Timorese urged to bury hatchet
DILI, East Timor (JP): A rally of thousands marked East Timor's integration into Indonesia yesterday in front of the gubernatorial office complex here.
Students, civil servants, youths, community leaders, members of the Armed Forces (ABRI) and pro-integration leaders attended the ceremony, which was led by governor Abilio Jose Osorio Soares.
Also in attendance were the chief of the Udayana military command, which oversees security in East Timor, Maj. Gen. R. Adang Ruchiatna; speaker of the provincial legislative council Antonio Freitas Parada; and representatives from the local diocese.
Governor Abilio appealed to all parties to bury their hatchets and join hands to develop the province, which still trails behind Indonesia's other provinces.
"This (celebration) does not aim to open old wounds or rekindle animosity among the East Timorese," Abilio said. "All parties should use this occasion to forgive each other and join hand to develop the territory," Abilio said.
East Timor was integrated into Indonesia in 1976 following a civil war which erupted after the abrupt withdrawal of the Portuguese colonial administrators in 1975. The UN is yet to recognize East Timor as Indonesia's territory and considers Lisbon the administrator.
The governor acknowledged that the development efforts pursued by the Indonesian government over the past 19 years had not entirely satisfied people in the youngest province.
But he said that the government's commitment to making East Timor prosper remained strong and that locals were increasingly involved in the process.
Abilio reiterated his call for greater autonomy for the province, in view of its unique cultural background.
He stressed, however, that the autonomy he was advocating was limited to "special treatment" for the province's culture and that he was not referring to an independence that could lead to political independence for East Timor.
"There is no way East Timor can be financially independent because almost 99 percent of its budget has to be provided by Jakarta," Abilio told a press conference.
Meanwhile, East Timor military commander Col. Mahidin Simbolon told journalists that the number of Fretilin armed separatist rebels was dwindling.
"But we don't mean to wipe them out with armed force. We are still appealing them to voluntarily surrender and we will treat them well," Simbolon said.
On a number of occasions local military officials have even promised to help Fretilin activists find jobs if they turned themselves in and repented.
According to Maj. Gen. Adang Ruchiatna, ABRI has two combat battalions and seven territorial battalions in East Timor.
Territorial battalions' main job is to help local people build public facilities, such as roads and bridges, and to introduce the people to modern farming techniques.
"What other country assigns its military to carry out such missions in remote villages?" he asked. He added that the military also carried out such civic missions in other provinces, especially in poor ones like East Nusa Tenggara.
Abilio said the government was planning to build a US$150 million hydro-electric power plant in East Timor with funds to be provided by the European Union. (yac/pan)