Mine clearing to begin in Ambon

AMBON, Maluku: Soldiers are set to clean scores of land mines in Sirimau district, outside the provincial capital of Ambon, that were planted during the three-year sectarian clash.

Assigned to the mine clearing task is the North Sumatra Bukit Barisan Arhanudse Battalion. Its commander, Col. Haris Sarjana, said the area of Ahuru in Sirimau was infested with land mines.

"Based on an initial survey, there are plenty of land mines in Ahuru, and many are still active," Haris said on Monday. "We're not sure whether the land mines are those from the Indonesian Military (TNI), or homemade devices."

Some 300 families used to live in Ahuru, but only a dozen now remain. Residents fled Ahuru when clashes between Maluku's Christian and Muslim communities broke out in 1999.

It is not clear who planted the mines, and detecting them was difficult, Haris said. Much of Ahuru is covered in impenetrable bush and high grass after four years of negligence.

Several soldiers had already been injured by mines, said Haris, adding that Ahuru was now a closed area surrounded by a number of military guardposts.

"We hope to start clearing the mines as soon as possible so that Ahuru residents may return, and so that efforts to reconstruct and rehabilitate their houses and infrastructure could start," Haris said. -- Antara