Escalation of Attacks on Churches

Majority Initiated by Moslem Extremists

ZENIT (27.09.1999)/HRWF International Secretariat (01.10.1999) -  Research, carried out by the Indonesian magazine "Beginikah," reveals an escalation of attacks on churches in the country, almost always initiated by Muslim extremists.

In the decade 1955-65, there were two attacks on churches. From 1965 to 1974, the figure increased to 46. In the period 1975-84 the total rose to 89, and from 1985-94 to 132, with an average of 13.2 attacks a year. At present the annual average has risen to 52 attacks.

The most frequent scenes of these clashes of a religious nature are the Islands of Ambon, Seram and Sana. In the Moluccas, until recently, Muslims and Christians, who are numerically equal, coexisted; at present, they have separated into homogeneous neighborhoods.

The instigators of the attacks and armed clashes (with iron bars and knives), and the burning of places of worship, are groups of Muslim extremists who invoke the "holy war" against the Moluccas' separatist movement, who are Christian in the majority.

But acts of violence also break out where there are no movements for autonomy. In reprisal for an attack against the Istiqlal Mosque in Jakarta, which was immediately condemned by the Catholic hierarchy, an enraged mob attacked the Church of Ujung Pandang with Molotov bombs last April; the Church is in the Sulawesi Sud province, 1,400 kilometers from the capital.

This is not a question of a real religious war as, in fact, Muslim leaders have condemned the acts of violence against the Christian communities. It is caused, rather, by fanatic groups.

In 1998, Indonesia had a total population of 202 million inhabitants. Of these, 87% were Muslim, 6% Protestant, 3% Catholic, 2% Hindu, 1% Buddhist, and 1% tribal and animist.

The Suffering Christians of Indonesia

By Wilfred Wong

WEF (27.08.1999)/HRWF International Secretariat (01.09.1999) -  Of all the places in the world today, Indonesia is one of the few countries where large numbers of Christians are being injured or killed on a fairly frequent basis. Many but certainly not all, are attacked simply because they are Christians.

In 1975 the predominantly Catholic territory of East Timor was invaded by Indonesian troops. The atrocities and genocide carried out by East Timor's occupying forces has wiped out a substantial part of the population. Now East Timor has an amazing opportunity to once and for all be rid of its oppressors, with the referendum coming up on August 30th, in a few days' time.

The East Timorese will be asked to vote for either autonomy within Indonesia or independence from Indonesia. It is generally perceived that the majority of East Timorese want independence but pro-Indonesian militias, armed and supported by the Indonesian military, have been carrying out numerous attacks and atrocities against East Timorese who are in favour of independence. For instance, about 20 Timorese were recently massacred by a pro-Indonesian militia at a church in Aitara. These brutal attempts to influence the vote is still happening even now, with the UN Secretary General expressing concern at the Indonesian authorities lack of contol over these violent militias.

I believe we urgently need to pray for a fair referendum on August 30th and an outcome which will end the violence in East Timor and allow the people to determine their own destiny.

Although the persecution of East Timor's people is not primarily because of their faith, I think many Christians are in danger of underestimating the religious significance of the referendum on August 30th. My experience of working on numerous Muslim countries where Christians are persecuted has shown me that no Christian community living under Muslim domination will be able to avoid a significant impact being made on their religious life.

Take Ambon for example. I had a long discussion with an Ambonese Christian who's an academic. He pointed out that the Ambonese Christians once had a clear majority of people on the island. Now they are either more or less equal with or outnumbered by the Muslims due to voluntary migration by Muslims into the area and forced migration as part of President Suharto's transmigration policies.

Before the conflict started, the key positions in Ambon in the police and military were taken away from Christians and handed over to Muslims. The Muslim Governor sacked 34 of his staff, most of whom were Christians, and replaced ALL of them with Muslims.

On Banda island, according to my contact, all the Christians have already been cleared out by the Muslims. They have either been killed or fled to Ambon.

He says that many Indonesian Christians believe there is an organised attempt by Muslims to Islamicise the provinces in Indonesia where non-Muslims are in the majority. These provinces are: Bali (Hindu), East Timor (Christian - and note that it is near the Maluku province of which Ambon is the capital), Irian Jaya (Christian), North Sulawesi (Christian) East Nusatenggara (which includes West Timor - (Christian) and Maluku (Christian).

