Six people killed, 40 homes burned in Ambon clash
Six people killed, 40 homes burned in Ambon clash
AMBON, Maluku (JP): Six people were killed, 25 others were
injured and 40 homes were set on fire during a clash at daybreak
on Friday.
The fatalities were identified as La Hasan, 45, Johari, 40,
Ludwig Samloy, 22, and David Paliama, 16, who died of gunshot
wounds, Ambon Police chief Lt. Col. Ghufron said.
Two others were Souisa, 70, and his wife who died in the fire
in the Tantui area. The bodies were brought to the local church.
The injured, who suffered both minor and serious wounds and
included two security personnel, were taken to the Navy Hospital
and Al Fatah Hospital in the Maluku capital. A volunteer at Al
Fatah, Hari, said one unidentified man and seven others who
sustained gunshot wounds were admitted to the hospital at 7 a.m.
Among the wounded at the Navy hospital was Hermin Lespata, 40,
who sustained a shot wound to her head, a hospital staff said.
A fire continued into the early evening in the residential
area of Kampung Java, Tantui. A fire engine, accompanied by
security personnel, entered the predominantly Christian area
earlier in the day.
"Firefighters also face the risk of being killed," a resident
said.
Crowds who gathered at several sites, including the Batumerah
residential area and near the Silo church, were dispersed by
security personnel.
Residents of Galunggung, Kebun Cengkih and Batumerah attacked
the area beginning at 5:30 a.m., witnesses said.
Ghufron declined to respond to residents' allegations that
security personnel from the artillery and combat units also shot
at their homes. A member of the police mobile brigade unit,
identified as Suratman, was reportedly arrested for opening fire
on residents.
"This (shooting directed at residents) has happened several
times," a resident who lost his home said.
Muslims and Christians have accused security personnel of bias
in handling the sectarian strife.
About 450 people have died in communal clashes since January.
Tens of thousands of residents have fled Maluku and hundreds of
families remain in shelters in Ambon.
According to police data, 1,358 houses have been burnt or
damaged. Other losses include 194 stores, a bank, a government
building, four schools, seven offices, five mosques and six
churches.
In a statement sent to The Jakarta Post on Friday, the
Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI) again appealed for
international help. The Protestant organization said the
government and the Indonesian Military had failed to stop the
violence in the province.
It said indications from a number of recent clashes reinforced
speculation that civilians were carrying automatic firearms.
PGI feared the continuing violence would lead to Ambon's
isolation. "If sea and air transportation are disrupted it is
likely that communication from and to Ambon will be isolated."
Commercial airline services to the area have been temporarily
stopped. Passenger ships now dock at the Navy port due to safety
concerns. (48/anr/ylt)