East Timorese Bento ready to join Indonesian Tiger Cup team

JAKARTA (JP): East Timorese soccer player Miro Baldo Bento said he was ready to play for Indonesia in contradiction to his earlier statement that he would return home and thereby throw away his chance of playing for the Indonesian team.

"I am ready to play for the Indonesian national team. I don't want to get involved in disputes on my nationality. I will prove it on the soccer field," he told a media briefing on Thursday.

Bento -- who is still named as member of the national team for the 2000 Tiger Cup tournament in Bangkok next month despite his controversial statement -- had repeatedly said he would return to East Timor and play soccer there as his mother and relatives were still living in the former Indonesian province.

"I have repeatedly told journalists that I would rather play for an East Timor soccer team than for the Indonesian national team."

"But I was talking emotionally as I was carried away by the political situation. At that time, East Timor has just earned its independence after 24 years."

Bento, who is now playing for the Makassar-based PSM club, said he was ready to bear the responsibility for his choice. "It is I myself who will face my family in East Timor. I am ready to face the risks."

The 25-year-old player still holds his Indonesian identity card and uses an Indonesian passport whenever he and his club play in overseas tournaments.

He also said he did not have any connection with either pro- independence or pro-integration movements. "I do not involve myself in politics. I am a soccer player."

Bento's name was on the team's 18-strong lineup faxed by the Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI) to the Cup organizers on Oct. 6.

Coach Nandar Iskandar had agreed to expel seven out of 22 players after their poor performances in the 2000 Asian Cup in Lebanon. Besides Bento, Nandar also promoted Budiman and Suwandi H.S. to the national team. All the players were playing for PSM.

Both soccer observers and legislators have had a great deal to say over Bento's inclusion in the national team given his past comments.

However, Bento rejected assumptions that he was forced by Nurdin Halid, PSSI's official in charge of athletic development and also one of PSM's patrons, to give up his dream of playing for his home country and return as a professional player in Indonesia.

"There was no such pressure. I have picked a career as a soccer player and all that I can do is play soccer," he said emotionally when pressed by journalists.

Bento appeared nervous during the media briefing. He further said he had no idea about his future plans.

"I don't want to talk about what I where I will be five years from now after East Timor has become a country. I want to reach my best in my career here. I am doing nothing wrong if I introduced East Timorese soccer through playing for an Indonesian team."

Nurdin told the briefing that he was not involved in the discussions to pick Bento to play for the national team. He said the decision was reached after a series of discussions between Nandar and National Team Director Muhammad Zein in Lebanon.

But Nandar said Nurdin had a hand in the decision. "Myself, Pak Nurdin and Pak Zein discussed the players together."

He also said he agreed to include the additional three players for technical reasons.

Bento might pair Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto, his teammate in PSM, as strikers to replace Rochy Puttiray, who preferred to play for his current Hong Kong-based Instant Dict club. (ivy)