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After the pogrom, Shia outcasts struggle to start over
Shia refugees from Sampang, Madura, start to live in the new settlements in Sidoarjo, East Java, provided by the local administration
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Shia refugees from Sampang, Madura, start to live in the new settlements in Sidoarjo, East Java, provided by the local administration. They were forced to leave their hometown due to conflict with other Muslim groups. (JP/P.J. Leo) (JP/P.J. Leo)
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span class="inline inline-none">Shia refugees from Sampang, Madura, start to live in the new settlements in Sidoarjo, East Java, provided by the local administration. They were forced to leave their hometown due to conflict with other Muslim groups. (JP/P.J. Leo)
Shia couple, Matsari, 50, and Mukani, 40, fold a mat provided to refugees after using it as a bed sheet, late on Friday.
At their latest refuge, a modest apartment managed by the East Java administration inside the Puspa Agro Market in Sidoarjo, the couple can hardly feel at home.
Matsari, who used to grow tobacco and rice in the village of Sampang, East Java, around 100 kilometers from their new place, longs for bygone peaceful days back in Sampang. But like other Shia refugees, Matsari's recent memories are of tragedy, when their close-knit community was forcedly evicted from their homes by a Sunni mob in late August last year.
The bloody eviction killed two Shia villagers and injured dozens.
Cast out from his village, Matsari and over 160 other Shiites first took shelter at the Sampang Sports Hall where they stayed for almost a year, before they were driven out again on Thursday by another rabid mob, assisted this time by Sampang officials.
'I can't sleep. I remembered being dragged out of the refugee shelter. I'm scared and wish to return to my village,' the father of 10 said.
Mother and daughter Sugimah and Rohmah also live in constant fear, recalling their eviction from their village and their temporary shelter at the Sports Hall.
'Our hopes and beliefs are all gone. We just don't know where to start now,' said Sugimah.
Members of the Sampang Shia community, were displaced from their homes after the attack on their village last August, and have now been moved from the sports complex in Sampang which had been their sanctuary for the past year. They have been forced to relocate to the apartments because some elements in the Sunni community
demanded it.
The dispute is believed to have originated in a personal rivalry between two siblings, Rois who is Sunni and older brother Tajul Muluk who is a practicing Shiite. The quarrel then widened into a religious conflict and led to the vandalizing and eventually burning down of the houses belonging to Shiites
In order to protect the Shiites from the mob, East Java has provided 58 rooms, each measuring 6-by-6 square meters, for the Shia refugees.
'We don't know how long we will be here. The officials would not tell the refugees for how long they could occupy the apartments,' said Sampang Shia refugee coordinator Iklil Almilal.
East Java chapter of the Ahlul Bait Indonesia secretary-general Muadz Muhammad said the provincial administration had promised to meet all the needs of the refugees at their new shelter.
'Besides the assurance of a place to live, food and healthcare, they are also assured of the ownership documents of all their belongings they left behind in their village,' said Muadz.
As living quarters, the place is better compared to the conditions at the Sampang Sports Hall, as each apartment is equipped with a living room, bedroom, kitchen and a bathroom. However, the water faucets in several apartments are clogged or leaking and they lack electricity.
'The place is OK, but it is still not as comfortable as living in our homes in our home village,' said Shia refugee Ahmad Zaini.
The refugees share their shelter with Afghan asylum seekers with official refugee cards from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
In their new surroundings, Iklil has asked the Shia to maintain harmonious relations with the other occupants and local residents. They are asked to blend in with the community as usual.
'I call on the refugees to be courteous when they socialize with local residents and pray in the local mosque. I will also make a roster for community work to clean up the surroundings,' said Iklil, who is the elder brother of Tajul Muluk.
Brawijaya Military Command chief Maj. Gen. Ediwan Prabowo, who oversees East Java, has deployed a company of soldiers to protect the refugees at their new shelter.
Regarding the presence of hundreds of Shia refugees, the leader of the Sunni's Al-Imam Mosque in the Puspa Agro complex, Sutrisno, said he had no qualms about it. He even invited the Shia refugees to perform their religious obligations at the mosque.
'Please perform your prayers here. We are open to any Muslim community, as long as they don't offend each other or blaspheme. We pray to the same God, so why should we be hostile to each other?' said Sutrisno.
East Java coordinator of the Islamic Anti-discrimination Network, Aan Anshori, is taking a number of steps to help return the refugees to their home village.
'We acknowledge that there are no short cuts, but we are sure our efforts will only be of benefit in the future. We will talk to local clerics on diversity and mutual respect,' said Aan.
