Migrants sent back to Madura

SAMPIT, Central Kalimantan: As many as 23 Madurese migrants who had returned to their former homes in Sampit, Central Kalimantan, have been sent back to Madura, police said here on Monday.

Kotawaringin Police chief Sr. Adj. Comr. P. Handoyo said in Sampit on Saturday that the Madurese were sent home as a security precaution and to maintain order in the conflict-torn area.

Thousands of Madurese migrants were displaced from their homes in many areas in Kotawaringin following fatal clashes with Malays and local Dayaks. Most migrants are staying at temporary shelters in some towns in Kalimantan and East Java.

Handoyo said that Kotawaringin Timor was not yet prepared for the return of uprooted Madurese families. "The regency is cooling down while it waits for a bylaw on demography." --Antara