The general belief is that Maluku is the testing ground being used by the radical Muslims. If it can be Islamicised then this can work in other provinces such as East Timor, Irian Jaya etc. The Islamicising of these provinces (which includes depriving the local Christians of all the key positions in local politics, law enforcement, etc.) will also give the radical Muslims stronger grounds for calling for the Indonesian constitution to be changed from its plural emphasis to one stating that Indonesia is an Islamic state. It is well known that the radical Muslims have been trying to change the constitution for many years.

The current presidential incumbent Habibie has been cultivating the more radical Muslims for a long time and was the head of ICMI, a forum for radical Muslim intellectuals. His party, Golkar, has been cultivating radical Muslim support for the last five years or so. If Habibie wins the November elections it is pretty sure that the policy of Islamicisation will carry on, and probably accelerate, with dire consequences for the Christian provinces and for Christians throughout Indonesia.

The Indonesian military is also divided, between the Islamist officers and nationalist ones. The nationalists are

pro-secularism while the Islamists back the Islamicising of Indonesia. Gen. Wiranto, the current head of the army, is nationalist, but if he is replaced by an Islamist General, the consequences will be dire. In Ambon, the Marines are respected as being even-handed and they are under the control of nationalist officers. It appears that the Islamists have infiltrated units such as Kostrad, who carried out the massacre of Christians on August 11th.

At the moment the Islamist-influenced segment of the Indonesian media is portraying the violence in Ambon as a case of the Christians victimising the Muslims. When KISDI (World Islamic Solidarity Indonesia) called for a *jihad* (holy war) against Ambon's Christians in Jakarta, the government did nothing to try and stop them, although such statements go against Indonesia's pluralist constitution.

The situation in Ambon is extremely dangerous for the rest of Indonesia and the Christian community. From East Timor to Sumatra Indonesia is facing much greater danger than most Christians in the west realise.

Indonesia is a huge prize. If it goes down the Islamist road, this will have a knock-on effect on the rest of Southeast Asia, because it is one of the big powers in the region.

Prayer is urgently needed for the East Timorese to have a fair referendum - almost certainly the vast majority will vote for independence. Gaining independence will at least free them from the attempt to Islamicise Indonesia as they will no longer be a part of the country. It will also enable them to control the number of mosques being built there and the number of Muslim migrants coming in.

Prayer is urgently needed for Ms. Megwati to win the presidential elections in November. This would probably be a significant step towards stopping or at least hindering the growing influence of the Islamists.

Now is the crucial period, and the country can go either way. For the sake of our Christian East Timorese brothers and sisters in Indonesia, I do think we ought to be at least praying about events such as the Aug. 30th referendum.

My contact agrees that some Christians have used unjustified violence in Ambon while others have had to use force in self defence - which I think is perfectly reasonable. He agrees with me that the main aggressors are the radical Muslims although not all the Muslims are against the Christians. I found my contact to be very balanced and he was stressing that the Christians and Muslims used to live in very good relationship with each other and that even now not all the Muslims were against the Christians.

He said all he wanted was for Ambonese Christians and Muslims to live in peace once again, but of course part of the path to peace is to expose the truth and reality of what is happening there. The extremists have a plan of attack against the Christian community. It is organised and receives support from elements outside Ambon.

There are problems for Christians in other parts of Indonesia as well, such as West Sumatra and Irian Jaya. There were numerous attacks on churches in many parts of Indonesia, including Java,long before the Asian financial crisis and the Indonesian political crisis which followed.

As the largest Islamic country in the world, Indonesia is a huge prize for the Muslim extremists. There is a struggle taking place for the soul of Indonesia. If Indonesia becomes Islamicised, it will not only have a grave impact on the country's substantial non-Muslim minority but also on South East Asia, Australasia and probably even the rest of the world.

Violence Ignites in Indonesia as Ambon is Singled out for 'Holy War'

by Alex Buchan

Compass (20.08.1999) -- Sporadic violence erupted in late July and August between Muslims and Christians on Indonesia's Ambon Island, sparking fears of a repeat of the January bloodbath that left over 200 dead.

It is feared extremist Muslims have designated the island as the site of a "holy war," and that they intend to goad Christians into killing Muslims in hopes of fomenting religious violence throughout Indonesia.

