`Government lacks leadership to end religious conflicts'

Jupriadi, The Jakarta Post, Makassar, South Sulawesi

Around 400 religious leaders began a two-day national meeting here on Wednesday with participants levying strong criticism against the government for its failure to bring a complete end to sectarian violence in eastern parts of the country.

They attributed outbreaks of renewed violence in the Maluku capital of Ambon and in the Central Sulawesi town of Poso to the government's slow response in addressing the core problems underlying the conflicts.

At least 5,000 innocent people have been killed in Ambon since the religious violence broke out in January 1999, while over 2,000 people have died in Poso, Central Sulawesi, since the strife started there in 2000.

Hasyim Muzadi, chairman of the country's largest Muslim organization, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), said Wednesday that the government was "too slow" in dealing with the sectarian fighting, prompting the killings to continue.

According to Hasyim, the government lacked "leadership and consistency" in its efforts to completely stop the conflicts across the country, particularly in upholding the law against the perpetrators.

"If there is no firm leadership and legal certainty in those conflict-torn areas, the situation will remain difficult (to resolve)," Hasyim said during the opening session of the forum, which was also attended by Minister of Religious Affairs Said Aqil Hussein Al-Munawwar and National Police chief Detective Insp. Gen. Erwin Mappaseng.

Hasyim also said the government should not hand over the job of handling the conflicts to other parties, especially religious leaders.

"The flame of war should be put out together. But in this case, the government should remain at the forefront," he asserted.

Other religious leaders called the government a "fire-fighting team", which only moved to extinguish the fire after it had already caused extensive damage.

The participants also urged the government to stop making the issue of religious clashes a "political commodity" to serve its own interests.

This was one of the factors that had brought about failure in putting a complete end to the bloodshed, they added.

In order to help halt the unrest in Poso and Ambon, the government must prepare "real solutions" to address the basic needs of local residents, including providing jobs, and rehabilitating and rebuilding public facilities.

Peace deals were signed between warring factions one year ago to end the fighting in Poso and Maluku. However, sporadic violence has continued since then.

A bomb blast on Monday was the latest violence in Ambon to test the peace accord. At least three people were wounded as the explosion led quickly to stone-throwing and the torching of a vehicle.

Meanwhile, Cardinal Julius Darmaatmadja of the Indonesian Bishops' Conference (KWI) said that today was not the time to blame each other.

"The most important thing is that the nation, especially the religious figures who are gathered here, should rebuild trust and mutual respect among the followers of different faiths," he said.

"I hope this meeting will be meaningful and further strengthen our solidarity and brotherhood," he added.

The two-day meeting was participated in by around 400 religious figures from all the 30 provinces. It was opened by the religious affairs minister on behalf of President Megawati Soekarnoputri, who canceled her visit to the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar and Poso over security concerns in Jakarta following persistent antigovernment protests.

In a message read out by Minister Agil, Megawati called for "a spirit of equality" among religious leaders so as to promote mutual respect and brotherhood among both them and their followers.