Three more people killed as Ambon violence continues

JAKARTA (JP): At least three more people were killed and 10 injured as clashes between Muslims and Christians in the riot- torn Maluku capital of Ambon entered their third day on Wednesday, witnesses and a police spokesman said.

Witnesses said clashes erupted on Wednesday morning in the Poka area across Ambon bay and the city areas of OSM, Talake and Aster.

Maluku Police spokesman Maj. Jekriel Philip told The Jakarta Post by phone from Ambon that at least three people were killed and 21 houses set on fire on Wednesday.

Earlier, a spokesman for the Maluku Military Command Lt. Col. Iwa Budiman said two battalions of reinforcement troops from East Java had been dispatched to Ambon.

"They have left Surabaya by ship and are still on their way," Iwa said without elaborating.

One battalion of marines arrived in Ambon late last month to quell the ongoing violence between Muslims and Christians.

The province has already received reinforcements of five additional battalions of troops, or some 3,000 men, and three companies from the Elite Police Mobile Brigade.

Separately, Edy Selestimu, a Christian activist, told the Post from the Haulusi General Hospital in Ambon that at least two people were killed and six more with slash and bullet wounds had been admitted to the hospital.

"Sherly Sipahelut, 25, was brought in dead and Ardilles Lambiobir, 13, died of bullet wounds at the hospital this afternoon," Edy said.

Suleman Rahman, a Muslim activist, said at least four people suffering injuries had been admitted to the Al-Fatah hospital after security personnel fired warning shots to disperse warring groups in Poka.

"We always fire warning shots first to try to stop the fighting, but if they refuse to do so, we have no other choice," Iwa said.

He added that "the fighting in Ambon was different from the fighting in Jakarta".

"People here do not use stones, they use all kind of weapons in the fighting, including homemade firearms and traditional steel arrows which can be catapulted from a long distance."

He said that since July 27, at least 59 people had been killed and 240 more seriously injured in the communal clashes.

He added that at least 26 security personnel were also injured.

Witnesses said sporadic gunshots could still be heard in some parts of the city, while billowing smoke from burning houses was visible.

"The electricity has been cut off in some parts of Poka, Nusaniwe, OSM and Tantui due to the fire," a witness said, adding that people were also seen attempting to put out the fire.

Witnesses also said that shops and businesses were still closed and public transport was still not available.

Iwa said that more than 34,000 people had sought refuge in 35 locations, including mosques, churches and military barracks, since the fresh outbreak of violence.

"Some 9,000 of them have sought refuge at Halong naval base," Iwa said.

Thousands of others have left by ship for other islands or provinces.

More than 1,000 refugees from Ambon arrived at the South Sulawesi capital of Ujungpandang early Wednesday, while another 1,300 refugees arrived in Bau Bau in Southeast Sulawesi by ferry late on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, some 100 students staged a peaceful rally in Ujungpandang on Wednesday to demand an end to violence in Ambon.

In Jakarta, the Communion of Indonesian Churches (PGI) also issued a statement urging all parties to stop fighting.

"We call on our beloved brothers and sisters, both Muslims and Christians, to stop this violence... you have been dragged in a wave of hatred and vengeance and destructive actions," PGI said in a statement signed by its chairman Sularso Sopater and secretary-general J.M. Pattiasina.

To date more than 350 people had been killed in communal clashes in Maluku, but which first erupted in Ambon in mid- January. (27/30/48/byg)