E. Timor still plans August elections

E. Timor still plans August elections

DILI (AP): East Timor's UN administrators said on Tuesday they
would push ahead with historic elections in August despite fears
of unrest.

UN administrator Sergio Vieira de Mello has signed an order
for elections determining a new governing assembly to proceed on
Aug. 30 as planned, said UN spokesperson Barbara Reis.

The 88-member assembly will help draft a constitution and
steer the nascent nation to full independence sometime next year.
Campaigning for the elections will officially start on July 15.

The decision comes despite calls from some East Timorese
political leaders for the poll to be postponed due to fears that
fighting may break out among supporters of rival parties.

Last month, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the
Security Council in New York that the UN peacekeeping force and
civilian police were gearing up for an increase in politically
motivated violence ahead of the elections.