Interfet banned from East Timor skies: Official

Interfet banned from East Timor skies: Official

UJUNGPANDANG, South Sulawesi (JP): The Air Force operational
commander for Eastern Indonesia, Air Rear Marshall Ian Santoso,
rejected a request from the International Force for East Timor
(Interfet) to fly over East Timor, following the fatal shooting
of an Indonesian police officer in Sunday's mix-up over the East
Timor border.

In a 50-minute meeting with Interfet's Air Force chief
Commodore McLennan at Hasanuddin Air Force Base here, Ian said he
would not grant any flying permits to Interfet aircraft for the
area over East Timor and warned Interfet pilots not to be
persistent in making an attempt to fly over the disputed
territory.

"If they insist in doing so, they will have to face the
Indonesian Air Forces' fighter aircraft of the East Indonesia Air
Defense Command, led by Commodore Hari Gamdani," Ian told the
media after the meeting ended at 11:30 a.m.

"I told him that since Sunday's incident, I've been unwilling
to give any flying permits to him."

Ian said under the circumstances, it would be better if both
the Australian and Indonesian Air Forces restrained themselves
to avoid any possible conflict.

"He (Mc Lennan) said he understood and accepted our decision."

Mc Lennan, an official of the Royal Australia Air Forces
(RAAF), reportedly asked for flying clearance for Interfet's F-
111 aircraft, which are equipped with electronic and photography
devices, to fly over East Timor.

The Australian commodore, who arrived on a special plane
without an escort, separately told reporters after the meeting
that his mission was to talk about the safety of both countries'
flights as there were a lot of military airplanes stationed in
Dili, the capital of East Timor.

"We believe that it is not wise to break air force ties
between Australia and Indonesia. Therefore, we will keep in
contact with the Indonesian Military," Mc Lennan said.

Ian praised the coordination between both countries' air
forces, but strongly asserted that East Timor was still
Indonesian territory.

"Frankly, I told Mc Lennan if they wish to fly over East
Timor, they can do so after the People's Consultative Assembly
(MPR) officially announce that the province is no longer part of
Indonesia. Until then, do not even try. Because we'll be ready to
face them," Ian said.

Following Sunday's incident, Mc Lennan said a special
investigation team, consisting of officials from Interfet and the
Indonesian Military, was established.

It is still unclear what exactly happened on Sunday afternoon
in the first direct clash between Indonesian and Interfet forces
which killed an Elite Police Mobile Brigade officer and injured
two others.

Indonesia claimed that Interfet troops, confused on the exact
location of the border, breached the Indonesian border and
attacked a border post near the Montael area.

Australia, however, insisted that their troops were still
within East Timor and that they were shot at first.

Nationalism

In a related development, a survey conducted by Media Watch
Society, a nongovernmental organization (NGOs) observing the
journalistic ethical performance in the country's mass media,
revealed an increasing "nationalism" among the Indonesian mass
media following the deployment of Interfet troops in East Timor.

"Anti-Australian sentiment has dominated the headlines in the
Indonesian mass media since the announcement of the East Timor
poll on Sept. 4," Priyono B. Sumbogo, the director of Media Watch
Society, told a media conference on Wednesday.

"The Indonesian mass media's inclining spirit of nationalism
is contradictory to the period before the poll when most of the
Indonesian media persistently attacked repressive actions of the
Indonesian Military and prointegration militias," he said.

He said the Indonesian media, as well as the people, were
offended with Australia's provocation.

"Such dissatisfaction was strengthened with an indication that
the United Nations Mission in East Timor (UNAMET), which
organized the Aug. 30 East Timor ballot, were partial during the
poll," he said.

The survey, held in Jakarta from Sept. 28 to Sept. 30,
received responses from 361 city residents. (27/edt/imn)