Police take over security in E. Timor

Police take over security in E. Timor

DILI, East Timor (JP): The East Timor Provincial Police took
over security affairs in the territory from the military on
Saturday in a move to create a conducive security climate ahead
of the United Nations-sponsored ballot.

The transfer of authority was marked by the admission of 460
Mobile Brigade personnel and the withdrawal of 1,500 combat
troops from the province in two separate ceremonies here.

Provincial Police chief Col. Timbul Silaen, who received the
Mobile Brigade officers, said their main mission was to maintain
security, enforce the law and protect the UN Assistance Mission
in East Timor (UNAMET), who are in the province to help organize
the ballot.

"With the new authority, the police are expected to take
charge of stopping crimes, the illegal possession of guns,
violence and intimidation against local people. We are present
here to ensure the legal certainty (of the ballot) and to create
a feeling of safety among the people," he said.

He said 3,900 security personnel from the provincial police
force had been deployed to eight regencies to maintain security
ahead of the Indonesian general election on Monday until the Aug.
8 ballot. The ballot will determine whether the East Timorese
accept an autonomy package or establish an independent nation.

The Mobile Brigade personnel, who arrived here on Saturday,
will be deployed to three other regencies. Approximately 4,000
more Mobile Brigade personnel are scheduled to arrive in the near
future to help protect the UN mission.

"They are part of more than 8,000 Mobile Brigade police to be
deployed to the province ... we are making arrangements with
UNAMET on the deployment," Timbul said, adding that some 280 UN
civilian police advisers were due to arrive in the near future to
help police carry out their task.

Separately, East Timor Military District chief Col. Tono
Suratman said the military personnel pullout was a follow-up to
an earlier withdrawal of troops last August.

"Military personnel are being pulled out because the situation
in the province has been improving ... they are waiting for new
assignments to other areas," he said in the ceremony, which was
attended by local officials, Catholic Church authorities. UNAMET
spokesman David Wimhurst and several members of the National
Commission on Human Rights.

Disarmament

In a move to create a secure condition ahead of the ballot and
to stop violence and intimidation in the province, Timbul said
police would cooperate with the Peace and Stability Commission
and UNAMET to disarm warring factions.

"The commission has its own task to disarm the conflicting
factions, while the police and UNAMET will help the commission do
its task," he said.

The commission, chaired by Djoko, also a member of the human
rights commission, has 30 members representing the conflicting
factions, the police, the military district and the rights
commission.

Timbul said the prointegration militia had handed over 45
home-made guns to police.

Koesparmono Irsan, another commission member, was optimistic
the group would be able to disarm the conflicting factions in the
next two months.

"In cooperation with the police and UNAMET, we have initiated
several humane approaches to the conflicting factions, which are
committed to soon disarming their respective members. We are now
in the final stages of sealing an agreement between the two
sides," he said.

Since January, dozens of East Timorese have been killed in
clashes between the warring factions.

Eurico Guterres, deputy commander of the prointegration
militia, said his group would not agree to a cease-fire or hand
weapons over to police if UNAMET did not urge the proindependence
group to follow the same directive.

He accused UNAMET of favoring the proindependence faction by
giving protection to a group of the faction's youths at its
headquarters. He said the mission had failed to help an estimated
8,000 prointegration people taking refugee in Atambua, West
Timor.

He also said UNAMET should be responsible for an incident at
UNAMET headquarters and demanded the organization issue an
official apology through the media.

In the Thursday incident, a group of proindependence youths
damaged official cars owned by East Timor Governor Abilio Soares,
Ambassador at Large Lopez da Cruz and Dili Mayor Mateus Maia when
they attended the official opening of the UNAMET office in Dili.
(rms/33)