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Lawamena
Victoria
Reports
by
CRISIS
CENTRE DIOCESE OF AMBOINA
Jalan Pattimura 32 - Ambon 97124 Indonesia
Tel 0062 (0)911 342195 Fax 0062 (0)911 355337
e-mail [email protected]
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THE
SITUATION IN AMBON / MOLUCCAS - Report No. 341
2002-30-12
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Ambon, December 30, 2002
1.
SOME POSITIVE DEVELOPMENTS IN AMBON Paulien Joel-Parera,
local contact person of the Royal Dutch Embassy in Jakarta,
perceives in her latest report (always in Dutch) some positive
developments in Ambon. The initial tenseness following the
incident in Batugajah on Christmas Day (see Report 339) seems to
have been overcome (the police arrested the culprit yesterday),
and there is an increasing socializing between Christians and
Muslims in the town and in several villages on the island of Ambon.
Christians do much of their daily shopping at the Muslim markets
(where food is much cheaper), whereas many Muslims buy electronic
devices in the Christian areas.
The local government contributes to this positive development,
among other things by a physical face-lift of the city of Ambon,
by large-scale repairs on roads and other public facilities and by
disciplining traffic.
2. GROWING GOOD RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WAAI AND TULEHU
Paulien writes further that, for the first time since the
Christian village of Waai was totally destroyed by Tulehu and
Liang and declared a Muslim village renaming it Waai-Salam in July
2000 (see Reports 12 sqq.), youngsters from Tulehu have taken the
initiative to regularly invite their counterparts from Waai
staying as refugees in Passo to come and have a swim in the
famous pool of Waai. Women from Waai go every day to Tulehu to buy
fruit and vegetables in order to sell this merchandise in Passo.
The residents of Tulehu have also invited the people of Waai to
come and clean up the kramat (ancestors graves) in Waai.
People from Waai hunt swines up to the Muslim village of Liang, on
the other side of Waai.
3. DETENTION MANUPUTTY AND WAELERUNY LIFTED, TRIAL CONTINUES
The two leaders of the as separatist regarded FKM (Front
Kedaulatan Maluku) were released from their detention in the early
hours of December 28, as the period of their detention had expired
the day before. The trial against them continues today.
4. HAPPY NEW YEAR This is probably the last report in
2002. Msgr. P.C.Mandagi asks us to express his sincere gratitude
to all of you who have cared to read these reports, for your kind
interest and concern with the tragic Moluccas case, for any
provided help and offered prayers. He wishes all of you a Happy
and Blessed New Year: may it be a Year of restoring peace to this
world. The Crisis Centre gladly joins him in these wishes.
C.J.Bφhm msc,
Crisis Centre Diocese of Amboina
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