Thousands welcome Bishop Belo in Dili
Thousands welcome Bishop Belo in Dili
JAKARTA (JP): A sea of supporters shouting "Viva Bishop Belo"
welcomed Dili Bishop Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo when he arrived
yesterday in the East Timor capital of Dili from a controversy-
plagued trip in Jakarta.
Thousands had gathered at the Komoro airport since morning to
welcome the Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Roads leading to the
airport were congested with hundreds of motorcycles and cars.
The Antara news agency estimated some 25,000 people on the
scene, mostly students and youths.
After disembarking from the plane, Belo called for calm among
the crowds. He then went to his private car, accompanied by a
chorus of religious hymns.
Belo was then taken to Dili Cathedral, where he attended mass.
The trip from the airport to the cathedral, which usually takes a
few minutes, took an hour because many from the crowds crammed
the streets.
Belo arrived in Dili after attending the Indonesian Bishops'
Conference held during the past week.
Belo has been under public scrutiny after reports filtered
back of an interview the bishop had done with German magazine Der
Spiegel, in which he reportedly said Indonesian soldiers treated
East Timorese like "scabby dogs".
In the October issue of the magazine, Belo also said the East
Timorese people were treated like "slaves" by the Indonesian
government.
Yesterday's reception in Dili was a sharp contrast to one he
received in Jakarta, where about 2,000 demonstrators from a youth
wing of Golkar launched a protest against him in front of the
House of Representatives building.
Following the demonstrations in Jakarta, thousands of youths
in Dili staged several days of sit-ins at public places in
support of Belo. Antara reported that Belo said yesterday the
demonstration of support for him in Dili was caused by the press
reports.
"The news reports inflated the whole thing," he remarked.
East Timor Vice Governor J. Haribowo concurred. He said the
press should have taken a wiser stance on issues concerning the
bishop because of the potential of far-reaching impacts.
Meanwhile, in Jakarta, the Attorney General's office has
expressed its intent to summon Belo and ask that he explain his
interview in the German magazine.
The head of the central intelligence operations, Gatot
Hendarto, was quoted as saying that the office has the legal
right to conduct such a procedure.
He was quoted in news reports yesterday as saying that Belo
could be summoned anytime.
Prior to this, members of House Commission I for security and
political affairs had also expressed their intention to call Belo
to a hearing.
Belo has, thus far, remained silent. He ducked questions from
the press and pleaded for time to hear a recording of the
interview, which was conducted in early October.
Editors of the magazine, however, have said the interview was
not recorded on tape.
In Rome, Foreign Minister Ali Alatas met yesterday with his
Vatican counterpart Archbishop Jean Lous Tauran and later said
that both Indonesia and the Vatican believed that Belo should
stay out of politics.
"We can not accept him delving into political affairs. That's
not the job he's supposed to do and not the job given to him by
the Vatican," Alatas said, reported Antara.
Alatas was in Rome to accompany President Soeharto, who is
attending the World Food Summit.
Alatas also commented on Belo's planned departure to receive
the Nobel award in Oslo on December 10. He said that Belo should
return directly to Indonesia after the ceremony.
"We don't want to see the Nobel prize exploited by Belo or
anyone else to degrade Indonesia," Alatas said. (mds)