Indonesian Muslims Attack Pig Farms

Link : http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20041021/ap_on_fe_st/indonesia_pig_attack&e=2&ncid=

JAKARTA, Indonesia - Muslims armed with machetes attacked several pig farms in Indonesia, slaughtering around 20 swine they claimed were giving of "offensive" odors, The Jakarta Post reported Thursday.



Police did nothing to stop the attack Wednesday in South Tatura, central Sulawesi province, the paper reported. The farms belonged to local Christians.


"The farms give out a bad odor and this is offensive, especially during Ramadan," said local Muslim leader Abdul Haris, referring to the Islamic fasting month where religious feelings often run high.


He said the farms were also polluting a local river, presumably with dung from the animals.


Muslims are forbidden to eat pork, which is considered unclean.


Police were not immediately available for comment.


The Muslims were armed with machetes and sticks, the Post reported. Losses from the attacks were estimated at around $8,000, the paper quoted a pig farmer as saying.


Central Sulawesi is around 1,000 miles northeast of Jakarta. Muslim and Christians fought bloody battles there in 2002 in which 1,000 people were killed.


Christians make up about 10 percent of Indonesia's 210 million people. More than 80 percent are Muslims, making it the world's largest Islamic country.


The two faiths generally live in harmony, but disputes are sometimes triggered over the building of new churches and accusations that Christians are aggressively trying to convert Muslims.