Talks with Pretoria on East Timor loom

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas said yesterday Indonesia was ready to discuss the East Timor question with South African officials, including President Nelson Mandela.

He was quoted by Antara as saying President Soeharto's visit to South Africa today is in exchange for Mandela's visit to Indonesia last July, and is not intended to specifically focus on the East Timor issue.

"It is normal if the East Timor issue is touched upon during discussions. It would be strange if it was not touched upon," the minister told reporters in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia, the site of talks between President Soeharto and Namibian President Sam Nujoma yesterday.

President Soeharto's visit to South Africa ends Saturday.

During his visit to Indonesia, Mandela raised the issue of East Timor, and visited jailed East Timorese separatist leader Xanana Gusmao.

The former Portuguese colony was integrated as Indonesia's 27th province in 1976, but the United Nations still considers Lisbon the administering power.

Alatas said Mandela supported talks between Indonesia and Portugal under the auspices of the United Nations Secretary- General.

Earlier yesterday, during bilateral talks at the State House in Windhoek, Soeharto told Nujoma that Indonesia is ready to exchange experiences with Namibia in the mining sector, Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono said.

According to Moerdiono, Nujoma has invited Indonesian businesspeople to benefit from Africa's export processing zone as a gateway to the region's market.

Namibia and 14 other countries in the region have established the Southern African Economic Development Community (SADEC). The organization accommodates a market of 200 million people.

At a banquet held by Nujoma Tuesday, Soeharto said Indonesia understands the meaning of human rights, dignity and independence because the nation experienced the bitterness of colonialism for 350 years.

It was the reason why Indonesia consistently assisted in Namibia's liberation from colonialism until they declared their independence from South Africa in 1990.

"Currently, Indonesia and Namibia are facing the same enemy, that is poverty, backwardness, injustice and the economic gap," Soeharto said.

He praised Namibia's impressive economic progress and its success in promoting democracy and human rights, and maintaining political stability.

"Our two countries are against colonialism and jointly stick to the peaceful coexistence principle. We believe that relations among nations must be based on noninterference principles in our own domestic affairs," Soeharto said. (10/prb)