TNI to install military battalion in Poso

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The head of the Makassar-based Wirabuana Military Command, Maj. Gen. Suprapto, said on Thursday a military battalion would soon be based in Poso, Central Sulawesi, where religious conflicts between Muslims and Christians have claimed more than 2,000 lives in recent years.

"Poso now only has companies of regular troops, so every time there is a conflict we have to bring in extra troops to restore peace and order. That is not efficient," Suprapto was quoted by Antara as saying at the Haluoleo Military Command in Central Sulawesi on Thursday. One company consists of 10 soldiers.

Suprapto was visiting the Haluoleo Military Command to hand over new vehicles to the local military.

He said the Poso battalion would be called Battalion 714, with its between 800 and 1,400 soldiers being drawn from the Wirabuana Military Command.

Soeprapto did not give the exact date when the battalion would be established, saying only that it should happen in early 2004.

Poso, a small town in the province of Central Sulawesi, has been the site of a religious conflict that has left over 2,000 people dead since 2000.

Suprapto said security in Poso had improved as residents began to realize the importance of peace.

"There are now movements in society there aimed at maintaining peace and security. I hope this situation will last so that the bloody religious conflict that gripped the region will not reoccur," Suprapto said.

He said many residents of Poso had turned in firearms to the security authorities, but that some people in the town and the surrounding areas still had weapons.

He appealed to the general public to hand over any firearms they had to the authorities, saying civilians were not allowed to possess weapons.

Asked when the troops could be withdrawn from Poso, Suprapto said it depended on the police, who he said had requested the military deployment to Poso.

As long as police need the military there, the troops will be stationed in Poso, he said.

Asked about the five motorbikes and eight personnel-carrier trucks he handed over to the Haluoleo Military Command, Suprapto said they were donated by the Southeast Sulawesi Police.

There were rumors that the five motorbikes and one of the trucks were donated by businessman Tomy Winatan, who was in the spotlight recently when his supporters attacked the office of Tempo magazine on Jl. Proklamasi in Central Jakarta.

Suprapto said he did not know anything about the donation. "All that I know is that the vehicles came from the Southeast Sulawesi Police."