Wed, 29 Sep 1999

East Timor refugees face health risks as rain nears

KUPANG, East Nusa Tenggara (JP): With the rainy season approaching, over 230,000 people seeking refuge in the province require immediate medical assistance, a group of volunteers said on Tuesday.

The Association of Medical Doctors of Asia (AMDA), on a humanitarian mission here, said the refugees from the ravaged East Timor faced malaria, diarrhea and respiratory problems when the rainy season arrived some time in October or November.

Health problems have become a major concern among the refugees, and a number of children living in the makeshift camps are malnourished and suffering hunger-related diseases.

"Rain will start to fall either in October or November and the spread of malaria looks unavoidable because the refugees are living near swamps," AMDA coordinator Nuralim Mallapasi said.

The refugees also are vulnerable to diarrhea and respiratory problems due to poor sanitation, open shelters and a shortage of food, Nuralim said.

"We demand the government dispatch more medical aid and staff here instead of simply making promises," he said.

AMDA has visited a number of refugee centers in East Nusa Tenggara over the past two weeks.

"People living in the camps inhale fouls odors every day. I cannot imagine how much worse the conditions will be if rain falls while the camps are not equipped with proper tents and toilets," he said.

AMDA reported earlier that some 550 children living in refugee centers in the remote village of Wini, some 280 kilometers east of here, were suffering from malaria and diarrhea. Many others had severe respiratory problems.

The isolated village houses refugees from Liquica, Viqueque and Oekusi, a town in Ambeno, the East Timor enclave in East Nusa Tenggara.

Meanwhile, a visiting delegation from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) met with East Nusa Tenggara Governor Piet Alexander Tallo here for talks on the repatriation of displaced East Timorese.

Mission spokesman Graig Sanders was quoted by Antara as saying that 60 percent of the refugees wished to return to East Timor. He said the UN would assist in the repatriation of the displaced persons.

He said the longer the East Timorese remained in East Nusa Tenggara, the more prone they were to influence by pro-Jakarta supporters.

The delegation also asked the governor for protection when visiting refugees. Tallo rejected the request, suggesting the mission delay visiting the still traumatized refugees.

"They (refugees) are very frightened by white people, who remind them of UNAMET, which helped the proindependence camp win the Aug. 30 popular consultation in East Timor," Tallo said. UNAMET is the United Nations Mission in East Timor.

A Belgium member of Medicine Sans Frontiers was nearly attacked by refugees when he attempted to enter a refugee center in Wini.

Police intervened to prevent the mob from harming the activist.

"White people will always be seen as being the same as UNAMET staff, who they blame for their loss in the ballot," Maj. M.M. Patty, deputy chief of the North Central Timor Police, said.

Patty told foreigners working with locals to be wary of possible attacks.

A number of activists from various non-governmental organizations, including AMDA, the UN Children's Fund and the World Health Organization, are taking part in humanitarian missions here. Volunteers come from numerous countries, including the Netherlands, Germany and Italy.

Refugees in Wini are also concerned for their safety as centers here house members of prointegration militias who fled Dili, Liquica and Oekusi. People are fearful of possible clashes between pro-Jakarta and proindependence supporters.

"This village is a target of proindependence militias who just came down from the mountains," Patty said.

Officials deployed members of the National Police's elite Mobile Brigade to maintain peace. "We also asked militia members to patrol the village 24 hours a day to avoid possible attacks," Patty said.

Patty said there was a possibility of armed conflict in the village between the two groups. (27/edt)