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Peaceful
gubernatorial election may end Maluku emergency status
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The
Jakarta Post
July
14, 2003
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Peaceful gubernatorial election
may end Maluku emergency status
The Jakarta Post, Ambon,
Maluku
National Police Chief Gen. Da'i
Bachtiar said on Sunday the plan to lift the civil emergency in
Maluku depended on security during and after the August
gubernatorial election in the province.
If the gubernatorial election runs
peacefully, the planned revocation of the status could
materialize, he said in the Maluku capital of Ambon.
The government imposed a civil
emergency in 2000 following bloody ethnic clashes that have
claimed thousands of lives.
"The lifting of the status is
for the central government to decide. If the upcoming
gubernatorial election proceeds smoothly and peacefully, the
provincial administration can resume normally, and local people
are ready to rebuild what has been destroyed, I think the central
government will take it all into consideration," he said.
The Maluku Legislative Council is
scheduled to elect a new governor and deputy governor on Aug. 14.
Da'i also ordered the recovery of
around 300 rifles seized from a warehouse of the Police Mobile
Brigade (Brimob) in Ambon during a riot on June 26, 2000.
"The situation in Ambon is
improving and it is therefore crucial that the stolen weapons be
found," he said as quoted by Antara.
Da'i stressed that finding the
weapons would be part of the overall efforts to restore peace and
order in the province.
Maluku Police chief Brig. Gen.
Bambang Sutrisno meanwhile said while security had improved
significantly, the refugees remained a big problem in the
province.
"The biggest problem is how to
return the refugees to their homes," said Bambang.
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