Indonesia, East Timor, Australia end talks
Indonesia, East Timor, Australia end talks
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Nusa Dua, Bali
Indonesia, Australia and East Timor concluded their first
trilateral talks on Tuesday with a pledge to boost cooperation
between the three neighboring countries after years of bloody
violence and diplomatic squabbling.
The talks discussed a wide range of issues including building
economic cooperation between the three countries, the
repatriation of East Timorese refugees in West Timor and
transnational crimes such as terrorism, people-smuggling and
drug-trafficking as well as security concerns in the region.
The delegations also reviewed progress in setting up the
Southwest Pacific Forum, which will group countries such as
Indonesia, East Timor, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea,
Australia and New Zealand.
"Our challenge now is how to manage this triangular
relationship into a positive and mutually beneficial venture for
the interests of each and every one of us," Indonesian Foreign
Affairs Minister Hassan Wirayuda said in a joint press conference
held after the talks.
The meeting was the first of its kind since Indonesia withdrew
from the former Portuguese colony after East Timorese voted
almost 80 to 20 in favor of independence in a United Nations-
administered vote in August 1999.
Before, during and after the vote, pro-Jakarta militias,
backed by Indonesian military personnel, embarked on a massive
terror campaign, which included destroying some 80 percent of the
buildings, killing hundreds of people and forcing over 200,000
East Timorese to go to West Timor.
The violence ended only after intervention by an international
military force led by Australia. At the time, the peacekeeping
mission eroded relations between Jakarta and Canberra.
East Timor, now under U.N. administration, is due to take on
full nationhood in May 2002 after 300 years of Portuguese rule
and 25 years of bloody Indonesian occupation.
Australia pledged on Tuesday A$6.6 million to address the
lingering problem of an estimated 60,000 East Timorese refugees
in West Timor.
Australia also promised A$8.5 million (US$4.4 million),
through various U.N. agencies and non-governmental organizations,
for internally displaced people within Indonesia, focusing on
food aid, education assistance and support for recovery
activities in strife-torn Maluku.
"We do believe that the most important thing is really to work
for stability and peace in East Timor as a way to contribute
towards stability and peace for the region," Chief Minister of
East Timor Mari Alkatiri told a press conference after the
discussions.
"We are still a very weak country in terms of security and
that's why we think that we need a lot of capacity-building in
this area too," he said.
Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer hailed
the meeting as "historic" and said it was time to look to the
future.
"This is an historic meeting and we have discussed a number of
issues to strengthen our trilateral relations," Downer said,
adding that Australia would host the second trilateral meeting
next year.
"Whatever the history between Indonesia, Australia and East
Timor, this meeting represents a very substantial step forward in
the relationship and makes a substantial commitment to regional
stability and security."
Minister Hassan said the Timor gap treaty was on the agenda at
a bilateral Indonesia-East Timor meeting on Monday.
"For the most part, when we talk about what was formerly known
as the Timor Gap, the issues are between Indonesia and East
Timor," he said.
Hassan said talks would be held sometime in the future to
settle sea boundaries between the three countries, including in
the Timor Gap area.
Timor Gap is believed to be rich in oil. Indonesia and
Australia previously agreed to explore the area together and
appointed 11 companies to do the job.
The 1989 Timor Gap treaty was renegotiated last year between
Australia and East Timor. The deal now provides East Timor with
90 percent of the revenue from the Timor Sea's oil and gas
developments.