Repatriation of East Timorese continuing: UNHCR spokesman

Repatriation of East Timorese continuing: UNHCR spokesman

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The repatriation of East Timorese refugees from Indonesia's
western part of Timor island continued even throughout the
presidential election in East Timor on Sunday, a United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) spokesperson said on
Tuesday.

Jake Morland of the UNHCR office in Dili denied a report in
The Jakarta Post which said that the repatriation program had
been halted until May 20 due to a lack of vehicles.

The UNHCR has been working with the International Organization
for Migration (IOM) on both sides of the border to repatriate
East Timorese refugees in Indonesia, now numbering about 55,000.

"The UNHCR and the IOM are at the border now, waiting for
refugees to cross into East Timor," Morland said by phone from
Dili. "We have food and non-food assistance waiting."

He rejected the suggestion that the vehicles used by UNHCR and
IOM had been seconded to other UN agencies for the purpose of
Sunday's UN-organized presidential election in East Timor.

"For the UNHCR and IOM, we'd like to confirm that it's
business as usual. The borders are open, our trucks and buses are
running and we're ready to receive all refugees who want to
return to East Timor," Morland said.

The Post, quoting Col. Moesanip, chief of the East Nusa
Tenggara Military Command, said the repatriation program had been
halted until May 20, when the United Nations would formally
transfer power to the newly elected government in East Timor.

"We strongly refute the report," Morland said.

However, the head of the IOM office in Kupang, Johanis B.
Suparanto, told the Post on Tuesday the repatriation program was
suspended for three days starting on Friday for security reasons
on the eve of the presidential election in East Timor.

"This morning (Tuesday), I talked with the Belu district
military chief, Lt. Col. Didi Sudiana. He said the border area
was closed for three days because of the presidential election.
So, the repatriation was temporarily halted. But since Monday,
the repatriation has resumed," he said.

The refugees are among the more than 200,000 East Timorese who
fled the territory in the wake of the violence that erupted after
the self-determination vote in August 1999. Pro-Indonesia
militias went on a rampage immediately after learning that an
overwhelming majority of East Timorese had voted for
independence.

Since then, the United Nations has been at pains in
repatriating the refugees, a slow process because of perceived
uncertainties awaiting them in their homeland as well as alleged
intimidation by militias in the refugee camps.

The repatriation was accelerated after Indonesia set a January
deadline for the refugees to return to East Timor or be resettled
elsewhere in Indonesia.

Suparanto said at least 8,625 refugees had returned to East
Timor between January and April this year. He added that March
saw the largest exodus during this period, with about 4,000
people traveling home to East Timor.

He said the IOM had so far covered the transportation costs
for returning refugees. "The Indonesian Military helps provide
vehicles to carry them home, but the IOM pays the costs."