Belo concerned over deportation

Belo concerned over deportation

DILI, East Timor: Dili Bishop Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo
expressed deep concern yesterday over the plight of Indonesians
being deported from Malaysia, Antara reported.

"I sent the letter (stating concern) last April 4 to Minister
of Manpower Theo Sambuaga, House of Representatives Speaker
Harmoko, the governor of Aceh, the presidium of the Indonesian
Bishops Conference (KWI) and Minister of Religious Affairs
Quraish Shihab," the Nobel peace laureate said.

In the four-page letter, he also called for solidarity among
the people for the sake of peace and justice.

"We oppose liberalism, which refuses government intervention
in socioeconomic affairs and supports labor unions to defend
themselves," Belo wrote.

He emphasized that problems involving Indonesian workers
abroad and their impact were a complex concern for the country.
Everybody has a moral responsibility in this issue, he added.

"We ought not to... stage demonstrations as this will not
solve problems. It even makes things worse," he said.

He called for concrete actions from the entire nation to help
those being deported from Malaysia, mainly through fighting for
their rights and dignity as human beings.

He also urged all parties to find the best solution to the
problem, such as by creating jobs for the people instead of
abandoning them.

Antara also reported yesterday that the National Commission on
Human Rights will shortly send a fact-finding team to Semenyih
detention camp in Malaysia to investigate the clash between
rioting Indonesian migrants about to be deported and security
officers. One officer and eight Indonesians were killed last
month.

Commission members B.N. Marbun and Soegiri revealed the plan
when they received a delegation of the Consortium of Indonesian
Immigrants Defenders (Kopbumi).

"We have not received any comprehensive report yet on the
incident, not even the names of the victims. That's why we think
it is necessary to send a fact-finding team there," Marbun said.

He quoted a report which said the Malaysian authorities
insisted on deporting even injured people without giving them
medical treatment first.

"Even criminals are sent for medical treatment before they are
sent for trial or to prison," he said.