E. Timorese protesters leave Indonesia

E. Timorese protesters leave Indonesia

JAKARTA (JP): The 29 East Timorese students, occupying the
U.S. embassy compound since Nov. 12, left Jakarta for asylum in
Portugal yesterday.

Henry Fournier, head of the Regional Delegation of the
International Committee of the Red Cross, said that they flew out
of the country on KLM flight 838 yesterday evening.

All 29 students, including one previously hospitalized for an
infected wound, left the embassy compound aboard a bus for the
Soekarno-Hatta airport.

They were reportedly headed for Amsterdam before continuing
their journey to Portugal.

The East Timorese students accepted the Portuguese
government's offer of asylum on Tuesday, Nov. 22, the 10th day of
their sit-in action in the parking lot of the embassy.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas said yesterday that the
government allowed the 29 East Timorese to leave the country
based on a political considerations.

"This is a political decision ... All may leave," he told
journalists after attending a meeting at the office of the
Coordinating Minister for Politic Affairs and Security Soesilo
Soedarman.

Alatas said the government would not hold Louis Mario Lopez
even though he was suspected of a killing which occurred during a
gang brawl in the capital.

"He is a suspect. He has yet to be brought to trial. We have
to maintain the principles of the presumption of innocence," he
said.

No problem

Soesilo said later that there was no problem with the exit of
the East Timorese from the country.

"Let them go," he said.

On Wednesday, the American embassy officials moved the
students from the parking lot into a building as preparations got
underway to arrange their journey to Portugal.

According to Fournier, all of the students left Jakarta
including the ailing one, Arlindo Freitas de Araujo Fernandez,
26, who was hospitalized on Nov. 18 at Persahabatan Hospital,
East Jakarta.

"Arlindo has recovered and he is strong enough to travel," he
said.

Antara reported that Arlindo and Bonaventura Abilio Moreida,
another protester, who accompanied Arlindo while he was treated,
left the hospital yesterday afternoon. They were riding in an
embassy car with license plate number CD 12 48. They entered the
embassy courtyard at 2:10 p.m.

The Red Cross representative, Fournier, said that their
departure yesterday was made possible because all of their travel
arrangements were completed. They did not use passports, but were
traveling with Red Cross travel documents, he said.

"Red Cross travel documents are not only used by people with
political reasons, but also can be used by people who have lost
their passports in a foreign country, which does not have a
representative office, or embassy, of their country," he said

He added that Red Cross travel documents are only valid for a
one-way journey. (mas/sim)