Government criticized over East Timor
By Ridwan Max Sijabat and Laurenco Vicente Martins
DILI, East Timor (JP): The United Front for East Timor Autonomy (UNIF) criticized the government on Monday for doing too little in the province over the past 23 years.
UNIF Chairman Titu Batista told visiting Golkar Party Chairman Akbar Tandjung and his entourage that East Timorese people were disappointed with the present government for its failure to carry out development programs to improve their welfare.
"The past 23-years, government in the province has been corrupt. It never seriously accelerated economic development which would have allowed the province to emerge from backwardness in many sectors.
"Prevalent corruption and collusion have made East Timor lag behind other provinces. The way the local government ran its administration spread hatred among the majority of people," Batista said.
UNIF is the umbrella organization for prointegration groups in the former Portuguese colony.
It was the first visit ever by a Golkar chairman in the run-up to the Aug. 30 popular consultation. Akbar was the third party leader to set foot in the former Portuguese colony since the June elections after Abdurrahman Wahid of the National Awakening Party and Megawati Soekarnoputri, chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle.
More than 451,000 East Timorese in and outside the half-island territory have registered to cast their ballots to choose whether to remain part of Indonesia under a wide-ranging autonomy scheme or be separated.
Batista said that UNIF and many other student and youth organizations in the province were also disappointed with the central government for failing to take action against corrupt officials and to boost development programs in the province.
"Such conditions shall no longer be tolerated in the future... The next administration and development program must serve the interests of people in the grassroots, the majority who live in poverty in rural areas across the province," he said.
Jose Tavares, UNIF secretary general, said the central government and the next People's Consultative Assembly should respect whatever choice East Timorese voted for in the self- determination ballot on the province's future.
Tavares, the son of Joao Tavares, chairman of the prointegration Forum for Unity, Democracy and Justice (FPDK), warned that East Timor would fall into a new form of colonialism if the East Timorese people reject the offered greater autonomy.
"Besides, East Timor will turn into a battle field and bloodshed is imminent if the greater autonomy is rejected," he said.
Golden chance
Akbar hailed the ballot as a golden chance for East Timorese to show the world that they were an integral part of Indonesia.
"To the ruling party, the special autonomy is the sole option for the troubled territory," Akbar said.
But Akbar said Golkar would recognize whatever outcome of the UN-supervised self-determination vote provided it runs in a democratic, free, fair and honest manner.
Akbar called on security authorities to maintain the order to allow people to exercise their rights to vote. He also urged for an overwhelming disarmament of both the pro and antiintegration supporters before the end of the campaign period on Aug. 27 at the latest.
"Everybody must help create a situation conducive for East Timorese to cast their votes in accordance with their conscience," Akbar said.
He also criticized UN Mission in East Timor (UNAMET) for its alleged favoritism to proindependence group in carrying out its duties.
"There has been a tendency that certain UNAMET staff fail to maintain neutrality, for instance by recruiting local staff from antiintegation group.
"UNAMET also tends to exaggerate the nature of incidents, blame them on prointegration groups and protect antiintegration cadres at its offices," Akbar said.
He said he would lodge an official protest over UNAMET's alleged partiality.
Akbar did not meet with UNAMET chief Ian Martin, who was in Jakarta.
On the first of his two-day visit, Akbar also met with Committee for Peace and Stability (KPS) members. The Golkar chairman is scheduled to visit Dili Bishop Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo before returning to Jakarta on Tuesday.
UNAMET restated on Monday its grave concern about a series of violent acts attributed to prointegration militia and Indonesian Military. Its spokesman David Wimhurst told a regular media briefing that UNAMET staff had also been attacked and threatened.
Wimhurst said UNAMET had reported the cases to the UN secretary-general in New York.
Another protest was filed against UNAMET by the government task force for popular consultation in East Timor, which alleged the mission unfavorably selected observers who will monitor the Aug. 30 ballot.
The protest followed UNAMET's refusal to accredit some 30 nongovernmental groups, including one from PDI Perjuangan, to monitor the vote process. The mission reportedly found the groups represented the Indonesian government's interests.