Nearly 1700 killed in North Maluku violence

JAKARTA (JP): At least 1,692 people have been killed in sectarian clashes in North Maluku since they first erupted in late December, an official said on Sunday.

Local government spokesman Adjuan Gafur was quoted by Antara as saying that more than 3,000 security personnel have been deployed to the area to restore law and order.

The troops are among 10,000 soldiers and police already deployed across Maluku to stop the ongoing violence, which has enveloped the islands for more than a year.

The latest violence between Muslims and Christians erupted on Bacan island on Tuesday, killing at least 37 people, Adjuan said, adding that the figure could go up.

"The death toll is not final, pending further reports from village and district chiefs on the island," he said.

Adjuan said although calm had returned, more than 1,000 people whose houses were destroyed in the violence were still waiting to be evacuated from the island to the North Maluku capital of Ternate.

He added that the violence had paralyzed businesses in the area and that locals were running short of food and other basic necessities.

Meanwhile in the riot-torn Maluku province of Ambon, the chief of Pattimura Military Command overseeing Maluku and North Maluku, Brig. Gen. Max Tamaela, said on Sunday people displaced from Bacan island would not be located in Ternate due to fears that they "will strengthen a certain religious group there".

Some 400 of the refugees will be evacuated to Seram island in Central Maluku on Navy warships, said Tamaela.

He also said military police had begun questioning four army personnel and a police officer for their alleged involvement in sectarian clashes on Haruku island last week.

At least 25 people were killed and hundreds of houses and a number of places of worship were destroyed in the violence on the island, some 16 kilometers east of Ambon island.

The violence on the island erupted as Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri was on a three-day visit to the province.

Megawati's visit was to renew a bid for an end to the prolonged clashes between Muslims and Christians in the province.

Megawati's first stop in Maluku was Tual, the capital of Southeast Maluku, which is now peaceful after vicious sectarian violence last year.

Meanwhile, Anthony Retthob of the Help Ambon in Need (HAIN) Foundation dismissed allegations that the Dutch-based South Maluku Republic (RMS) rebel movement had supplied guns to the province.

"The Netherlands give humanitarian aid, not guns," Anthony told reporters in Ambon after a meeting with Maluku Governor Saleh Laticonsina on Saturday.

In Kudus, Central Java, National Police chief Lt. Gen. Roesdihardjo said on Saturday that the Sultan of Ternate Mudaffar Syah would be questioned soon in relation to the conflicts in Maluku. "We've obtained the data and are ready to investigate him," Roesdiharjo said.

In Padang, the capital of West Sumatra, student protests greeted Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri on a visit on Sunday. They were voicing demands for her to be proactive in handling the Maluku riots. (28/45/49/edt/byg)