A/56/253 “(a) Disarming civilians. Over 46,000 weapons of all types and descriptions have been recovered and removed from general circulation since the implementation of the state of emergency in June 2000; “(b) Arresting and expelling members of Laskar Jihad from the islands. Indeed, the Government of Indonesia is strongly opposed to the deployment of Muslim militants from Java to the Moluccas to participate in the conflict there and has recently closed a training camp run by that organization south of Jakarta; “(c) Investigating and prosecuting those responsible for instigating or participating in the various riots, including any police and military personnel who took part in the violence; “(d) More recently, reducing the numbers of military personnel by half. This has had no adverse repercussions on the overall security environment, which has continued to improve. “Since the re-establishment of law and order in the region, the Government has proceeded to rebuild and to implement reconciliation and education plans, more particularly in North Maluku, where the security environment has been more conducive. As a result, this hard-hit province has witnessed the return of many internally displaced persons. “Among other measures, the Government has concentrated on: “(a) Establishing reconstruction programmes supervised by the provincial government in border areas between the two communities and making a point of rebuilding all places of worship destroyed in the violence; “(b) Rehabilitating the public utilities, including school buildings and health facilities, destroyed in the rioting and reaffirming education as a top priority to improve living conditions and job prospects through selfsufficiency. Emphasis has also been placed on teaching the younger generation the values of religious and cultural tolerance; “(c) Encouraging greater dialogue and social exchanges between locals of different ethnic origins, cultures and religions in the province through the organization of peace talks, in order to build trust between the two communities; “(d) Calling on local traditional chiefs to resume their leadership while supporting state law and guaranteeing the integration of all migrants living in the province. In addition, local traditions and customs will be promoted in order to accommodate the differences among the various communities of the province. “Significant progress has been made in addressing the religious aspect of the conflict. On 23 April 2001, various of the island’s factions reached a significant decision to unite and produce an agreement entitled ‘Peace Declaration of Muslims and Christians’ confirming their desire to coexist peacefully and to foil attempts by provocateurs to whip up sectarian feeling. “To conclude, both the Christian and Muslim communities in the Moluccas, who had lived peacefully side by side for generations, have been manipulated by a political elite bent on creating an unstable climate by 14