Sectarian clash claims one life in Central Sulawesi

Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post, Palu, Central Sulawesi

Sectarian fighting erupted in Donggala regency, Central Sulawesi, leaving one person dead, two others seriously injured and four houses burned.

The clash took place on Wednesday evening between residents from two rival villages in Sigi Biromaru, about 260 kilometers from Poso regency, where some 2,000 people were killed in two years of religious fighting until 2002.

However, tension still engulfed the two villages of Maranatha, mainly populated by Christians, and Sidondo, where Muslims are dominant.

Dozens of police officers were deployed from Donggala to the scene to prevent further clashes in the religiously divided villages, while many local residents fled to safer areas and others guarded the location, brandishing spears, arrows and other sharp weapons.

The dead person was identified as Samuel Malatinggi, 56, from Maranatha, who was shot in the right leg with a homemade gun, police said.

The two severely wounded were Lamborongan, 56, from Maranatha, shot in the head and chest, and Tengge, 42, from Sidondo, who sustained gunshot injuries to the right arm.

Samuel was buried on Thursday after an autopsy at Undatu general hospital, while the injured victims are receiving medical treatment at separate hospitals.

Residents at Maranatha said the clash was triggered by the alleged beating of a farmer from Maranatha by a man from Sidondo.

The victim later reported the case to other villagers in Maranatha, who then formed a guard in their area. However, a mob from Sidondo stormed Maranatha and burned houses there.

At the time, Samuel Malatinggi, chairman of the Maranatha representatives board, tried to stop the arson but was suddenly shot dead.

Meanwhile, Jiwa Laulasa, 70, from Sidondo, said he had been stopped on Jan. 18 by a group of armed men from Maranatha, who then stabbed his right arm without good reason.

Others believed the fighting was sparked by a long-standing need for revenge.

In 2002, Maranatha residents clashed with their rivals from Kotapulu, another mainly Muslim village, in which two houses were set alight.

It was not clear if the clash was linked to fighting in Poso, which was often hit by sporadic attacks by unknown people after a peace accord in February 2002.

On Wednesday, a joint police and military team found 47 rounds of ammunition hidden in a cacao plantation in Tojo Una-Una regency, a day after the team uncovered 27 bombs and several guns on a plantation in neighboring Poso.

The bullets reportedly came from the Army's weapons manufacturer, PT Pusat Industri Angkatan Darat (PT Pindad).

The two discoveries indicate that there are still many civilians in possession of firearms, bullets and bombs in Poso, said team spokesman Adj. Sr. Comr. Agil Assegaf.

"In order to find more firearms and bombs, the police and military will intensify sweeps of those places where these items are allegedly being stored," he said.

The team was questioning the owner of the plantation in Tojo subdistrict.

Agil said the police and military were carrying out the weapons sweeps as part of a security operation in Poso, which began in early January.

He said the joint operation would focus on several districts where much of the violence of the past several years was centered, including Poso Pesisir, Poso Kota, Pamona Utara and Ampana.

Security authorities in Poso regency suspect that Ampana had become the base for groups organizing attacks in Poso. Most of the perpetrators of an attack on Beteleme village last year came from the district.

"Ninety percent of the perpetrators of the attack were from Ampana," Agil said.