Transport problems in C. Sulawesi

PALU, Central Sulawesi: Interprovincial public transport has been disrupted by the escalating sectarian tension in the Central Sulawesi town of Poso, Antara reported on Sunday.

The news agency said that public transport plying the route between Central Sulawesi and South Sulawesi was being disrupted by a group of unidentified people in the Pendolo area.

Citra, a ticketing staff member of a major bus company in Sulawesi, was quoted as saying that the incidents had prompted the company to temporarily halt its operations.

Hundreds of people have been killed in sectarian conflicts in Poso since early last year. Thousands of people have also fled the area for fear of further unrest.

Police last week dispatched some 300 personnel from the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar to Poso to quell the rising tension in the area.(byg)