'E. Timor given no special treatment'
'E. Timor given no special treatment'
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto declared yesterday that East Timor will not receive special treatment in any area, including the establishment of religious organizations.
Such Moslem organizations as Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama may now "move" and open branches in the predominantly Roman Catholic province, Soeharto was quoted as saying by Amien Rais, chairman of the 28 million-member Muhammadiyah.
Speaking to reporters after meeting Soeharto, Amien said that there is no written regulation against establishing Moslem organizations in East Timor.
"Muhammadiyah can open (branches) in East Timor," Amien said in response to the Ministry of Home Affairs' recent suggestion that Moslem organizations not open branches, at least for the time being, in East Timor.
"Opening branches there is not meant to propagate Islam among Catholic believers, but to help Moslems there, especially members of Muhammadiyah, maintain their faith," Amien said.
Currently there are no proper Moslem organizations in East Timor and Amien quoted the President as saying that steps will have to be taken to ensure the peaceful establishment of any new branches.
The youngest province has long been rocked by racial and religious tensions. A number of riots took place in September after a Moslem prison-warden made denigrating remarks about Catholicism. Similar tension, however, also exists between Catholic followers and Christians.
Following the riots, Dili Bishop Felipe Ximenes Belo reportedly suggested that East Timor be declared a special Roman Catholic region. A great number of people have reacted strongly to the suggestion, which Belo later denied making.
"It's impossible to turn East Timor into a special region for Catholicism," Soeharto said yesterday as quoted by Amien. "No special treatment."
"There's something strange...the development in Indonesia has often been praised by the international world, but when it comes to East Timor, the image becomes poor," Soeharto said.
Soeharto blamed the condition on the relentless campaign by certain parties abroad which continue exploiting the question of East Timor.
"There's no such thing as referendum in our book," Soeharto said, adding that the process of East Timor's integration into Indonesia "is complete." (swe)