Government to resume food aid to refugees
Government to resume food aid to refugees
Yemris Fointuna and Sri Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post,
Kupang/Yogyakarta
The government has decided to re-start its rice distribution for
Timorese refugees in East Nusa Tenggara in response to a series
of protests aired by the displaced people.
Sumarjati Arjoso, director general of social aid and security
at the Ministry of Social Affairs, asked the head of the
provincial social affairs office in an official letter dated July
11 to distribute the rice stored in the provincial logistics
warehouses (Dolog) to the refugees.
He said that famine was looming in the refugee camps since the
rice assistance was halted on Dec. 31 last year.
The provincial administrations spokesman, Johanis B.
Kosapilawan, has said the local government had yet to decide a
distribution method for the refugees following an official letter
from the Coordinating Minister for Social Welfare Jusuf Kalla.
In his letter, Jusuf asked the governor to selectively
distribute rice to refugees and locals in anticipation of a
prolonged drought.
"But we shall put the refugees who most need the rice as our
priority," Kosapilawan told The Jakarta Post.
He said that Jusuf also warned the administration not to make
refugees suffer because of its policies.
He said that the policy of stopping rice distributions last
year was part of the provincial administration's steps to address
the refugee problems through repatriation, empowerment and
relocation.
However, a food shortage has arisen and the repatriation
program is not yet complete.
Representatives of Timorese refugees rallied at the governor's
office to demand an immediate response to the problem.
"We urged the government to distribute the rice immediately
because the refugees are getting weaker," Hukman Reni, the
coordinator of Timorese Refugees Presidium, told the Post.
Last week, a similar demand was aired by the refugees who were
upset that the Rp 53 billion in aid money reportedly sent months
ago from Japan had not yet been used to help them. Reports have
said the money was still being held by the central government in
Jakarta, despite pressure from the Japanese government.
There are between 20,000 and 50,000 East Timorese refugees
remaining in East Nusa Tenggara. The UN High Commissioner for
Refugees expects the number to halve under the ongoing
repatriation program by the end of this year.
The government has set an Aug. 31 deadline for the refugees to
decide whether to remain in Indonesia or return to their home
soil.
In Yogyakarta, some 50 pro-integration East Timorese living in
the sultanate twon held a flag-raising ceremony on Wednesday to
mark the 26th anniversary of the former Portuguese colony's
incorporation into the republic.
Held modestly in front of the East Timor Dormitory on Jl.
Timor Timur, some seven kilometers north of the downtown, the
ceremony was presided over by the chairman of the Yogyakarta
branch office of Uni Timor Aswain (UNTAS), Bernardino Mariano
Sousa.
Some 10 children of East Timorese descent were among the
participants during the 30-minute-long ceremony.
During the emotional event, the East Timorese demanded in a
joint statement that the government declare Aug. 30 a national
day of mourning. On that date three years ago, East Timor voted
for independence in a UN-administered self-determination ballot.
The statement also said that the establishment of the East
Timor state was against the wishes of the East Timorese people.
They urged the international community, including the UN, to
investigate human rights violations committed by pro-independence
figures.
Regarding the refugees, the group asked the government to stop
all acts of what they described as terror in the various camps.
in East Nusa Tenggara. They claimed the refugees were being
forced to return to East Timor under a repatriation program.