Tual calm after renewed clashes, military says
JAKARTA (JP): The Southeast Maluku regency town of Tual was reportedly calm on Sunday, after a fatal outbreak of communal clashes that killed at least three people and injured about 10 others on Friday, Antara said.
Speaking in Ambon, Maluku provincial military commander Col. Karel Ralahalu said he would soon dispatch a special team of peacemakers comprising middle-ranking officers to Tual to help locals resolve their disputes.
Violence in Tual erupted again last week, after almost a month of calm reigned following earlier religious-related conflicts that left nearly 200 dead.
Of the military's team, Karel said: "They've been given a month to complete their tasks. But it is extendible in the event that violence remains."
He said the officers would be of local origin.
Following earlier communal clashes in the province capital of Ambon -- in which at least 200 were killed -- Armed Forces Commander Gen. Wiranto also deployed a special peacemaking team.
The team, which is still stationed in Ambon, also consists of indigenous officers.
On tasks of the latest team for Tual, Karel said they would be deployed on Tuesday and assigned to meet local religious figures and community elders to help them work for peace.
Karel said the situation in Tual was calm on Sunday. Security personnel continued operations to confiscate various traditional weapons from locals.
As of Sunday, the number of people injured in a series of violence was 11, the news agency said. Weapons the warring groups used to fight one another ranged from arrows, guns to handmade bombs, it said.
Violence in Maluku has escalated since it first erupted in Ambon in mid-January. The Banda Islands in Central Maluku joined the list of hot spots last week, with at least six people killed.
The nature of the violence across the province is similar in that it pits local Muslims against Christians. Apart from damage to mosques and churches and houses, the clashes triggered hundreds to a thousand people to flee the hit areas.
ICRC
Meanwhile, a visiting team of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Ambon said on Sunday it had yet to decide whether to lend a hand to refugees in the recently riot-stricken areas, the news agency said.
While vowing the team would also pay attention to Tual and Banda, ICRC delegation chief Alexandre Faite said the team's current funding -- of Rp 2 billion (about US$230,000) approved by its Geneva headquarters -- was for refugees in Ambon only.
In Ambon, the number of refugees is about 17,000 who are sheltered in 45 separate refugee camps.
In Tual, Antara said hundreds to a thousand refugees were presently sheltered in 12 refugee camps. Many are reportedly in need of food and medical supplies, it said.
An official of the Maluku Indonesian Red Cross, Jhon Tomasoa, said his team, the ICRC team and the Maluku military commander (Col. Karel) would soon visit the camps in Tual.
Meanwhile, in West Kalimantan's capital of Pontianak, Governor Aspar Aswin said on Saturday that Jakarta had earmarked Rp 90 billion for the relocation of over 30,000 Madurese refugees in Pontianak and its surroundings to Padang Tikar and Tebang Kacang islands, 80 kilometers off Pontianak.
He said the relocation would soon commence.
Recently in the province's Sambas regency, local Malays and Dayaks clashed with migrant Madurese. About 200 people were killed in the interethnic clashes, displacing thousands of mostly Madurese women and children. (aan)