Punish Dili market arsonists: Governor

Punish Dili market arsonists: Governor

DILI, East Timor (JP): The governor urged law enforcers
yesterday to take stiff action against the suspected separatist
rebels who allegedly torched the Old Mercado market on Saturday.

Abilio Jose Osorio Soares said the culprits deserved hefty
punishment because their crime had stopped hundreds of innocent
people making a living.

"Not only that, their act has also inflicted a great loss on
the state," Abilio said.

Police said five of the six alleged arsonists had been
arrested.

The arson at the market, built in 1910 by the Portuguese
colonial administration, was the latest of Fretilin separatist
rebels' escalating attacks on military and civilian targets in
the past two months.

Fretilin rebels, who have waged low-level guerrilla warfare
since East Timor became part of Indonesia in 1976, are suspected
of carrying out attacks that have killed more than 30 people in
the past month.

The flurry of attacks has drawn concern from foreign
governments and human rights campaigners.

In Wellington, New Zealand's Foreign Minister Don McKinnon
condemned yesterday reports of renewed violence in East Timor,
AFP reported.

He said he was concerned by reports that about 30 civilians,
police and soldiers had been killed in past weeks, apparently in
attacks by the independence movement Fretilin.

"The government condemns the use of violence for political
ends. It is not acceptable anywhere, or by anyone," he said.

McKinnon said New Zealand would continue to support United
Nations efforts aimed at a just, comprehensive and
internationally acceptable settlement of East Timor's
sovereignty.

"I have asked the New Zealand embassy in Jakarta to continue
to monitor developments in East Timor closely," McKinnon said.

Saturday's fire destroyed about 500 kiosks, causing a loss of
about Rp 5 billion (more than US$2 million).

Local authorities relocated traders to Comoro market in the
western suburbs and Becora market on the eastern outskirts of the
city.

Abilio said it would be too expensive to rebuild the market,
and the most that the government could do was to restore it.

He said the market arson was politically motivated and not a
form of protest over economic disparity between locals and
migrants.

"I believe all the incidents will not deter investors to
invest in East Timor," he said.

He claimed self-exiled proindependence leader Jose Ramos Horta
was behind the recent attacks and was trying to keep his idea of
an independent East Timor on the international agenda.

East Timor police chief Jusuf Mucharam told The Jakarta Post
that police had arrested five of the six people suspected of
setting fire to the Old Mercado market.

The suspects admitted to police they worked for Fretilin
leader David Alex, who coordinates activities in central East
Timor.

All of the five arrested have admitted involvement in the
ambush of a military truck in Quelicai, Baucau, on May 31.

After burning the Old Mercado market, the rebels had planned
to attack more military targets in Dili, Jusuf said.

"I don't mean to say for sure that they are security
disturbers but they admitted they were under the command of David
Alex," he said.

Meanwhile, Dili Mayor Mateus Maia said his administration
would lose Rp 1.5 billion a year in taxes from the Old Mercado
market.

He said local government had agreed to provide alternative
market places but had refused to compensate those who had lost
their livelihood.

"I propose that the customary laws be imposed on the suspects.
They should be tied to a pole in public places and people
affected by their criminal acts give their opinion on what should
be done to the culprits," he said. (33/pan)