More Refugees on Move in Aceh; Rebel Toll Tops 200

Sun June 15, 2003 07:26 AM ET

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (Reuters) - Several thousand villagers streamed into a crowded refugee camp in Indonesia's Aceh province Sunday to avoid clashes between government troops and separatists, only to face food and water shortages.

Burhanuddin, a social services spokesman in Aceh, told Reuters that 16,250 refugees had fled to the town of Bireun over the past three days, up from some 12,000 Saturday.

The official Antara news agency said the camp, a football stadium, could only handle up to 5,000 refugees. It said people were short of food and water and beset with sanitation woes.

The region around Bireun has seen some of the heaviest fighting since the government launched a fresh offensive four weeks ago to try to crush the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in a campaign that has killed at least 230 people.

"There are still some coming in," Burhanuddin said by telephone in the provincial capital Banda Aceh, referring to the influx.

He said the preparation of food and other facilities was in hand, although an Antara correspondent at the camp painted a different picture. The news agency said there was a shortage of toilets and other essentials.

"We really hope the government will give more help with food or money," said one refugee, who declined to be identified.

The villagers, carrying bedding, clothes and cooking utensils, have sought to escape fighting or were ordered to evacuate for their own safety, witnesses have said. More than 25,000 had fled their homes before the latest exodus.

They have come from nine villages and are staying in tents.

The military has said in some cases it would put villagers temporarily in camps so troops could move through the unoccupied areas to root out GAM fighters and seize weapons. It has said this was one way of separating ordinary residents from GAM.

Some tents were erected in Bireun, 170 km (105 miles) east of Banda Aceh, before the villagers arrived.

Earlier Sunday, Indonesian security forces said they had killed 202 rebels since the fresh offensive began.

In a statement, the military said 24 soldiers and policemen had lost their lives. Five civilians had been killed, it said.

Rebel sources say scores of civilians and hundreds of government troops have been killed in the fighting.

The rebels, numbering around 5,000, have been fighting for independence since 1976 in the gas-rich province on the northern tip of Sumatra island. The conflict has killed more than 10,000 people, mainly civilians.

The United Nations said a week ago that the number of refugees in Aceh was not alarming. More Refugees on Move in Aceh; Rebel Toll Tops 200

Sun June 15, 2003 07:26 AM ET

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (Reuters) - Several thousand villagers streamed into a crowded refugee camp in Indonesia's Aceh province Sunday to avoid clashes between government troops and separatists, only to face food and water shortages.

Burhanuddin, a social services spokesman in Aceh, told Reuters that 16,250 refugees had fled to the town of Bireun over the past three days, up from some 12,000 Saturday.

The official Antara news agency said the camp, a football stadium, could only handle up to 5,000 refugees. It said people were short of food and water and beset with sanitation woes.

The region around Bireun has seen some of the heaviest fighting since the government launched a fresh offensive four weeks ago to try to crush the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in a campaign that has killed at least 230 people.

"There are still some coming in," Burhanuddin said by telephone in the provincial capital Banda Aceh, referring to the influx.

He said the preparation of food and other facilities was in hand, although an Antara correspondent at the camp painted a different picture. The news agency said there was a shortage of toilets and other essentials.

"We really hope the government will give more help with food or money," said one refugee, who declined to be identified.

The villagers, carrying bedding, clothes and cooking utensils, have sought to escape fighting or were ordered to evacuate for their own safety, witnesses have said. More than 25,000 had fled their homes before the latest exodus.

They have come from nine villages and are staying in tents.

The military has said in some cases it would put villagers temporarily in camps so troops could move through the unoccupied areas to root out GAM fighters and seize weapons. It has said this was one way of separating ordinary residents from GAM.

Some tents were erected in Bireun, 170 km (105 miles) east of Banda Aceh, before the villagers arrived.

Earlier Sunday, Indonesian security forces said they had killed 202 rebels since the fresh offensive began.

In a statement, the military said 24 soldiers and policemen had lost their lives. Five civilians had been killed, it said.

Rebel sources say scores of civilians and hundreds of government troops have been killed in the fighting.

The rebels, numbering around 5,000, have been fighting for independence since 1976 in the gas-rich province on the northern tip of Sumatra island. The conflict has killed more than 10,000 people, mainly civilians.

The United Nations said a week ago that the number of refugees in Aceh was not alarming.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=2930603