Police wants Maluku civil emergency lifted
Police wants Maluku civil emergency lifted
Yogita Tahilramani and Oktovianus Pinontoan, The Jakarta Post,
Jakarta/Ambon
The National Police have suggested that President Megawati
Soekarnoputri lift the civilian state of emergency in the strife-
torn provinces of Maluku and North Maluku.
The state of emergency have been in effect in the two
provinces for nearly two years now.
National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said on Tuesday that
a formal request would be made soon.
"Based on the facts on the ground, the security conditions
have improved in North Maluku, and some places in Maluku are
slowly stabilizing," Da'i said at National Police Headquarters.
Da'i added that police strength was still concentrated in the
Maluku capital of Ambon, which remained tense despite the recent
peace pact reached between the warring Muslim and Christian
groups in Malino, South Sulawesi.
"We'll gradually pull back our elite police units to National
Police Headquarters, and replace them with local police
officers ... but this can only be done after we are fully
convinced that the security situation has returned to normal,"
Da'i said.
Sociologist Thamrin Amal Tomagola, who is a North Maluku
native, had earlier said that disarming the warring militant
groups in violence-torn Maluku should top the peace-keeping
agenda under the supervision of the Coordinating Minister for
Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Thamrin
also suggested that Army Special Forces troops be involved in
conducting regular searches for weapons in Maluku and in the
disarming of the militias.
Maluku Police chief Brig. Gen. Sunarko A.D., set a March 1
deadline on Tuesday for the militias to surrender their weapons
before a massive operation to search for arms began.
He added that Tuesday's meeting between provincial
administration and security officials resulted in a decision to
prohibit the media from printing or broadcasting information that
could incite fresh violence in Maluku.
"If reporters, whether print or broadcast, spread news that
incites violence, the matter will be processed according to the
prevailing laws. The police will first issue warnings ... if the
offending action continues, then we will summon (the reporter)
for questioning," Sunarko said.
He added that similar action would be taken against military
or police personnel suspected of inciting violence between the
Muslim and Christian communities.
"There will be no compromise on this matter, because all sides
have suffered enough. The officer will be reprimanded. If the
violation is serious, the officer may also be dismissed," he
said.