tual, some 540 kilometers southeast of the provincial capital of Ambon, that the clashes started before dawn and forced thousands of residents to flee to a number of nearby military installations.

"The clashes broke out at 4 a.m. as Christians from Taar village attacked Muslim residents in Wearhir, but the situation is calm now, although it remains tense," said Roy, who lives on Jl. Pattimura, which was at the center of Wednesday's violence.

He said Muslim residents then launched a counterattack against Christians after the midday prayers.

AFP quoted a duty doctor at Tual General Hospital as saying two people with gunshot wounds were admitted Wednesday afternoon.

It also quoted Nona Notanubud, who heads the same hospital, as saying that three people, including a policeman, were brought in earlier in the day, but only one, a civilian, seriously slashed by a machete, needed significant treatment.

The news agency also reported that two more men, with arrow and machete wounds, were treated at the Hati Kudus hospital in Langgur, a town separated from Tual by a narrow strait.

Antara reported that at least two people were killed and a dozen more were injured in the clashes.

The news agency also said that at least 10 houses were set on fire in the clashes.

It identified two of the injured as John Tamher and Lakalai.

Meanwhile, Roy said that at least four people were killed in the clashes.

"Two Christians were killed in the first clashes in the early morning and another two were killed in the afternoon," Roy said.

He also said that a night curfew had been imposed on the town and nearby areas.

Authorities could not be reached to confirm the reports.

Roy said the situation was tense in Tual and nearby Langgur with shops and businesses closed after Muslims and Christians clashed in the Wearhir area.

"People carrying sharp weapons were seen on the streets this afternoon," Roy said.

Antara reported that troops blocked a bridge separating Tual and Langgur to prevent the unrest from spreading.

It also said that troops fired shots to disperse the crowd battling with machetes and spears.

The news agency said Irian Jaya-based Trikora Military Commander Maj. Gen. Amir Sembiring, who arrived in Ambon on Wednesday afternoon, and Maluku Military Chief Col. Karel Ralahalu flew to Tual to calm down the residents.

It also said the violence in Tual had caused uneasiness in Ambon, which has been calm for the past three weeks.

The state-owned TVRI quoted Karel as saying on Wednesday evening that at least two people were injured, including one security officer, by an arrow.

It also reported that at least one company of reinforcements was transferred to Tual from Ambon.

It was not clear what had caused the violence but Roy said the tension rose after the discovery of a piece of graffiti attacking Islam in Wearhir on Sunday.

"There was writing which said that Prophet Muhammad was the servant of Jesus," Roy said.

He blamed the violence on "instigators" who had fled violence in Ambon earlier in the month.

Weeks of bloody clashes between Muslims and Christians in Ambon and several other islands in Maluku province since mid- January left almost 200 people dead and rampant destruction. (byg)