Kampung tense after cult murders

Kampung tense after cult murders

BOGOR (JP): The situation in Kampung Nanggela in the village
of Sukmajaya in the Bojong Gede district here remained tense on
Tuesday following the murder of three cult members by fellow
cultists on Friday.

Residents were seen guarding their neighborhood and
questioning strangers entering the area, worried about possible
retaliation from families of the victims.

Besides the three fatalities, the cultists also wounded two
other members of the Prabu (The Sovereign) Tommy cult.

A villager who asked for anonymity told The Jakarta Post on
Tuesday that locals residents were angry because cult members
often mocked them.

"And many (Muslims) who used to pray ended up quitting their
prayers once they joined the cult," the villager said.

In the bloody incident on Friday, the cultists and local
residents attacked the home of local cult leader Saiman Koto
after his prophesied Sept. 9 doomsday failed to pass.

The mob attacked the home at 6:30 p.m. after Saiman failed to
explain his false predictions to a local ulema.

At the time of the attack, there were 14 people in the house,
including Saiman's family and four guests.

Saiman and the ulema ended up in a fierce argument, and angry
residents, including members of the cult, who were waiting
outside the home asked the Muslim cleric to leave the area.

After the ulema left, the mob, led by former cult member
Kasim, attacked the home.

The three people who died in the incident were identified as
Syarif, 45, Darmawan Yapati, alias Wawan, 27, and Herry Bana, 30.

Saiman and another cult member, Anwarudin, escaped with severe
injuries.

Reports said one of the victims was stabbed to death by a
sharpened bamboo stem.

Kasim told the Post on Tuesday he joined the cult after being
promised employment as a gold miner.

"I was promised work as a miner in one of Prabu Tommy's gold
mines in the Peti mountains of Cikotok, Pelabuhan Ratu in West
Java," he said.

Kasim said the cult had existed since 1977.

According to residents and cult members, Saiman repeatedly
predicted the end of the world at 9 a.m. on Sept. 9, 1999.

Kasim said Saiman told his followers the end would be marked
by the arrival of a typhoon and heavy rains that would inundate
the land so only the tip of the National Monument in Jakarta
would be visible above the water.

Bogor is about a 30-minute drive from the capital.

Cultists sold their personal belongings before locking
themselves in their homes, as instructed by Saiman, covering
every crack in their houses to keep out all light.

Meanwhile, families of the victims were still grieving their
loved ones. Darmawan's brother-in-law Agus regretted the
residents' decision to take the law into their own hands.

"Darmawan was a good man. He was diligent in praying. I never
knew that he was involved with a cult because everything was
normal," Agus said.

Darmawan's pregnant wife Rini is shocked by the incident and
is having difficulty accepting her husband's death. According to
relatives, she has been awaiting her husband's return to their
house since the attack.

Anwarudin's wife Endang is dealing with her grief by staying
away from her house to avoid gossiping neighbors.

Anwarudin has been in hiding since the attack and has refused
to speak with anyone. (21/edt)