E. Timorese take break after two days of protests

JAKARTA (JP): Protesters took the day off yesterday after two consecutive days of demonstrations both here and in Dili, East Timor, to demand a referendum in Indonesia's youngest province.

The 1,200 mostly Timorese protesters who held a noisy rally at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs here Friday left Jakarta on Saturday aboard commercial trains bound for Central and East Java where many live.

They had spent the night in Cibubur, on the outskirts of Jakarta, after being herded away by security officers.

More than a dozen buses took the demonstrators from Cibubur to the Jatinegara train station and Kampung Rambutan bus depot, both in East Jakarta, where they were dropped off without any overt security supervision.

They looked relaxed, although a few were confused as they said they had lost their money and possessions after Friday's demonstrations.

They claimed they were well treated while spending the night in a hall in Cibubur.

The protesters, both here and in Dili, were obviously taking advantage of the more relaxed climate since the resignation of former president Soeharto last month.

Prior to this it would have been difficult to conceive such a large anti-integration rally being held in Jakarta.

The former Portuguese colony of East Timor was integrated into Indonesia in 1976.

In Dili there was no sign of commotion as residents quietly went to church yesterday.

In his sermon, Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo called for peace and calm.

"Please don't create situations which might disturb peace among people," Belo said.

With the recent riots which hit major cities in the country apparently weighing on his mind, Belo urged people to "avoid violence, respect shops and avoid stealing".

On Saturday more than 1,000 students held a rally at Timor Timur University demanding independence for the province and the release of jailed Timorese separatist leader Jose Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmao.

They waved pictures of Xanana and flags of his Fretilin resistance movement. Some even climbed atop the roofs of campus buildings to hoist the flags and sing traditional songs.

No serious incidents were reported as about 100 soldiers kept a watchful eye from a distance.

The university's rector, Theo T. Balella, was not willing to take any chances, however, and said he was temporarily suspending all activity, academic and nonacademic, on campus.

"Since Thursday the university administration has officially suspended all activities. We saw indications that there is a group of students aspiring to organize a rally on campus which is directed toward anti-integration sentiment," he was quoted as saying by Antara Saturday.

"We do not want this campus to be used as a base for the students' struggle for independence," he remarked without saying how long activities would be suspended.

In Jakarta, former East Timor governor Mario Viegas Carrascalao described the idea of an independent East Timor as absurd.

He said the province was too small to be able to survive on its own.

"Its own revenue is only 7 percent of the province's annual budget, with the rest provided by the central government," Carrascalao said after being sworn in as a member of the 45- strong Supreme Advisory Council (DPA) at the State Palace Saturday.

Carrascalao was East Timor governor for 10 years before being appointed an ambassador in 1992.

While apparently taking a more relaxed approach toward demonstrators than his predecessor, President B.J. Habibie is adamant that East Timor will continue to remain an integral part of Indonesia. (prb/rms)