Sampit still tense after police killing

Sampit still tense after police killing

SAMPIT, Central Kalimantan (JP): Following the death of three
of their colleagues in a clash on Friday with locals, members of
police's Mobile Brigade (Brimob) intensified their street
operations in Sampit on Saturday, netting people carrying sharp
weapons.

They also stopped people wearing red headbands, which is
associated with the Dayak.

Witnesses said the police beat up those netted and then let
them go. No fatalities were reported.

The action apparently crippled the town of Sampit and created
tension. Rumors spread that the troopers were entering villages
and searching for Dayaks.

"People are afraid to go about their daily activities," one
Sampit resident, who asked for anonymity, told The Jakarta Post
on Saturday.

He said that shops closed before midday.

Three Brimob troopers and a Dayak were killed in fierce
fighting some 40 kilometers west of Sampit on Friday.

The troopers, identified as Second Adj. Insp. Asep Dedi,
Second Brig. Rikho and Second Brig. Rohman, were from the Kelapa
Dua Brimob Headquarters in Jakarta. Another trooper, Second Brig.
Marwan, was seriously wounded in the clash.

The resident said that many Javanese migrants had left their
homes in Sampit, believing that a fresh clash between locals and
troopers would soon erupt.

However, many residents expressed relief at official the
search of citizens on the streets of Sampit.

"Unlike the days before, there were no Dayak people roaming
about on the streets with spears and swords in their hands on
Saturday," said a migrant.

People living close to the scene of Friday's fight said that a
large number of Dayaks fled into the jungle following Brimob's
search.

Police were not available for comment. The Post also failed to
contact Kota Waringin Timur Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Petrus
Hartono.

Violence first broke out in Sampit in February when local
Dayaks attacked Madurese migrants, killing hundreds. (32/sur)