TNI to install military battalion in Poso

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Asked when the troops could be withdrawn from Poso, Suprapto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."