From Communal Conflicts to Terrorism in Poso, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia: A Shifting Terrain

After facing violent communal conflicts during the late 1990s and into the 2000s, Poso (a district to the South of Palu City, the capital of Indonesia's Central Sulawesi province) is not yet peaceful. Violence, in the form of sporadic attacks, bombings and shootings persisted into subsequent years; and the government has responded by launching military operations for fighting what it then referred to as 'terrorism'. The Indonesian government officially proclaimed the Poso conflict to have ended in late 2001. At the time, the government mediated peace talks and negotiated the Malino Declaration for Poso. Whilst this accord is a crucial symbol of the peace efforts underway in Poso, many people continued to express dissatisfaction and injustice with the process and outcomes.