Securitization and Desecuritization Dynamics in the Maluku Communal Conflict

Abstract

In this chapter, I examine the situation in Maluku during Indonesia’s democratic transition, to explore how the dynamics of securitization and desecuritization occurred in the face of the communal conflict, which escalated into widespread religious violence and was the largest communal violence in the history of independent Indonesia. The conflict initially broke out in 1999, and reached its highest point between 2000 and 2001. Yet sporadic violent incidents still took place until 2005. In terms of fatalities, the case of Maluku demonstrated a high level of violence; the three years of conflict claimed almost 5000 lives (the highest estimation is almost 10,000) and created around 700,000 refugees (International Crisis Group 2007). The conflict set the precedent for the use of martial law and military operations to handle communal violence by the Indonesian government. To gain more insight into the case at hand, I start this chapter by providing basic figures and general information on Maluku, a historical account of inter-communal tension in the province and how the communal violence not only reoccurred, but also escalated into an unprecedented level in the post-1998 political transition. Next, I frame the Maluku conflict in the context of securitization. In the last two sections, I will provide a detailed analysis on how desecuritization unfolded in Maluku.