East Timorese refugees face food shortage<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Nearly 400 displaced East Timorese sheltering in West Timor have
\nbeen forced to eat leaves for the past month as they cannot
\nafford to buy rice, a government official says.<\/p>\n
The government resettlement coordinator for Boneanak, Ali bin
\nDon Dura, said on Monday that 388 people from 72 families living
\nin Boneanak, West Kupang, would starve if the government did not
\nprovide immediate aid.<\/p>\n
The refugees have been forced to eat leaves of kosambi, a
\nplant the seed of which is commonly used as traditional herb
\nmedicines, Ali was quoted by Antara as saying.<\/p>\n
"We have asked for a share of 250 tons of rice assistance from
\nthe Italian government given to the provincial and regency
\nadministrations, but to no avail."<\/p>\n
He said the local administration had refused to provide the
\nrice for bureaucratic reasons. The person in charge of approving
\nrice distribution was in Jakarta while the Kupang social affairs
\noffice required approval before it could send the rice.<\/p>\n
The local government had also rejected Ali's request because
\nthe East Timorese people in Boneanak were no longer considered
\nrefugees.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian government stopped all official assistance to
\nthe refugees on Aug. 31.<\/p>\n
Ali said the refugees had never received assistance from the
\nprovincial social affairs office since they arrived in Boneanak
\non April 18.<\/p>\n
Boneanak is also home to 92 local families who are also facing
\na food shortage. Local residents have given 5,000 square meters
\nof land to the refugees for farming.<\/p>\n
"We have cleared the lands but it's difficult to obtain
\nseedlings of corn or other produce. We hope the provincial
\nagriculture office can provide us with some seedlings," Ali said.<\/p>\n
The refugees had tried to earn money by selling coral reef,
\nwhich fetched Rp 12,500 per cubic meter. Others ran grocery
\nbusinesses but had been bankrupted due to bad debts.<\/p>\n
Ali plans to seek help from local Wirasakti Military Command
\nchief Col. Moeswarno Moesanip, who moved the refugees from
\ntemporary camps to Boneanak.<\/p>\n
The number of East Timorese refugees sheltering in the
\nprovince of East Nusa Tenggara stands at about 33,000, scattered
\nthroughout Kupang, Atambua, and districts in Flores, Alor and the
\nSumba islands.<\/p>\n
They were part of around 250,000 people who fled the violence
\nthat followed a ballot which resulted in independence for East
\nTimor in 1999.<\/p>\n
East Timor President Xanana Gusmao is planning to visit the
\nprovince for a second time to encourage the remaining refugees to
\nreturn home and to accelerate the reconciliation process among
\nthe East Timorese.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian representatives office in Dili, East Timor,
\nreported that Xanana would visit Atambua and Kupang from Oct. 20
\nto Oct. 24.<\/p>\n
"The refugees problem could pose a hurdle in the relations
\nbetween the two countries but it can be resolved with Xanana's
\nvisit because the refugees can choose repatriation or
\nresettlement to other regions in Indonesia," Indonesian Minister
\nof Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirajuda said.<\/p>\n
He expected the East Timor refugee problems would be resolved
\nby the end of the year.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/east-timorese-refugees-face-food-shortage-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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