World urges swift E. Timor deployment<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The United States, Australia, Britain and
\nPortugal were among the first to hail Indonesia's decision on
\nSunday to let the United Nations sent a peacekeeping mission to
\nEast Timor.<\/p>\n
They also called for quick deployment in the territory.<\/p>\n
East Timor independence leaders Jose Alexandre \"Xanana\" Gusmao
\nand Jose Ramos Horta welcomed the announcement and called on
\ntheir supporters for restraints.<\/p>\n
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan \"very much\" welcomed the
\ndecision and called for Indonesia to keep order until troops
\narrived, Reuters reported.<\/p>\n
Annan said in a statement he awaited the arrival in New York
\nof Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas to finalize details so
\nthe Security Council could approve the force.<\/p>\n
U.S. President Bill Clinton, who was in Auckland for the Asia-
\nPacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, was described by
\naides as \"pleased\" by Habibie's announcement in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The United States had led the international chorus for
\nIndonesia to invite UN forces into East Timor to stop the
\nviolence in the former Portuguese colony.<\/p>\n
White House National Security Adviser Sandy Berger said it was
\nhoped the force would be able to deploy in a matter of days,
\nReuters reported.<\/p>\n
He said the American contribution would be limited but did not
\nsay how many U.S. troops would be required.<\/p>\n
\"This will involve U.S. troops,\" he said. \"Some of those
\ntroops will be in Timor, but they will be, I think, of limited
\nnumbers. And I don't want to rule out anything categorically, but
\nthe focus is not on infantry forces.\"<\/p>\n
He said consultations with key members of the Congress were
\nongoing about the American contribution.<\/p>\n
Berger said many questions had to be answered about
\nIndonesia's decision -- \"how quickly the force can be deployed,
\nwhat the mission is, what the mandate is, whether any
\nrestrictions will be placed by the Indonesians. All these things
\nneed to be clarified.\"<\/p>\n
He called Habibie's decision \"wise and statesmanlike\" but
\nadded, \"assuming that this actually takes place.\"<\/p>\n
He said there were no objections to the UN force working
\nalongside the Indonesian military as long as the same objective
\nis pursued and as long as there is a clear chain of command in
\nthe UN force.<\/p>\n
But he said: \"The devil's in the details here.\"<\/p>\n
Australian Prime Minister John Howard Indonesia's decision was
\na tremendous step forward but that much needed to be done before
\na force was deployed.<\/p>\n
\"It's a tremendous step forward. It's a very important
\nstatement and I welcome it. This is a great step forward for the
\npeople of East Timor,\" Howard told reporters in Auckland.<\/p>\n
Britain said peacekeepers should be assembled quickly to stop
\nthe bloodshed there.<\/p>\n
\"I'm glad our message appears to have been heard in Jakarta.
\nBut we will now be looking for details of their commitment and
\nfor their commitment to a UN peacekeeping force to be carried out
\nrapidly and in full,\" Foreign Secretary Robin Cook said in
\nLondon.<\/p>\n
Cook said 250 British Army Nepalese Gurkhas would be among the
\nfirst peacekeepers to arrive in East Timor, probably within days.<\/p>\n
Portuguese President Jorge Sampaio appealed to Indonesian
\nPresident B.J. Habibie to permit a rapid deployment.<\/p>\n
Sampaio, speaking on state television, urged Indonesia to
\nallow humanitarian aid to be distributed to the people of East
\nTimor immediately.<\/p>\n
Sampaio said he reacted to the news with caution.<\/p>\n
\"The events of the last few days and the behavior of
\nIndonesian officials force us to be prudent,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"We appeal to Habibie to honor his statement by allowing the
\nrapid deployment of the international force,\" Sampaio said.<\/p>\n
\"The eyes of the world are fixed on the suffering of the
\npeople of East Timor,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Xanana Gusmao, speaking in the British embassy in Jakarta
\nwhere he has lived since his release last week, pledged restraint
\nfrom his guerrillas.<\/p>\n
\"I fully commit myself and Falintil (guerrillas) to undertake
\nevery effort to stabilize the territory and to support all and
\nevery action, initiative and endeavor to help those who have been
\nuprooted and displaced,\" he told reporters.<\/p>\n
Welcoming Jakarta's decision, an emotional Xanana also
\nappealed for urgent foreign aid for the tens of thousands of
\npeople forced to flee their homes after a bloody rampage by pro-
\nJakarta militias reported to have killed thousands.<\/p>\n
\"To my beloved people, my sisters and brothers inside our
\nmotherland, I admire your resilience, your determination and
\nendless courage,\" said Xanana, who appeared on the verge of
\ntears.<\/p>\n
\"I urge you to hold on to your unlimited faith in the future
\nof our newborn nation.\"<\/p>\n
Because of the unrest in East Timor, he has been unable to
\nreturn home and is living in the British embassy for his own
\nsafety.<\/p>\n
Ramos-Horta urged the United Nations to deploy its force
\nwithout delay.<\/p>\n
\"I hope this will be implemented immediately,\" he told
\nPortugal's TSF radio. \"I hope the UN does not delay.\"<\/p>\n
The chief of the UN Mission in East Timor, holed up in a
\ncompound in the militia-terrorized city of Dili with more than
\n1,000 terrified refugees, welcomed Indonesia's decision.<\/p>\n
\"This is a day on which an important corner has been turned
\nfor East\" Timor,\" Ian Martin said in a brief statement relayed to
\nAFP here by phone from the beleaguered compound.<\/p>\n
Martin called the decision \"Extremely important and good news
\nfrom the point of view of the people of East Timor.\"<\/p>\n
But it must be remembered that we are \"still in the middle of
\na period of enormous suffering, that must be brought to an
\nimmediate end.\"<\/p>\n
Before the announcement , UN Human Rights Commissioner Mary
\nRobinson called for a war crimes tribunal to investigate the
\nbrutal human rights abuses now taking place in East Timor.<\/p>\n
\"I hope there will be a tribunal in due course to investigate
\n(human rights abuses). I will be working to that. There must be
\naccountability and there must be no impunity,\" Robinson told
\nreporters in the northern Australian city of Darwin.<\/p>\n
Robinson canceled plans to visit the East Timor capital Dili
\nat the request of Annan while \"delicate negotiations\" continued
\non East Timor at the UN Security Council.<\/p>\n
She appealed to victims of the brutality in East Timor to come
\nforward.<\/p>\n
\"It is important for you to tell your stories individually, so
\nthat those of you who know of human rights violations can
\ndocument them so that we can have those responsible brought to
\njustice and end this violence,\" Robinson said.<\/p>",
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