MPR prepares to formalize East Timor split

JAKARTA (JP): An ad hoc committee in the People's Consultative Assembly indicated it had agreed to issue a decree which would formally separate East Timor from Indonesia.

Members of Ad Hoc Committee II, charged with deliberating Assembly draft decrees other than the State Policy Guidelines, said there was a general agreement between faction members in the committee to revoke Decree No. VI/1978, which formally integrated the former Portuguese colony into Indonesia, making it the nation's 27th province.

The deputy chairman of the ad hoc committee, Aisyah Amini, said there was a general understanding on the issue.

"The previous decree should be withdrawn by issuing a new decree," Aisyah said here on Thursday.

East Timorese voted on Aug. 30 to reject an offer of wide- ranging autonomy under Indonesia, which amounted to a vote for independence.

The Assembly must formalize the results of the vote by revoking the 1978 decree, allowing East Timor to be placed under the administration of the United Nations, which would pave the way for complete independence for the territory.

Deputy Assembly chairman Matori Abdul Djalil said the Assembly should accept the choice made by the East Timorese out of respect for their human rights.

He also noted the ad hoc committee's work in beginning the process of drafting the decree.

"Whether we like it or not, the Assembly must accept the results of the popular consultation," Matori said.

He stressed that what was most important now was for peace and stability to return to the territory, and to begin the process of reconciliation between prointegration and proindependence groups.

It is expected that the new decree, apart from separating East Timor from Indonesia, will also stress the need for Indonesia to maintain good relations with East Timor should it become independent in the future.

Administration

Meanwhile in Washington, the United States endorsed the gist of a proposal by United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan for the UN to take control of all government functions in East Timor and rebuild the battered province.

Under the proposal, an Australian-led force of about 8,000 troops would be replaced by about 8,950 UN peacekeepers who would guide the territory to statehood over two to three years.

This could add hundreds of millions of dollars to the United State's share of the cost of the peacekeeping operation. Currently, the nations participating in peacekeeping operations in East Timor are footing the bill; and with only a token U.S. force in the area, the cost to the United States is small.

AP quoted State Department spokesman James P. Rubin on Wednesday as welcoming Annan's proposal for a transitional administration in East Timor

However, Rubin said, "We'll have to obviously look carefully at the proposal and consult with the UN with respect to the size of the mission and the cost of the mission."