Which Way to the War?

Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim nation, was also becoming the world's 3rd largest democracy with its free elections in 1998. While most of the country remained remarkably peaceful during this transitional moment, a remote area on the island of Sulawesi - Poso - fell victim to brutal communal fighting. The conflict was a product of 'religious' tensions that gave way to Jihadist violence, but it was also fueled by widespread corruption and illicit ties among local military and business interests. Fueling it all were underlying struggles for control of local politics, commercial enterprise, and religious authority in this forgotten corner of the world, where religious identity was used as the agitator that exploited and spread the conflict.