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  STATEMENT OF CONCERN OF INDONESIAN MUSLIMS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM
                               OVER
                       THE MALUKU MASSACRE
 
        ===================================================
 
                    BismillaahirRahmaanirRahiim
     In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful the Most Beneficent
 
We, Indonesian Muslims in the United Kingdom, note with grave concern:
 
1. The rapid escalation of the Christian-Muslim  conflict  in  eastern
   Indonesian province of Maluku, spreading and affecting increasingly
   larger areas that it  now  practically  covers  all  parts  of  the
   1,765,272 km  square  ocean  area  and  of  the  185,728 km  square
   terrestrial area with the 1,027 islands.
 
2. The upsurge of death toll, mainly from among the Muslim minority in
   Maluku. This includes the latest incident in Halmahera district  in
   late December 1999, where more than 500  Muslims  were  slaughtered
   overnight in a Christian attack, and scores of  Muslim  women  were
   sexually assaulted on the streets.
 
3. The apparent absence of serious and effective measures on the  part
   of the government in curbing the Maluku  violence  which  has  been
   going on for one year.
 
4. The obvious lack of objectivity of the majority of the media,  both
   domestic and international, in their reports and  analysis  of  the
   bloody conflict in Maluku.
 
We, Indonesian Muslims in the United Kingdom, thereby:
 
1. Demand that the Indonesian  government  investigate  and  bring  to
   justice parties that are involved in the atrocities against Muslims
   in Maluku.
 
2. Demand that the Indonesian government  take  immediate  actions  to
   assist the estimated 175,000 people displaced in the  conflict  and
   who are  now  languishing  in  appalling  conditions  in  makeshift
   refugee centers, guarantee their safety and return to their  homes,
   rebuild facilities and housing.
 
3. Strongly urge the People's  Consultative  Assembly  (MPR) to demand
   for the government's accountability for the violence in Maluku that
   has so far claimed thousands of lives.
 
4. Strongly urge the Christian  and  Catholic  leaders  in  Maluku  to
   exercise control over their followers, who are the majority in  the
   conflict areas, and to put a stop to the violence  they  have  been
   inflicting on Muslims in the forms of killing, torture and rape. We
   also urge that the Christian  and  Catholic  leaders  remind  their
   followers to again abide by the Law.
 
5. Reproach both the Indonesian and  international  media  which  have
   either misrepresented  or  embellished  the  facts  of  the  Maluku
   violence, thus discrediting  the  Muslims  in  Maluku  and  in  the
   country.
 
6. Condemn any parties, both domestic and  international,  which  have
   taken advantage of the tension in Maluku and caused  the  situation
   to deteriorate further in order to advance their own interests.
 
7. Call on Indonesian and international Muslims  to  turn  the  Maluku
   tragedy into both a lesson (hikmah) and a reminder (tadzkirah) from
   Allah of the importance of strengthening  the  Islamic  brotherhood
   (ukhuwwah Islamiyah).
 
8. Call on Muslims in Indonesia and other countries  to  extend  their
   assistance to the Muslims in Maluku, be it in the  form  of  prayer
   (du'a), material assistance, or  help  in  disseminating  the  true
   facts of the violence.
 
9. We, Indonesian Muslims and students overseas,  are   declaring  our
   readiness to cooperate with  the  international  world  in  finding
   solution to the religious conflicts in Maluku.
 
This statement is thus made in the hope that related parties will take
note and relevant actions regarding the violence.
 
                Liverpool, 17 January 2000
 
1. For Indonesian Muslim Society in Britain and Eire (KIBAR)
      Ali Sophian
2. For United Indonesian Muslim Students Action (KAMMI) for Europe
      Taufik Widjaja
3. For Units of Islamic Network  for United Kingdom (ISNET UK)
      Sony Suhandono
4. For Indonesian Muslim Circles in United Kingdom
      Nizma Agustjik Scoffield
                                                   (Indonesia version)

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