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OCTOBER 27, 2000 VOL. 26 NO. 42 | SEARCH ASIAWEEK ALSO: Fight for Maluku: 'I am very sure the designer of the situation is in shock at the results. The security forces can do little' DECEMBER 1998 JAKARTA About 200 Ambonese Christian youths are deported to Ambon after a fight against Muslim Ambonese gangs over control of territory in a red-light district. JANUARY 1999 AMBON A disagreement between a Christian bus driver and a Muslim passenger spills over into a street brawl. In rioting that follows over the next two months, between 200 and 1,000 Ambonese are killed. Ambon city divides into patchworks of guarded religious enclaves. Local militias patrol with machetes. MARCH 1999 AMBON The government sends an elite army force from Sulawesi to restore order. Christians claim the soldiers side with the Muslims, while Muslims claim the police force favors the Christians. JULY 1999 HALMAHERA Fighting spreads north to the predominantly Muslim main island of Halmahera Ripples of conflict engulf the minor islands all around Maluku. JANUARY 2000 HARUKU Frustrated security forces fire on rioting civilians. About 300 men wearing white robes use machine guns and grenades to level a Christian village. APRIL 2000 JAKARTA Members of the paramilitary Laskar Jihad agitate for support for Maluku Muslims. Some Muslim leaders back their call. Laskar chief Jafar Umar Thalib goes to the presidential palace at the head of a mob carrying swords and spears. President Wahid sees him in his office, then expels him after a few minutes. MAY 2000 AMBON Orders from Wahid to prevent the jihad from reaching Maluku are ignored. About 3,000 armed fighters arrive in Ambon and Halmahera, then take control of Ternate island. JUNE 2000 JAKARTA Justice Minister Jusril Mahendra defends the jihad, saying members have a right to travel freely. The government declares a state of civil emergency. About 300 refugees drown when a ferry from Maluku to Sulawesi sinks. JULY 2000 SURABAYA Wahid rejects a plea by Maluku Christians for the United Nations to send a peace-keeping force. Write to Asiaweek at mail@web.asiaweek.com Quick Scroll: More stories from Asiaweek, TIME and CNN |
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