Profiting from violence in eastern Indonesia
Santi W.E. Soekanto, Contributor, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The deaths of at least five Muslims and three Christians in the Central Sulawesi district of Poso on Tuesday were absolutely needless and abhorrent, but probably came as no surprise to some people. Chief political minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has in fact warned of an impending, even deadlier violence in Poso and areas of Maluku in the coming days.
He should be aware, as should others who have been watching, of the pattern of ongoing violence between Christians and Muslims in the country that has developed over the past several years. The coming days, leading up to the Idul Fitri and Christmas celebrations, are promising as much peace as that found in a powder keg.
More than 2,500 people have been killed in Poso over the past three years while thousands of others have been left with both physical and psychological scars. More than 9,000 have lost their lives in the butchery in both provinces of Maluku since the first eruption of violence on Jan. 19, 1999, while hundreds of thousands of others are still languishing in refugee camps.
Yet both sides have promised that more ugliness is to come. Do they realize that they could very well be putty in someone's dirty hand?
Let's set out some of the reasons for Yudhoyono's, and our, fears of more violence. First, both Poso and the Malukus are entering their third anniversary of ongoing violence in December and January. Unbelievable though it may sound, there are actually people who want to celebrate with more violence.
Secondly, there have been reports of both sides trading threats of expulsion. For instance, the Christians have reportedly planned to celebrate Christmas in the Muslim- controlled city of Poso, the capital of Poso district, some 1,600 kilometers northeast of Jakarta. The Muslims in turn declared their wish to hold Idul Fitri prayers in Tentena, the stronghold of the Central Sulawesi Christians.
The third reason for an impending, larger-scale violence is the presence of people intentionally taking part in the violence. These could include the Laskar Jihad, which has indeed moved some of its men from Maluku to Poso recently, and who have been involved in the violence since their arrival.
On the other side, evidence and testimonies presented during the court trial of Fabianus Tibo, Dominggus da Silva and Marinus Riwu -- the three men sentenced to death for leading the killing of hundreds of Muslims in the Walisongo Boarding School in mid- May, 2000 -- have revealed the existence of similarly brutal fighting forces on the Christian side.
"I counted more than 170 bodies from seven a.m. to five p.m.," one witness said, referring to the mutilated corpses found floating in the Poso River after the attack.
Humanitarian workers recorded not only the discovery of the bodies but also survivors' accounts of the attack at the Walisongo School. The mosque in the vicinity was splattered with blood. One retired district attorney, who now works as an intelligence officer at the provincial military headquarters, said the victims were tortured before being killed.
Women reported not only having to witness the slaughter of their husbands and sons, but also being stripped and sexually assaulted. "I wept when I found evidence that young girls were also raped," the retired district attorney said.
The depth of hatred felt for the other side is simply saddening and scary -- and this is the fourth reason.
When in July 2001 13 Muslims were tortured and killed in the Buyung Katedo hamlet, inside the Christian enclave of Sepe- Silanca, the Christian Crisis Center of Central Sulawesi said the butchery was an offensive launched against a "Muslim base camp". The 13 victims included children as young as one-year-old, women and elderly men, up against hundreds of black-clad assailants.
The fifth -- which must be by far the most compelling reason for the protracted violence in the region -- is the presence of those profiting from the violence. They want to keep the violence aflame so as to ensure continued profits.
This is not to name names, because there would simply be too many, but let us divide them into at least two groups -- those benefiting indirectly, and those profiting immediately from the violence.
The first group consists of those who are happy to see the violence chipping away at Indonesia's edges. These are the ones who might gain a political and economical advantage over Indonesia -- the way some parties are enjoying the results of the separation of East Timor -- if the country were to be torn apart by violence in Aceh, Poso, Maluku, North Maluku, Papua, Sampit, Pontianak and elsewhere.
Most people can sense a "grand design" to bring Indonesia to its knees by fomenting violence and unrest across the archipelago. President Megawati Soekarnoputri's fears of a disintegrating Indonesia are not without basis.
What benefit is to be gained from a divided Indonesia?
Despite decades of plundering and abuse at the hands of its former rulers, the country's wealth of resources is still simply awe-inspiring. Poso is an example of that wealth. The National Maritime Council reveals that in 1998 there were 32 sites of large untapped oil deposits in the northern Tomini Bay -- which could reportedly last for 1,200 years. This is also a very fertile land. Some people have described Poso as "a piece of heaven". One need only throw away a fruit seed on a plot of land and wait until harvest time, one local said recently.
The district is also an ebony exporter. In addition, 30 percent of Poso's some 7,000 square kilometers is currently given over to cocoa plantations, an important export for the region and the nation. Poso is also rich in palm oil plantations, copra and cloves.
Control over Poso means having control over that wealth.
The second group consists of individuals who actually make short-term financial profits. The individuals who sell weaponry and ammunition, for instance, are the first to profit from the violence. One need only enter Poso to realize how well armed the Mobile Brigade and Army personnel are -- some 2,100 are currently posted there depleting the Poso Administration's resources as it is having to spend Rp 1 billion (more than US$ 100,000 at the current rate) to feed and accommodate these troops every month.
Indeed, as of August, the word was that you could find weapons almost anywhere in Poso -- in one man's roof, in another's car boot, underneath the loose-fitting blouse of an elderly woman, in a child's school bag.
The next batch of profiteers comes in various guises and shapes. As of August, a strict demarcation line has been drawn between areas designated as Christian and Muslim. No Muslim, unless they are related in some way to the military or other powerful institutions, can enter areas such as Tentena or Sepe as it would mean death. On the other hand, the Christian civil servants who still have to work in the Muslim-controlled Poso city can only enter under the escort of paid security officers.
In short, movements of people and goods are almost impossible unless they are related to the security authorities.
There may be many other parties who profit from the violence in eastern Indonesia -- and it will continue unless the warring parties stop to think how they are being manipulated.