132 tourists visit East Timor

132 tourists visit East Timor

DILI, East Timor: Only 132 tourists visited Dili throughout
1996, head of the East Timor Immigration Office, Riawan Pramudjo,
said here Tuesday.

Contrary to previous years, there were no foreign journalists
visiting in the guise of tourists. The local authorities usually
deport such offenders.

"None of the tourists were deported for carrying out
journalistic tasks without a proper license," Riawan was quoted
by Antara as saying. "The immigration office will continue to
prevent the illegal entry of journalists by working in
coordination with all related institutions," he said.

He said some tourists were reprimanded for taking pictures at
the Dili Heroes Cemetery which is against existing regulations.

"However, when we told them that picture-taking was not
allowed in the cemetery, all of the foreigners said they
understood and submitted their negatives," he said. (swe)