Critics say dividing Poso not a solution
Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post, Poso

Observers have lashed out at demands made by some Poso residents to divide the regency into two parts, saying the move would not end in a lasting peace for the conflict-torn Central Sulawesi town.
They said the division would not guarantee a better future, but would instead serve the interests of the political elite, who wished to split power there.
The director of Palu's Freedom Land Foundation, Arianto Sangaji, told The Jakarta Post that the move to split the regency was wrong and that it would further disintegrate relations between Muslims and Christians in the town.
"The move would lead to the domination of certain groups and this is dangerous," said Arianto, who was a founder of the Poso Center.
"I see the demand to divide Poso into a regency and a mayoralty simply as a move to split the power cake between the elite there."
He warned Poso's political elite not to take advantage of the conflict by using civilians to support their goals.
On the contrary, he urged them to "think clearly" to promote a feeling of togetherness within the community, as well as help the town's economy grow.
On Saturday, residents claiming to represent eight districts in Poso regency gathered to request from the government the establishment of a Poso mayoralty with Poso city as its capital, and a Poso regency with Tentena as its capital.
A resident involved in making the demand, Erawanto Timumun, said the move to split Poso into two parts would be an important factor in helping solve the prolonged conflict there.
The demand received support from the Poso regency and Central Sulawesi administrations, although officials said the move would have to undergo a lengthy process of approval by the central government and the House of Representatives.
Arianto said the division would place one of the religious group in a weak position.
According to data, residents who proposed the split were predominantly Christian. However, Muslims have played the dominant political role in the eight districts.
"This data shows that with the split, a certain religious group would dominate and weaken the other group politically. So, is this a solution?" Arianto asked.
A Poso peace worker, Tahmidi Lasahido, urged all people in Poso to focus on reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts, such as by convincing many Christians, who had not yet returned following the 2000 conflict, that they could return and live in harmony with Muslims.
Currently, he said, more than a thousand Christians still sought shelter in Tentena and lived in makeshift shelters for displaced people in Later. Many said they still feared a repeat of the bloody conflict, which killed around 1,000 people.
Tahmidi, who is a lecturer at Tadulako University in Palu, said the move to split the town was not necessary as conflict there had subsided.
"There's no conflict in Poso, so what's the use of dividing the town? It's better to maintain the peaceful situation now while continuing reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts in Poso," he told the Post.
The chairman of Poso's Indonesian Ulemas Council, Yahya Mangun, said the move to split the regency had long been proposed by political elites, but that he did not believe it to be an adequate solution to the town's problems.
"I'm worried that if the regency is divided there will be another problem. It's better for us to bring back a harmonious situation like before," said Yahya, who was involved in the Malino Declaration that ended the 2001 Poso conflict.
A Tentena Christian youth figure, Vincent Lumintang, labeled the move "euphoric", and said it was spearheaded by an elite group seeking important political positions within the government.
"If we look back to the time when the conflict first started in 1998, it happened following a conflict between the elites to win power," Vincent said. "Should we repeat history again?
"In the end, everyone will come to their senses. So it's better to learn from our gloomy past," he said.