Kalimantan

Name given to the Indonesian part of the island of Borneo; area 543,900 sq km/210,000 sq mi. It is divided into four provinces: Kalimantan Barat, population (2000 est) 4,034,200, capital Pontianak; Kalimantan Selatan, population (2000 est) 2,985,200, capital Banjarmasin; Kalimantan Tengah, population (2000 est) 1,857,000, capital Palangkaraya; and Kalimantan Timur, population (2000 est) 2,449,400, capital Samarinda. Other towns include Balikpapan. The land is mostly low-lying, with mountains in the north rising to 2,274 m/7,462 ft at Mount Raya. Industries include petroleum, rubber, coffee, copra, pepper, and timber.

In late February 2001, indigenous Dayaks, who are mainly Christian or animist, killed over 500 Muslim Madurese in central Kalimantan. Thousands of people fled gangs armed with machetes and spears. After ten days, security forces took steps to regain control. 15,000 Madurese had been transported to Java, with another 20,000 guarded by the military in refugee camps in the port of Sampit waiting to go.