Muslim youths have been committing sporadic acts of violence against Christians on Ambon since mid July. A pedicab driver was stabbed, five houses were burned and the Silo church congregation in Ambon city was pelted with stones on Sunday, July 25. Christian youths have reportedly retaliated, and unconfirmed reports put the total number of dead at 50 as a result of the clashes and 60,000 Christians are homeless.

"It is suspected that the sporadic attacks were intended to provoke Christians to anger and to react, which would make them have to face the police, who may not be neutral," said an observer who just returned from the island.

A July 30 statement released by lawyers on behalf of "the church youth in Ambon" blamed the civil upheaval on "weak law enforcement" and called for the replacement of the Muslim-dominated army and police units by local forces. Resentment against the police and army, whom Christians accuse of conniving with Muslim rioters, has long festered on Ambon.

Ambon is an island of 400,000 people -- 50 percent are Muslim and 50 percent are Christian. Normally a bastion of inter-religious toleration, Indonesians were astonished in January when violence erupted between the two communities. Thirteen churches and two schools were burned and over 20 Christians were killed. Some put the total death toll over 200, though no formal report has confirmed this.

In March, church leaders on the island predicted a season of further violence for three reasons. First, Muslims began to send their women and children to other islands in preparation for warfare. Second, Muslims began flooding in from other areas to join forces with their aggrieved brothers. This included 1000 members of Indonesian "Hamas" -- a violent revolutionary group -- flown in by army Hercules helicopter. Third, Muslim leaders were calling for "jihad" (holy war) on the island.

The recent increased violence came at the same time as when Ahmad Sumergono, chairman of the extremist Indonesian Committee for Worldwide Islamic Solidarity (KISDI), called for a holy war in a national newspaper.

In remarks reported by the July 30 "Kompass Daily" -- Indonesia's largest newspaper -- he declared there was a religious war going on in Ambon, which was "an arena of holy war for Muslims." He added, "The Muslim victims are Indeed "syahid" (martyrs), because they are Muslim warriors who died in the battle."

Christian observers in Jakarta fear a larger agenda may be behind Sumergono's words. Said one, "Extremist Muslims were dismayed to fare so poorly at the polls on June 7. They are desperate to radicalize the bulk of the Javanese Muslims and think the only way to do that is to create martyrs on Ambon, thus stirring up the dormant religious feelings of the Muslim majority. Christians on Ambon must be very careful not to be goaded into carrying out this plan."

Background

Islamic parties garnered less than 10 percent of the popular vote in the recent parliamentary elections, with the bulk of Indonesia's Muslims voting for parties with a secular vision for the country's future. Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim country, with 85 percent of its 208 million people being Muslim. But 60 percent of them are Javanese Muslims who profess a very unorthodox and diluted version of Islam, mixing it with Javanese mysticism and Buddhism.

The constitution supports parity among all the religions and rejects the view that society be organized on a religious basis. This stance is expected to be safeguarded by the successful parties in the latest elections.

The Protestant Church of Maluku In Conjunction With the Amboina Bishop's Office of the Roman Catholic Church

A JOINT STATEMENT OF THE EXECUTIVE BOARD OF THE PROTESTANT CHURCH OF MALUKU and THE AMBOINA BISHOP'S OFFICE OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

After having made a serious study of the succeeding riots which took place in the province of Maluku, with a view to upholding truth and justice, and in commitment to maintain the unity state of the Republic of Indonesia based on the Pancasila (ideology), we, THE EXECUTIVE BOARD OF THE PROTESTANT CHURCH OF MALUKU and THE AMBOINA BISHOP'S OFFICE OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH, hereby issue the following statement:

1. That during recent days the Christian community (in Ambon) have become the target of a massive organized attack by Moslems;

2. That the (real) reason behind the riots in Maluku are the political and ideological machinations of a certain group. For these political purposes religion has been abused to deliberately create inter-religious conflicts. Murders have taken place, as well looting of private property and the violation of basic values of human relationships. The said purposes of this group are firmly opposed by the Christian community as well as the

nationalist-minded Moslem people (in Ambon);

3. That in spite of being opposed firmly by the Christian community as well as nationalist-minded Moslems, the Christian community is in a vulnerable position because of the above group's power resulting from the influx of many people from outside the Maluku area;

