Jakarta – More than 1,000 members of the Indonesian military and national police in riot-torn Poso, Central Sulawesi, are in dire straits, subsisting on a packet of instant noodles each a day because of a shortage of funds.

"Just getting food and bathing supplies is difficult, let alone financing routine operations to secure such a vast conflict-torn area," area acting chief of police Djasman Baso Opu said on Monday.

Mr Opu was commenting on complaints by members of the forces stationed in Poso that they often only had a packet of instant noodles a day to eat. This "dire situation" had resulted in their inability to prevent riots or violence despite early warnings, he said.

Mr Opu said he had not received extra funds from the Central Sulawesi provincial administration. "We learned of a 1 billion rupiah (S$161,000) fund allocated in the 2001 regional budget, but so far the money has not reached us," he said.