Aussie boycott continues

Aussie boycott continues

SYDNEY (Reuters): Australian unions said on Tuesday their
blanket ban on Indonesian seaborne trade would remain in place
until they were convinced the East Timor crisis was coming to
end.

One key union said, however, it would handle five cargoes of
Indonesian crude oil bought by Australian refineries before the
blockade was imposed last Thursday.

One of the biggest unions, The Australian Workers Union, said
its bans were not meant to hurt the oil companies.

"At this stage the (overall) ban remains in place and will be
maintained until we are satisfied things are returning to some
normality and the atrocities that have occurred over there have
ceased and are unlikely to start up again," said union official
Sam Wood.

One third of Australia's crude oil imports came from Indonesia
in 1998 and the ban will have a marked impact the longer it goes.