4. The T.N.I. (Indonesian Nationalist Armed Forces) and the POLRI (Police Force of the Republic of Indonesia) was expected to solve the problem. However, in actual fact (many) members of TNI and POLRI have lost their neutrality. Cases have been found in which TNI and POLRI (security) personnel have attacked and shot dead Christians in their own communities and allowed Moslems to burn the residential houses of Christians and loot private property. (Security) personnel have taken sides in allowing the amassing of people and attacks by Moslem crowds. They even applied violence, shooting at Christians (huddled) in their church buildings and burning of the bodies of Christians who died at the hands of the security personnel and the Moslem crowds;

5. That the orders to shoot on sight issued by the Chief of the XVIth Pattimura Regional Military Command were carried out in a one-sided manner. When Moslem crowds attacked in an organized way they were not stopped, but when Christian crowds reacted in self defense they were brutally shot at with the intention to kill;

6. That on Thursday, 12th August 1999 not only Moslems who were supported by military personnel armed with automatic weapons carried out an attack on Christian communities, shooting at Christians and burning their

dwellings; in addition, there were people armed with automatic weapons who roamed the streets by car and shot at Christians who happened to be standing along or walking on the streets;

7. That if this situation continues (and is not stopped), it is well possible that Christians in Maluku, who are equally recognized as (indigenous) Indonesian citizens, will soon be subjected to further inhuman treatment in the form of killings, looting, persecution and other violations of human rights;

(We) therefore urgently appeal to:

1. The R.I. President and Chief of the Armed Forces to take immediate action to stop the violence in Maluku. In order to safeguard the neutrality of TNI personnel in handling the riots, within the shortest time the OSTRAD (Strategic Forces) units should be withdrawn (from the island) and the (local) ZIPUR (Army Engineers) division in particular, disarmed.

2. The (Protestant) Indonesian Communion of Churches and the (Catholic) Conference of Indonesian Church Fathers to approach the United Nations Secretary General and the President of the United States to request their immediate action to save the population (of Maluku) in general and the Christian community of Maluku in particular.

This concludes the joint statement and appeal which was made out of concern and responsibility, in the hope that it will meet with a positive reaction.

Thank you. Shalom.

Ambon, 12th August 1999

EXECUTIVE BOARD OF THE SYNOD OF THE PROTESTANT CHURCH OF MALUKU

CHAIRMAN

(Signed) Rev. S.P. Titaley, SH (Graduate of Law School)

GENERAL SECRETARY

(Signed) Max M. Siahaya, STh (Graduate of Theological School)

AMBOINA BISHOP'S OFFICE OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

On Behalf of THE BISHOP OF AMBOINA

(Signed) Monsignor Joseph T.

SECRETARY TO THE AMBOINA BISH0P'S OFFICE

(Signed) Pastor Yonas Atjas, Pr. (Auxiliary Bishop)

Source: Jubilee Campaign

Soldiers massacre at least 25 Christians in Ambon

JAKARTA, Aug 12 (AFP/Condensed version) - Uniformed men massacred at least 25 and possibly 30 Christians after locking them inside a church in Indonesia's riot-torn city of Ambon, residents and priests there said.

A resident in the Galala area told AFP by phone he witnessed some 30 troops in the uniforms of the army's Kostrad strategic command attacking two churches in the area and leading a massacre of about 30 residents on Wednesday.

"There were some 30 Kostrad members ... They led a mob of hundreds of Moslems to attack the Yabok church," the witness who preferred anonymity told AFP by phone from neighbouring Tantui area.

"They were shooting at us and some of us ran and hid. There were about 30 people rounded up into the Yabok Protestant Church, then the Kostrad shot from outside the church."

The massacre and eight more people killed Thursday brought the death toll since renewed Moslem-Christian violence broke out in Ambon on July 27 to at least 97.

The military said Wednesday 65 people have been killed and 242 seriously injured since July 27 but made no mention of the Galala massacre. In Wednesday's massacre, the bodies of the dead were dragged out of the church, cut up, and then burned, residents said.

"I could see the smoke from afar but didn't dare move closer," the witness, who had been standing some 200 meters (668 feet) away from the church, said.

Residents buried charred remains believed to belong to some 19 people on the following day and "picked up the shell casings from the ground and off the walls for evidence," he said.

"Some officers from the military police assisted today's burial and collected data of the incident. We gave some of the shells for evidence to them," he added.

