Medical equipment for E. Timor

Medical equipment for E. Timor

SINGAPORE: The government has donated medical equipment and supplies to East Timor as part of a package aimed at helping the reconstruction and nation-building efforts, the Defense Ministry said on Thursday.

The city-state's armed forces will also help train people from the East Timor Defense Force in providing basic peace-time healthcare services and medical support in the field.

The latest contribution is worth S$30,000 (US$16,000), the ministry said.

A 66-strong platoon of Singapore Armed Forces peacekeepers serve as part of a combined New Zealand and Fijian battalion in the Kova Lima district.

The rebuilding of East Timor has followed fighting that erupted after the 1999 vote for separation from Indonesia.--DPA