Religious leaders delay planned visit to Ambon

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The religious leaders group delayed the planned visit to Ambon, the capital of Maluku, until next week as the government was completing the rehabilitation fund program for the strife-torn province, an official said.

Secretary to the Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare, Soetedjo Yuwono, said on Monday that the government wished to bring the rehabilitation program along with the peace effort to the province so as to enable the two measures to be implemented simultaneously.

"The reason for the delay is a technical issue because we still have to complete the inter-departmental budget allocation to restore damaged facilities in the province. We have moved the schedule forward to next week," Soetedjo told The Jakarta Post and Koran Tempo daily.

The official made the remarks in response to the planned visit by leaders of major religious organizations in the country to support the peace settlement after the Malino agreement between the warring groups in Ambon.

Under the initiative of the central government, representatives of the two warring sides agreed to sign a peace agreement in Malino, about 37 kilometers from the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar on Feb. 12.

Those intending to join the planned trip are religious leaders, including Indonesia's largest Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama chairman Hasyim Muzadi, second largest Muslim organization Muhammadiyah chairman Syafii Ma'arif and Julius Cardinal Darmaatmadja of Bishop Council of Indonesia as well as other religious leaders.

The leaders said recently that they wanted to share the part of the government's initiatives to promote peace effort and to talk to their followers to end the three-year sectarian fight in the province.

Soetedjo brushed aside speculation that the delay was caused by the inability on the part of the government to provide security guarantee in the province.

"I have just returned from Ambon and the conditions are improving. The public transportation is operating again and some of the traditional markets also have reopened so they really need support in public facilities," Soetedjo said.

The rehabilitation fund will be used to repair the damaged public facilities, but said that worship houses would not be put as first priority because it would be conducted after all the refugees have returned.

The 13 religious leaders will visit Maluku and Poso, Central Sulawesi, and spend two days in each of the strife-torn provinces.

The religious leaders will hold meetings with the younger generation of the province to once again remind them about the importance of peace among religions and to end fear from the people of other groups after the prolonged sectarian riots.