Father Fred from the Yohanes Viane Catholic church said by phone from Ambon he estimated 25 people died, citing eyewitness reports.

"Reports from eyewitnesses who live in a house across the street from the Yabok church said about 25 people were killed," the priest said.

The Catholic church lies some 200 meters from the Yabok church in Galala, some three kilometers from the center of Ambon.

Those eyewitnesses said the killings were carried out by four men in the uniforms of Kostrad and one mobile brigade policeman, he said.

"Most of this is true," he said of reports the men were locked in the church, shot and their bodies dragged out and burned.

Maluku province police spokesman Major Philip Jekriel denied troops had been involved in any massacre. "No massacre took place," he said.

"There was fighting between Moslems and Christians in the Galala area yesterday and a total of six people died, but not only in Galala," Jekriel told AFP by phone from Ambon.

Some 840 soldiers from two battalions in Central and East Java arrived by ship in Ambon Thursday to reinforce security there, said Captain Sutarno of the Maluku military information office.

The new troops brought the number deployed from outside the province to four battalions, including a battalion of marines sent at the end of July. An Indonesian battalion numbers at least 600 men.

Ambon and other islands in Maluku province were hit by months of Moslem-Christian violence earlier in the year which left more than 300 dead, drove tens of thousands to other provinces and caused massive destruction.

 

Christian lawyers protesting the action of certain Muslim provocateurs

 

Address: Maranatha Church, No.1. Jl.Raya

Pattimura, Ambon, Indonesia. Tel. (0911)-352276

5th August 1999

Subject: A plea for active means of protection because of the violation of human rights experienced by the Christian community in the Molluccas.

TO:

1. Secretary-General of the United Nations, New York

2. President of the United States of America, Washington D.C.

 

Dear Sir,

Allow us, the team of church lawyers, formed by the daily working committee of the Synod of the Moluccan Protestant Church along with Roman Catholic Bishopric of Ambon, to present our urgent cry for help to the Secretary-General of the United Nations and also to the President of the United State of America. This plea represents a request for help because there have been so many victims as a result of the systematic violation of

human rights by certain parties towards the Christian Community in the Moluccas.

The basic background to the problem lies with a separatist group who wishes to change the foundational principle of the Indonesian nation - that is the *Pancasila* ideology [religious tolerance]. They wish to exchange this ideology with an Islamic ideology. The Christian community and the National Islamic Movement strongly oppose such a change in the ideological structure of the country.

To achieve such ends the Moluccas have become a testing ground to see if the Christian community can be paralyzed by various means : killings, persecution, torturing, looting and destruction/arson. Arson and destruction have taken place primarily at the commercial centres, which are mainly operated by Christians, and also the homes and residential areas belonging to the Christian community, There has also been pressure in the area of freedom of religion (worship).

The Moluccan Christian Community is in a very difficult position due is the effects of this separatist group. These efforts have been orchestrated on a national scale involving certain individuals from within the government and also members of the army and police force. The pressure felt by the Christian community has been intensified because of the role of the mass media and various political experts and analysts who have turned the facts back to front and given the impression that it is the Christian community who has been the cause of all the civil upheaval.

Based on what has been stated we request that the Secretary-General of the United Nations and the President of the United States would be willing to immediately send an investigating team who can objectively evaluate the situation at ground level and also take steps to right the situation.

Thanking you in anticipation for your response to our letter.

Yours Sincerely,

 

SEMMY WAILERUNY, SH (Coordinator)

cc:

1. The Security Council of the United Nations.

2. The President of the Republik of Indonesia, Jakarta.

3. The Vice - President of the United States of America.

4. The Heads of States of Friendly Nations.

5. The American Minister of Defence.

6. The Indonesian Minister of Defence/Commander in Chief of the Indonesia

Armed Forces.

7. The American Secretary of State.

8. The Indonesian Minster of Justice

9. Member of the American Senate

10. Leaders of the Roman Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches.

11. The Governor of the Moluccas.

12. The Commander in Chief of the 16th Pattimura Military Command.

13. The International Commission for Human Rights.

40 Christians Killed in Revenge Riot in an Indonesian Village

The New York Times/(HRWF 02.02.99) - At least 40 Christian villagers, including women and children, were killed in Indonesia last week, reportedly by a mob of Muslims seeking revenge for earlier clashes, officials and a local Roman Catholic priest said on Monday.

