Jakarta, Dili has out remaining issues

Jakarta, Dili has out remaining issues

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesia and East Timor have identified a number of residual
problems that they will attempt to resolve following the new
country's independence which was finally declared on May 20,
2002.

The remaining unresolved problems since East Timor's decision
to separate from Indonesia were discussed in a day-long parallel
meeting between the two countries' high-powered officials in Dili
on Saturday.

Indonesian representative in East Timor Kristio Wahyono said
that Saturday's meeting was not planned to conclude anything but
simply to identify a number of problems that were expected to be
resolved during the incoming visit of East Timor President
Alessandro Xanana Gusmao to Jakarta.

"This meeting is just more informal and personal than formal
because we had a lot of problems that need to be dealt with soon
to allow the two countries to enter a new phase of their good
ties," he told The Jakarta Post by telephone after the Indonesian
delegation's meeting with East Timor leaders in Dili on Saturday.

Kristio cited problems that needed to be urgently solved were
Indonesia's assets in the province, the pension of former East
Timorese servicemen, the two countries' border areas, East
Timorese taking refuge in West Timor and East Timor students
studying in Indonesia with scholarships from the government.

The three Indonesian ministers -- Minister of Home Affairs
Hari Sabarno, Minister of Industry and Trade Rini Soewandi and
State Minister for Social Affairs Bachtiar Chamsyah-- returned to
Jakarta late on Saturday.

Kristio said further that East Timor officials welcomed, with
a warm greeting, the Indonesian delegation and President Xanana
Gusmao even delayed his visit to Australia until Sunday to meet
the Indonesian delegation.

Assets remain as one of the contentious issues in the meeting
between Indonesian delegation led by Minister of Home Affairs
Hari Sabarno and President Xanana, Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri.

"We will set up a joint committee to look into the issue of
assets in more detail," Hari, a former army general, told
reporters after meeting Alkatiri, adding that Indonesia will
abide by international conventions on the issue.

East Timor Parliament Chairman Fransisco "Lu Olo" Guterres
hailed the Indonesian delegation's visit as a "milestone" marking
a good start in the two countries' relations.

"We are looking forward to cooperation with Indonesia. After
independence good relations with Indonesia are all the more
important," Guterres said as quoted by Agence France-Presse after
the meeting.

Despite the negative impacts of the violence that followed the
1999 self-determination vote, in which residents of the then
Indonesian province voted for independence, both sides yesterday
expressed positive gestures and a willingness to discuss many of
the lingering problems.

Rogerio Lobato, East Timor's home affairs minister, said his
country's position on the asset issue would be in line with the
constitution and the joint committee would probably be
established as soon as possible.

On the talks, the two sides agreed that they will finalize
the discussion of the joint committee during the planned state
visit of Xanana to Jakarta later this month.

"On the planned visit of President Xanana, there will be more
talks and hopefully more issues will be concluded," Kristio said.

Australia will be the first country President Xanana visits as
the new head of state, after Indonesian President Megawati
Soekarnoputri failed to find time for Xanana to come to Jakarta.