Wiranto removes Maluku police chief

Wiranto removes Maluku police chief

JAKARTA (JP): Armed Forces (ABRI) Commander Gen. Wiranto on
Wednesday removed Col. Karyono from his position as police chief
of riot-torn Maluku, citing "operational reasons".

The announcement came one day after a battalion of marines
from the East Java capital of Surabaya, arrived in Maluku's
capital Ambon. They were dispatched to control clashes in the
province that have so far killed at least 159 people, injured
hundreds of others and destroyed thousands of buildings.

"I have ordered National Police chief (Gen. Roesmanhadi) to
replace the Maluku police chief for operational reasons," Wiranto
told reporters before a Cabinet meeting on political and security
affairs at Bina Graha presidential office.

He did not name Karyono's replacement.

Ambon and other islands in the province have been rocked by
clashes between Muslims and Christians since mid-January.

Wiranto also said he will send two army battalions from Java
to Ambon to reinforce troops currently stationed in the city.

"An army battalion from Purworejo (Central Java) leaves today
and another battalion from Situbondo (East Java) will depart
today or tomorrow," Wiranto said.

He said troops dispatched from the South Sulawesi capital of
Ujungpandang will be withdrawn from Ambon "to avoid the
impression of extending protection to one particular ethnic
group".

He did not say when the troops would leave.

Hundreds of Christians in Ambon protested the shootings of
civilians last week, saying that troops dispatched from
Ujungpandang had been siding with Muslims in the riots.

Wiranto said the new troops had been ordered to take "very
firm and tough" action against anyone who "destroys, burns or
disturbs the peace, regardless of their ethnic or religious
background".

"They should follow my previous order to shoot-on-sight to
disarm though not to kill."

The ABRI chief also said the military had no intention of
covering up an incident in which troops opened fire near a mosque
in Ahuru, outside Ambon, during dawn prayers on Monday.

Two people died at the scene.

"There will be no cover up. Firm action will be taken against
whoever (was involved in the incident), be they military or
civilian and whatever their religion or ethnic group," he said.

On Wednesday afternoon, tensions mounted in Ambon after Arman
Tupamahu, 34, suffered injuries from a stabbing on Jl. A.M.
Sangaji, near the downtown Silo Church, by a man identified as
Abad.

Noya Sileo Bistos of the Maranatha riot monitoring post told
The Jakarta Post by phone from Ambon, that hundreds of Muslims
and Christians then gathered in the area. Troops were rushed in
and warning shots were fired to disperse the crowd.

Syafrudin Umahuk, a staff member at the Al Fatah Mosque, told
the Post that hundreds of Christians had planned to attack the
mosque on Wednesday afternoon but were dispersed by security
personnel.

Witnesses said that shops and schools remained closed on
Wednesday.

Neighborhood gangs were seen wielding machetes and knifes as
they set up roadblocks and checked passing vehicles.

Essentials

"The city remains tense and barricades can be seen on the
streets, but the worse thing is that essentials are becoming
difficult to obtain," Syafrudin said.

He said ships carrying supplies to Ambon have suspended
operations since renewed clashes between Muslims and Christians
broke out in the downtown Batu Merah village on Feb. 23.

Thousands of people have taken refuge in mosques, churches,
military facilities and government buildings in Ambon, while
thousands of others have fled on ships for their hometowns in
Sulawesi.

Minister of Information Muhammad Yunus said after the Cabinet
meeting on Wednesday, that at least 159 people have been killed
and more than 400 others injured since the clashes erupted in the
province in mid-January.

Yunus added that two military personnel were killed in the
clashes.

He also said that 3,544 houses were set on fire in the weeks
of violence which caused Rp 500 billion in material losses.

The violence was initially sparked by a dispute between a
Muslim migrant and a local Christian driver of a public minibus
on Jan. 19.

It quickly degenerated into full-scale riots involving members
of both communities.(byg/prb)