Officials told to publicize Malino Declaration truce

Erik W. and Elnino Mohi, The Jakarta Post, Palu/Gorontalo

Central Sulawesi Governor Aminuddin Ponulele asked local officials to inform the public about the Malino Declaration, which was recently agreed upon by warring factions in Poso, in an attempt to establish peace in the province.

"All sides, including tribal and religious leaders, local government officials, local media and non-governmental organizations, are asked to disseminate the Malino peace agreement to end the prolonged sectarian conflict in Poso and prevent it from spreading to other regencies in the province," he said at a media conference here over the weekend.

Ponulele made the call upon his arrival from Malino where warring factions in Poso signed a peace deal on Thursday to end the conflict. The reconciliation meeting was sponsored by Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Jusuf Kalla, who represented the central government.

The governor gave one month for the administrations of Central Sulawesi and Poso to broadcast the peace deal to let all sides, especially the warring factions and their supporters, know about it in detail.

He warned that following the month-long campaign, authorities would take strict action against whoever betrayed the declaration.

"During the reconciliation meeting, the warring factions have agreed to end the conflict and to punish those found guilty of breaching the peace deal.

He said both warring factions and the government have agreed to set up a task force to record violent incidents over the last three years so that they can be processed according to the law.

The governor also called on militiamen in the province to leave because their presence was not needed in handling the Poso conflict.

"If they decline to leave voluntarily, security authorities will forcibly expel them," he warned.

Panulele said Poso Regent Muin Pusadan had an important role to play in promoting the program and the agreed establishment of a task force, whose members would be from the warring factions and local government.

"Let me see, I will take action if the regent cannot follow up on the peace deal effectively," he said.

He added that he was satisfied with the two-day Malino meeting, which was hosted by the South Sulawesi administration and sponsored by the central government.

Asked about Poso refugees, the governor said they would all be returned to their home villages.

"For the time being, the provincial administration and the central government will provide modest housing for refugees until they return home," he said, citing that so far 8,000 very basic houses have been constructed for the refugees in the province.

More than 100,000 Poso Muslims and Christians have taken refuge in the province's other regencies, Gorontalo and North and South Sulawesi, because of the ethnic and sectarian conflict.

Amid the brutal conflict that has claimed more than 2,000 human lives in the past three years, North Sulawesi Police have deployed more than 100 security personnel along the border area between Central Sulawesi and Gorontalo to prevent the conflict from spreading to the neighboring two provinces.

Gorontalo Police Adj. Sr. Comr. Radjim Asianto has issued an instruction to all sides in the province to help inform the public about the Malino Declaration and promote religious harmony among local people in the newly-formed province.

He also asked local people to report to security authorities any unwanted migrants who had attempted to provoke civil unrest in the province.