East Timorese urged to decide on nationality

East Timorese urged to decide on nationality

JAKARTA (JP): The government has urged East Timorese refugees
to choose whether they want to be repatriated or remain in
Indonesia, hoping to settle the aggravating issue before the new
fiscal year starts on April 1, 2000.

Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare and Poverty
Eradication Basri Hasanuddin told reporters on Monday that the
government would issue a regulation instructing refugees to
declare their choice of nationality.

"We have to cope with the refugee problem by April, otherwise
this (situation) will be more difficult for us to tackle," he
said.

He indicated, however, that if necessary the government would
extend the deadline to the next fiscal year for East Timorese to
make their choice.

Basri said the draft of the regulation was being drawn up by
the Ministry of Law and Legislation.

He was speaking after attending a ministerial meeting on
security and political affairs presided over by the coordinating
minister of security and political affairs, Wiranto.

While announcing the regulation would be a presidential
decree, Wiranto gave no details about it or when it would take
effect.

"I think this (decree) needs wise deliberation, because it
will deal with a few aspects, in particular psychological ones.
We don't want the decree to offend our East Timorese brothers,"
Wiranto said.

Basri said some 130,000 East Timorese remained sheltered in
refugee centers across East Nusa Tenggara, which abuts the former
Portuguese colony. They were some of the over 260,000 people to
flee their violence-devastated hometown following the Aug. 30
ballot which saw a majority vote against wide-ranging autonomy
offered by Indonesia.

The East Timorese refugees are being treated as Indonesian
citizens until they opt to be otherwise, according to Basri. The
current state budget allocates Rp 20 million for each displaced
person nationwide.

State Minister of Transmigration and Population Al Hilal Hamdi
estimated earlier this month the number of refugees across the
country at 422,000. He said a resettlement program for displaced
people would start in March.

Basri said the government was hoping international
humanitarian agencies would maintain their assistance for the
repatriation of East Timor refugees, which has been conducted
since September.

Separately, a team from the National Commission for Children's
Protection (Komnas PA) expressed concern over the fate of
displaced children. In a statement on Monday, an executive
director of the commission, Arist Merdeka Sirait, said children
had suffered the most in the various riots that rocked the
country.

"Children suffer not only from traumatic experiences, but
physical problems like the shortage of food, water and shelter,"
Arist said in Medan.

The commission promotes protection for children refugees in
Aceh. There were 375 children among 20,433 people fleeing Aceh
following mounting clashes in the restive province. (04/39/emf)