The Rev. Cornelius Bohm, a Dutch-born priest based in Ambon, said the attack occurred in Telagakodok, 25 miles north of Ambon, situated on an island of the same name in the Moluccas, after Muslims in a nearby town learned that mosques had been burned in Ambon at the outset of the clashes last Tuesday.

The official death toll from five days of rioting, which spread to outlying areas around Ambon and the neighboring island of Senana, now stands at more than 50, although local church and government officials say the final death toll could be much higher.

With more than 5,000 soldiers and policemen deployed to restore order, thousands of people who sought sanctuary in army and police compounds last week are returning home to this once picturesque port town, parts of which look like a war zone.

Along the waterfront among the ruins of the gutted three-story fish market, dogs scavenged in in piles of garbage, burned out kiosks and crates of rotten lobster. Municipal tractors and trucks were clearing roads choked with tons of debris, including burned tire barricades and shells of burned cars and motorbikes.

Universities, schools, banks, shops and clinics remain closed, causing food shortages and creating fears of public health problems, officials said. The town is under military curfew, and the first group of journalists was allowed to visit on Monday to view the damage. The road between the airport and town passes through some of the worst-hit areas.

Kelly Latuheru, 46, a Christian, emerged from the ruins of his home in the village of Nania, where in better times about 1,000 Muslims and Christians lived together harmoniously. Almost the entire village has been burned.

"People from outside came here and started smashing things up," he said. "They went away, and we thought it was safe, but they came back and burned my home."

Bohm, who has spent 32 years in the region, said the military had been sent to Telagakodok. Details of the killings, on Thursday, emerged last week when villagers approached another Catholic priest.

All the victims were Christian emigres from the southeastern part of the region and included one pregnant woman, the priest said he had been told. He said other people had been decapitated or speared and hacked to death. His account was confirmed by a senior government official, who asked not to be identified.

Residents and police and government officials said that at the height of the rioting, an unknown number of people were beaten to death near the waterfront and their bodies thrown into the sea.

At the military police compound, 70 Muslims from 10 families have been taking shelter for a week from Christian gangs.

Long-simmering animosity to migrants from other islands is a major cause of the Ambon violence. But some church leaders say Muslim and Christian communities, whose members have lived in near harmony on Ambon for decades, have been forced to take sides after other recent religious clashes.

Indonesia's worst economic recession in 30 years, a sharp increase in law-and-order problems after student-led riots in Jakarta and the resignation of President Suharto have all contributed to the instability.

 

Church Burned in Indonesia Riots

AP/(HRWF (02.02.99) - One of the oldest churches in Southeast Asia was burned down by Muslim rioters last week, villagers and police said Thursday.

The Gereja Tua, or Old Church, in the twin villages of Hila-Kaitetu on Ambon Island, was built in 1780 by Roman Catholic Portuguese colonizers who came to the archipelago in search of rare spices.

The church had been rebuilt or renovated many times and had been in constant use until religious rioting erupted on Jan. 21.

At least eight people, including a Catholic priest, were killed in the riot, one of a series to rock Indonesia's Maluku province, 1,400 miles northeast of Jakarta.

Dozens of houses belonging to Christians were also burned in the village, 25 miles northwest of the island's main city, also named Ambon.

Hila-Kaitetu is home to about 3,000 Muslims. Some told The Associated Press that all of their 500 Protestant and Roman Catholic neighbors had fled for the safety of police stations and army bases, but they declined to give details of the attack or say who was responsible.

Ambon was the worst hit in fighting between Christians and Muslims that lasted a week and swept across four islands in Maluku, once known as the Spice Islands. The military and police say 56 people were killed although some groups claim at least twice that number died. Seven mosques, nine churches and 570 buildings were burned.

The violence ebbed last weekend but many shops remain closed. Residents have been struggling to find food and there is little public transport.

At the height of the rioting, some 20,000 people sought refuge in military bases, police barracks, churches and mosques. Many have since returned home.

It was the worst unrest since former President Suharto quit in May, ousted by riots and protests after 32 years of authoritarian rule. A series of violent outbreaks have plagued economically struggling Indonesia since his resignation.

About 90 percent of Indonesia's people are Muslim, making it the world's most populous Islamic country. The riots hit areas with large Christian populations.