without one of its preachers after she was shot dead while speaking from the pulpit in an attack that also critically injured a teenage church member, BosNewsLife monitored Friday, July 23.
Rev. Susianty Tinulele, 26, of the GKST-member Efatah Church in Palu, the regional capital, was assassinated last Sunday, July 18, by "four masked men", who arrived by motorbikes and "opened fire with machine guns on the preacher and worship team," said the independent Barnabas Fund and Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), two groups investigating the plight of persecuted Christians.
In addition a 17-year old church member, Desrianti Tengkede, "was shot through her right eye" and doctors fought for her life, CSW claimed.
The organization corrected previous reports that the girl had already died saying that "despite this being confirmed by several sources" she "was in fact in a coma", and "currently in critical condition in intensive care" in a hospital in Surabaya. "CSW asks supporters to join with us in praying for Desrianti," it said in a statement to BosNewsLife.
Ten other worshippers were listed as injured, including at least three seriously wounded teenagers who were reportedly rushed to hospital.
FOOD
Barnabas Fund said there were indications that militants wanted to punish Rev. Susianty as "she had taken food to GKST pastor Rinaldy Damanik in prison two days before" her death. "Her support for him may be one reason why she was targeted."
Damanik is the head of the Crisis Centre of Central Sulawesi and was arrested in August 2002 and sentenced to three years in prison in 2003 on trumped up arms charges, CSW added. CSW said he was arrested "in a bid to stop him speaking out on human rights abuses in Central Sulawesi."
Rev. Susianty is the latest victim of what appears to be a campaign to assassinate Christian leaders in Central Sulawesi which began in November 2003, human rights watchers say. Central Sulawesi’s police chief, Brig. Gen. Taufik Ridha, was quoted as saying that the campaign to kill prominent Christian figures "may be an attempt to disrupt this year’s elections in Indonesia."
‘HIT’ LISTS
When police arrested suspected Islamic militants they found detailed descriptions of church services and lists of Christian officials, Barnabas Fund said. Violence is also directed against Sulawesi Christians who are not church leaders. The night before Rev. Susianty’s death, Mrs Helmy Tombiling, 35, died from nine stab wounds to her chest and stomach, which were inflicted by attackers outside her home in Poso, the human rights group added.
CSW, which recently visited the region, quoted unidentified sources as saying that the four men involved in last Sunday’s bloodshed are likely the same militants as those responsible for the assassination of State Prosecutor Freddy Silalahi in May. Mr Silalahi was overseeing the trial of five members of Jemaah Islamiyah, a radical Islamist movement.
The International Crisis Group (ICG) published a report in February 2004 detailing the extensive involvement of Jemaah Islamiyah and other militant groups in the region, CSW recalled in a statement. "The report also notes that systematic one-sided violence against overwhelmingly non-Muslim victims is continuing."
HARDLINERS
Although a CSW delegation found genuine support and the wish for reconciliation at grassroots level during its June visit, "the situation remains tense and both communities were concerned about the presidential elections and the upcoming local head of local administration ballot," the organization said.
"It was also evident that hard-line militants continue to dominate certain areas in Central Sulawesi and appear to be able to operate with relative impunity. Little or no action has been taken to bring the perpetrators to justice. Often details and the whereabouts of these so-called unknown assailants are in fact known and in many instances there is also sufficient evidence for their arrest," CSW added.
The human rights watchdog suggested there is no "political will, particularly at the regional level, to follow through with prosecutions", in a country where nearly nine of 10 people are said to be Muslims.
Mervyn Thomas, Chief Executive of CSW, said: "Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of those who have been so brutally murdered (and injured). It is vital the Indonesian authorities pursue a proper investigation into these and other recent attacks to ensure those responsible are brought to justice. If this is left undone, it will only encourage more violence and further endanger the fragile peace in Central Sulawesi."
