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| Southeast Asia |
| Disband the Christians first |
| 2002-05-11 |
| A day after the government vowed to expel Muslim militants from Indonesia's violence-wracked Maluku islands, Vice-President Hamzah Haz urged security forces to first disband a small group of Christian separatists in the region. 'First of all, it must be clear that the Christian Front for Maluku Sovereignty (FKM) will be disbanded, then Laskar Jihad must show their political will to leave,' Mr Hamzah said yesterday. "First you get rid of the guys we don't like. Then we'll talk some more..." On Tuesday, Mr Hamzah visited the militant Muslim group's leader, Jafaar Umar Thalib, in jail, inviting criticism that he was trying to shore up Muslim support for the 2004 general election and affecting police investigation. But the vice-president lashed out at his critics, calling them un-Islamic. Thereby proving their point. Dirty, dirty, dirty. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |