Protest marks Poso conflict anniversary

Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post, Palu

Some 250 residents observed the 7th anniversary of the Poso conflict on Wednesday by staging a protest outside the Central Sulawesi Police Headquarters.

The three-hour protest, initiated by the Poso Center organization, was aimed at reminding people of the conflict, which started in December 1998 but escalated in 2000, killing over 2,000 people and leaving 17,000 families homeless.

Following the conflict, many security disturbances rocked Poso, from the May 2005 Tentena bombings to the beheading of three Christian schoolgirls in October this year and mysterious shootings.

"The security disturbances show there are human rights violations in Poso," said Poso Center coordinator Yusuf Lakaseng in his speech during the protest.

He said the security disturbances happened because the cases were not taken seriously by the authorities.

The protesters also demanded that the government immediately set up a joint fact-finding team to uncover those responsible for the conflict and subsequent cases, including a high profile graft case related to the distribution of aid to people displaced by the sectarian conflict.

The protesters alleged that Andi Azikin Suyuti, the then Social Welfare Office chief, who was also the project's chief officer, embezzled billions of rupiah from the fund.

Yusuf claimed that their investigation showed the money also went to several officials in the province and in Jakarta.

The police have so far named five suspects in the case, including Andi. The graft case centers on the construction of almost 1,300 houses in Poso regency after the conflict. The local government was given Rp 6.4 billion (US$640,000) for the construction, but it was later discovered that a portion of the funds had been diverted by government officials and private contractors for their personal gain.

Meanwhile, Wednesday's protest was also used by religious leaders, including priest Jimmy Tumbelaka, to urge President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to order the Central Sulawesi Prosecutor's Office to postpone the execution of three men -- Fabianus Tibo, Marinus Riwu and Dominggus da Silva -- convicted of mass killing during the sectarian clashes.

He said the three men were key witnesses in the Poso conflict, who knew those responsible for the incident.

"If they're executed, the masterminds behind the Poso conflict will be buried with them. So we call on the President to postpone the execution until the masterminds are found," Jimmy said, adding that the authorities had never questioned the 16 people who Tibo identified as having involved them in the sectarian conflict.