Annastashya Emmanuelle, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The latest incident in Poso, which rocked the fragile peace in
the Central Sulawesi town, serves as a warning to the nation that
tough measures are needed to maintain security, a senior minister
said on Friday.
Referring to the bomb explosion, which left four bus passengers
dead and 17 others injured, as an act of terror, Coordinating
Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono said zero tolerance should be shown to whoever intended
to disrupt peace.
"'Strong measures' means giving no leeway to any movement
that attempts to justify the use of terror," Susilo said
after the inauguration of new TNI chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto
at the State Palace.
He added state institutions related to political and security
affairs, including the TNI, National Police and Ministry of Home
Affairs, had, so far, operated within their remit.
A bomb exploded on a public bus on the Palu-Poso-Tentena route
on Wednesday, five months after a peace deal had been signed last
December in the South Sulawesi town of Malino to end years of
sectarian conflict between Christian and Muslim groups in Poso.
The alleged bombers remain at large and unidentified, with
Susilo and National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar offering the
unfinished investigation as their excuse.
"Give the police a chance to conduct a thorough
investigation to determine the motives and the mastermind ... that
cannot be accomplished in one or two days," Susilo appealed.
The explosion was the latest incident to test the durability of
the peace agreement.
Peace in the neighboring province of Maluku had hung in the
balance, despite a milestone reconciliation pact, until a new
operation to restore security commenced last week. Maj. Gen. Djoko
Santoso of the Army's Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) was
named the officer in charge, becoming the first two-star general
to head the Maluku Military Command.
Susilo said the government was increasing security measures in
Poso and called on the Central Sulawesi government to immediately
deal with any unusual event or movement likely to damage the peace
agreement.
Da'i said the bombing was part of a provocation by those who
did not want the people of Poso to live in peace.
The police have deployed a forensic team from Makassar, South
Sulawesi, to investigate the type of bomb and whether it was
intentionally detonated.
"In the Eastern (Indonesia) area, people are known to have
explosives. They often use them when fishing," Da'i reasoned.
Poso has been hit by communal conflict since 1999, and hundreds
of lives have been lost.
The military, religious and community leaders in Central
Sulawesi speculated that the violence had been perpetrated by
outsiders.