Violence hits Poso, Pontianak

JAKARTA (JP): Dozens of armed men attacked a residential area in the town of Poso, Central Sulawesi, in the early hours of Sunday morning, killing two people and injuring three others.

The unidentified men stormed houses and fired randomly during the predawn attack which caused panic among residents.

Security personnel combing the area after the attack found two bodies.

Quoting sources, Antara news agency identified the casualties as Army First Lt. Rudy Ilham and civilian Udeg. Both died of gunshot wounds.

Ilham was found in his house located near the local military headquarters, while Udeg reportedly was killed while he was on neighborhood watch.

An employee at Poso General Hospital confirmed the two fatalities. The men's bodies were handed over to their families for burial on Sunday afternoon.

The spokesman for the Central Sulawesi Police, Adj. Sr. Comr. Agus Sugianto, said he had not been informed of the attack. "As of now I have not received a report of the incident. It is better to contact directly Poso Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Djasman Baso Opu."

Djasman, however, could not be reached for comment.

As of Sunday afternoon, Poso remained tense, though police and military personnel appeared to be in control of the situation.

The attack on Sunday was the fifth such incident in the past five months. A similar incident took place in early April, leaving a policeman dead and three civilians seriously wounded.

About 250 people died in clashes that erupted last year between Muslims and Christians in Poso, which is located some 225 kilometers southeast of Palu, the capital of Central Sulawesi.

Meanwhile in Pontianak, the capital of West Kalimantan, local residents attacked a camp housing migrant Madurese refugees in the Khatulistiwa sports stadium. The attack followed the death of a six-year-old boy, Fery, near the refugee camp.

Antara reported that Fery, his younger brother and his parents were riding on a motorcycle near the stadium at about 8 p.m. on Saturday night.

Four people -- reportedly from the refugee camp -- attempted to rob the family. Fery was struck in the head with a club during the incident and died at a local hospital at about 5 a.m. on Sunday.

Shortly after news of Fery's death reached residents, a number of people living in the vicinity of the stadium went to the refugee camp and set fire to makeshift houses erected by the Madurese.

The arson attacks continued and by 10 a.m. all of the houses belonging to the 344 refugee families had been razed.

As more people, most armed with traditional weapons, gathered near the stadium, the local authorities held a meeting with Madurese leaders in the West Kalimantan governor's office.

A local resident, Usuf, deplored the attack on Fery and said the authorities had ignored the social problems caused by the refugees.

"Who would not be upset by a robbery that resulted in the death of a little boy," Usuf said.

Another resident shouted: "If they are not moved, we will go in the stadium and attack them."

Police stood guard around the stadium to prevent the mob from entering.

The stadium is being used to house Madurese migrants who fled clashes between the Madurese and the indigenous Dayaks in Sambas, West Kalimantan, in early 1999.

Later on Sunday, an official told residents the refugees would be relocated to other areas in Sungai Asam. (emf)