Australia keeping eye on its citizens in RI

Australia keeping eye on its citizens in RI

WELLINGTON (AFP): Australia is prepared to act if the lives of about 10,000 Australians in Indonesia are threatened in renewed rioting, Australian Chief of Defense Force Adm. Chris Barrie said here on Tuesday.

He said New Zealand would be expected to help.

Barrie said Australia was watching Indonesia's economic and political situation closely as it looked to hold free elections in 1999.

The move comes after the fall of former Indonesian president Soeharto earlier this year following mass rioting in which 1,200 people were killed.

"The economics in Indonesia don't look very good and when people start to go without food and don't see much prospect of a better life in the future that becomes very troublesome," he said.

"We're going to have to watch it closely ... If violence erupts on the street in a very dramatic and widespread way and (Australian) people become threatened or in fear we'll have to do something about that."

"Any move to evacuate Australians would be a very significant military operation," the admiral added.

Barrie said he would expect that New Zealand would offer to help but would not comment on the contingency plans already in place.

"There are all sorts of contingency plans and some of that planning is shared across the Tasman," he said.