E. Timorese in Australia<\/p>\n
During the visit of the Australian Minister of Immigration and
\nEthnic Affairs to Indonesia it was learned that 700 East Timorese
\nhad sought political asylum in Australia. They had entered
\nAustralia using tourist visas. The Australian government rejected
\nthe request.<\/p>\n
We are not convinced that so many East Timorese voluntarily
\nasked for political asylum all at the same time. There seems to
\nbe grounds for the allegation that a syndicate of anti-
\nintegration individuals from East Timor exists which is
\npersuading East Timorese on a visit to Australia to ask for
\nasylum, or even that it may be forcing them to do so by taking
\ntheir passports.<\/p>\n
Naturally we are concerned about this problem because it could
\nharm Indonesia's good standing abroad. We are surprised that the
\nAustralian embassy and Australian consulates in Indonesia could
\nissue, at more or less the same time, 700 tourist visas to
\nresidents of such a small area. Whether the asylum requests are
\ngranted or rejected is all the same to the anti-integration
\nsyndicate. Just the publicity of 700 East Timorese asking for
\nasylum is enough to help their cause.<\/p>\n
However, we must welcome the Australian government's decision
\nto reject the request. By doing so, the Australian government
\nmakes it clear that the lives of the East Timorese tourists are
\nnot in danger in their home country and that Australia does not
\nwant to disrupt relations with Indonesia. It seems the Australian
\ngovernment is becoming increasingly aware that the country is
\nbeing used by East Timorese who oppose integration.<\/p>\n
-- Surabaya Post<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/e-timorese-in-australia-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }