HONG KONG -- As the Indonesian province of Central Kalimantan has been effectively cleansed of its Madurese minority, it has been another forceful reminder that communal conflict can be a terrifying reality that requires a quick and firm response if its effects are to be minimized and national unity preserved.
Inevitably, much foreign coverage of the communal carnage has featured the return of the Dayaks, the local majority people, to their headhunting and even cannibalistic habits. But stressing the symptom usually means that one ignores the disease.
Communal conflict frequently calls forth unspeakable deeds and bestial brutality. (This is to use the term "communal" literally: when one community in a nation is in conflict with another.)