Anti-Terrorism Unit Mistakenly Shoot at 2 Farmers in Poso

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Two farmers in the Kawende mountains in Poso, Central Sulawesi, were allegedly mistaken to be members of the East Indonesia Mujahidin terrorist group by the Tinombala task force (satgas Tinombala), which comprise National Armed Forces (TNI) and the National Police force.

This incident that took the lives of two farmers, Syarifuddin and Firman, is believed to have taken place on June 2 at the mountainous terrains just 9-kilometers of the Kawende area. 

According to the eyewitness testimony by one of the farmer’s younger siblings, Fardil recalled that the farmers were merely resting inside a hut, located inside a farm they own, due to the pouring rain after harvesting coffee and cocoa beans.

When suddenly the farmers were barraged by bullets shot at the hut. Many immediately scattered but unfortunately killed two farmers. Fardil recalls the moment the bullets hit the hut they all immediately identified themselves as farmers and civilians. 

“[We’re] farmers! Civilians!,” Fardil recalled his harrowing experience in the Monday, June 8th edition of Tempo Magazine.

Fardil managed to survive the ordeal after he protected himself behind a stack of wooden blocks. Two meters from his position, he said that the second victim Firman, who had a mental deficiency fell to the ground with blood gushing from a bullet wound that penetrated his left jaw. 

In response, the Central Sulawesi police promised to Tempo that it will be transparent about the investigation on the killings of the two farmers and that it has tasked an investigation team to uncover the troubling incident led by the internal affairs. 

TEMPO.CO