Manggarai clash unabated yet

Manggarai clash unabated yet

MAUMERE, East Nusa Tenggara: The deadly clash between
residents of Buti and Lanamai villages which started on Tuesday
and killed two people in the regency of Manggarai had yet to
abate on Friday.

The two villages were still tense on Friday despite the visit
of regent Antony B. Dagur.

Manggarai police chief A.L.M. Tobing said that the situation
had yet to return to normal, and that several policemen were
still guarding the conflict area.

Spokesman for the regency Paulus Pado told The Jakarta Post
that the death toll might rise as the two warring groups had yet
to reach a peace deal. "They have been searching for each other.
There is a possibility that they may be involved in fresh
clashes."

Reports said that the villagers fought over a plot of
plantation land in Lingko village, 60 kilometers east of Ruteng,
the Manggarai regency capital.

A local Catholic priest said that the land dispute started in
1978 when residents of the two villages claimed ownership of the
plot.

Another clash erupted in 1989 and the latest fray broke out in
December of last year.

Eyewitnesses said that Tuesday's brawl was initiated by the
attack on a Lanamai resident by some 500 people from Buti.

The dead villagers were identified as Damanius Lani and Victor
Nadas, police said. (yac/sur)