Pontianak returns to normal after clashes

PONTIANAK, West Kalimantan (JP): The West Kalimantan capital of Pontianak was returning to normal after being crippled for two days by interethnic clashes that left at least six people dead.

Although a curfew was still in place on Saturday, the main streets of the city, including Jl. Tanjungpura, Jl. Gadjah Mada, Jl. Pattimura and Jl. Perintis Kemerdekaan, were filled with private vehicles. However, public transportation vehicles were still not operating.

The areas where the clashes took place, including Jeruju and Sungai Jawi, which were hardest hit by the violence, have been cleared of debris. Barricades were removed as well, and the areas looked quiet and peaceful.

Supermarkets were open for the first time since the interethnic clashes between indigenous Malays and migrant Madurese began on Wednesday.

Some smaller shops, which usually open in the morning, began doing business in the afternoon.

Jl. Gusti Situ Mahmud in Siantan, which is dominated by Madurese residents, was open to motorbikes only.

Groups of people were still seen at several flashpoints around the city, but none of them were carrying swords or other sharp weapons. Security officers were still on alert in these areas.

Reinforcement troops dispatched from Jakarta to Pontianak on Friday have had a visible effect, and sweeps conducted by the police are expected to help reduce the tension.

Locals said the sweeps had not yet borne fruit because the people living in the areas where the sweeps were carried out seemed to know of the operations beforehand, and most of the residents hid their weapons from the officers.

West Kalimantan Police chief Brig. Gen. Atok Rismanto said on Friday the police had to be extra careful in carrying out the searches. "Or the people will get angry."

Pontianak Mayor Buchary A. Rahman called on the people through television and radio announcements on Friday to go about their daily activities.

The local office of the Ministry of National Education announced that all private and state schools, from kindergartens to high schools, would be closed until Nov. 1.

"The closures may be extended depending on developments," said Buchary.

The violence in Pontianak began on Wednesday after groups of Madurese and Malays clashed near Kapuas bridge, leaving one man, identified as Misadin, 40, dead and three others injured.

The violence increased in intensity and by Friday six people were dead, dozens of others injured, 50 shops razed and dozens of becak (three-wheeled pedicabs) destroyed. Four houses in the Jeruju area of the city also were destroyed by fire during the mayhem.

Representatives of the two warring groups have expressed remorse over the violence. Abdul Syukur SK, secretary of the Madurese Family Association in Pontianak, said on Saturday: "On behalf of the Madurese, I apologize to the Malay ethnics. I call on the Madurese to restrain themselves."

Erdin Odang, a respected figure in the Malay community in Pontianak, said: "We are all Muslim brothers. No more fights, no more violence among us."

For the residents of the town, the interethnic violence has been a tragedy. "Everything is a mess after the violence. This is all because of an individual dispute, now everybody has become a victims. Why must they kill each other, they are all Muslims," Normah, a Madurese housewife, said. (edi/sur)