E. Timorese set to leave for Portugal

E. Timorese set to leave for Portugal

JAKARTA (JP): Five East Timorese asylum seekers who have been
holed up at the British Embassy since Monday are likely to leave
for Portugal tonight, the head of the local mission of the
International Committee of the Red Cross said yesterday.

"Most probably they will leave tomorrow," Henri Fournier told
The Jakarta Post at his office yesterday when asked about the
departure of the five to Portugal.

"For an international organization like the Red Cross, it is
better to solve the problem quickly," Fournier said, adding that
the longer the problem remained unsolved, the more the
International Committee of the Red Cross would have to pay.

All transport expenses of the asylum seekers from Jakarta to
their destination has been covered by the International Committee
of the Red Cross, he added.

The five East Timorese, all in their 20s, walked into the
British embassy on Monday, asking for asylum. Lisbon has since
intervened and told Britain it will accept the asylum seekers.

The government denied the claims that the five men had been
persecuted. (03)