Church bombings prompt calls for calm

A Muslim woman mourns a Christian casualty of a church bombing

Indonesia's President Wahid has called for calm after the Christmas Eve bombing of Christian churches across the country, accusing his opponents of trying to destabilise the country.

Their steps are to destabilise the government and create fear and panic

President Abdurrahman Wahid

At least 14 people were killed in seven different towns and cities, mostly as they attended late-night mass.

In an unusual move, Pope John Paul II said in his Christmas message that he was "thinking particularly of Indonesia, where our brothers and sisters in faith, even on this Christmas day, are undergoing a tragic time of trial and suffering."

It is rare for the Pope to mention a specific country by name in his Christmas message.

Low turnout

On Christmas day some churches were only half full, because of fears of new attacks, and police searched worshippers' bags.

Indonesia's chief security minister said police intelligence suggested similar bombings were being planned at other places of worship.

Christians make up less than 5% of the population of Indonesia - the world's most populous Muslim state.

"Their steps are to destabilise the government and create fear and panic," said President Abdurrahman Wahid, who is under pressure to resign because of the worsening political and economic situation in the country.

Co-ordinated campaign

"For the dead, on behalf of the government and Indonesia I offer my deepest condolences," he added.

His call for calm was echoed by several religious leaders.

Church blasts

Jakarta
5 blasts, 3 dead

Pekanbaru, Sumatra
7 dead

Sukabumi, W Java
3 dead

Mojokerto, E Java
1 dead

Blasts also in

Medan, Sumatra

Batam island

Bandung, W Java

Mataram, Lombok island

Cardinal Julius Darmoatmodjo, Jakarta's most senior Catholic leader, asked Christians not to accuse anyone, still less another religion.

"Even if we know who is behind the bombings, I urge all Christians to forgive," he said.

He also said that Muslim passers-by had been among the casualties.

The blasts happened within minutes of each other in what appeared to be a co-ordinated campaign of terror, police said.

No group has so far said it carried out the attacks, which coincided with the final days of Ramadan, the Muslim holy month.

In a statement, Laskar Jihad, a Muslim paramilitary group accused of past sectarian violence, denied involvement and said the bombings were "immoral and politically motivated".

Retaliation fear

There were fears that outraged Christians might retaliate against Muslims at the start of the feast of Eid al-Fitr on Tuesday night.

"What I am very worried about is that this is only the beginning," said Asmara Nababan, secretary-general of the National Commission on Human Rights.

The Moluccan Islands, part of the Indonesian archipelago, have been riven by Christian-Muslim violence since Eid al-Fitr 1999.

On Monday a 12-year-old boy was reported to have been shot and wounded by an unknown gunman as he left Christmas Day mass in Ambon city, the capital of the Moluccas.

The Christmas Eve attacks were spread across thousands of kilometres of Indonesian territory: in the capital, Jakarta, in Sumatra, and in east and west Java.

Three of the victims were killed in Jakarta, where bombs went off outside four churches - including the Roman Catholic Cathedral.

Military suspected

At least three other church-goers were killed in the Sumatran city of Pekanbaru.

Police were quickly on the scene

In the Sumatran city of Medan, the authorities say that several bombs were discovered inside Christmas packages sent to various priests in the area.

Four of the dead were policemen who tried to disarm a device on Sumatra island, said the official news agency, Antara.

The BBC's Jonathan Head in Jakarta says the simultaneous timing of so many blasts is bound to throw suspicion on elements of the military.

They have been blamed for stirring up religious conflict in Indonesia in the chaotic two years which have followed the fall of the Suharto regime.

Religious tensions have risen in recent months throughout the Indonesian archipelago.

In the Moluccas an estimated 5,000 people of both faiths have been killed over the last two years.