Rice aid sent to riot-hit Tual

Rice aid sent to riot-hit Tual

AMBON, Maluku: The provincial logistics office is sending 100
metric tons of rice to Tual in Southeast Maluku, which recently
was hit by religious clashes that killed more than 100 people,
Antara reported on Tuesday.

The rice aid was sent on Monday and was scheduled to arrive on
Tuesday. Governor Saleh Latuconsina has asked another ship
carrying rice from Surabaya, East Java, which had reached Tual
but could not unload because of security problems, to return. He
said he asked security authorities to guarantee the ship's
safety.

Communal clashes between Muslims and Christians in the
province erupted in mid-January and have killed at least 300
people. Tension in the province is slowly dissipating and some
refugees have started to return home.

Meanwhile, Antara reported that Dutch Ambassador Baron S. Van
Heemstra, his wife and a number of embassy staff will visit Ambon
from April 21 to April 23. The ambassador will meet with
Latuconsina and high ranking officials, including members of the
special team of Maluku-born officers the Armed Forces deployed to
the province to end the violence.

The visit will be used by the ambassador to study the cause of
the riots, which some have linked to the separatist group the
South Maluku Republic, many of whose members currently reside in
the Netherlands. (swe)