Man dies in a violent attack

Man dies in a violent attack

DENPASAR, Bali (JP): A sixty-year-old man was killed and five
others were severely injured on Tuesday morning during a violent
attack by hundreds of residents of Desa Adat Culik traditional
village against the residents of Banjar Kebon in Karangasem, some
80 kilometers northeast of here, a report said.

The attackers also burned down at least 30 houses and two
motorcycles belonging to Banjar Kebon residents.

The victims were all residents of Banjar Kebon, with the dead
man identified as Nengah Migun.

The attack, which occurred at around 7 a.m., occurred so
suddenly that the outnumbered residents of Banjar Kebon were not
able to defend themselves. Most of them fled to the safety of
nearby hills and villages.

The attack was apparently triggered by the recent openly-
expressed desire of the residents of Banjar Kebon to secede from
Desa Adat Culik and establish a new Desa Adat of their own. Desa
Adat is an autonomous territorial-based traditional community
group comprising several smaller traditional neighborhood units,
known as a Banjar.

Residents of Banjar Kebon and Desa Adat Culik have been
involved in a bitter legal feud for years over the ownership of
600 hectares of land. Angered by the rebellious stance of Banjar
Kebon's residents, Desa Adat Culik expelled them from the Desa
Adat's membership last April.

Security troops were unable to immediately reach the site of
the incident because the 1.5-kilometer road that leads to Banjar
Kebon was blocked at numerous points with huge trees apparently
felled by the attackers prior to the attack. The presence of
groups of men armed with sharp weapons at various points along
the road also hampered the movement of the troops.

Only after reinforcements from the police's elite Mobile
Brigade joined them from Denpasar, did security forces manage to
reach the village. -- JP