Twelve Timorese seek asylum at Polish Embassy

Twelve Timorese seek asylum at Polish Embassy

JAKARTA (JP): The Polish Embassy became the latest foreign
mission yesterday to fall prey to young East Timorese asylum
seekers.

Twelve of them scaled the embassy walls on Jl. Diponegoro in
Central Jakarta at around midday. They requested refugee status.

"Their request has been forwarded to Poland," embassy official
J. Grabowski told The Jakarta Post yesterday afternoon.

He could neither predict the chances of Warsaw consenting to
their request nor say how long it would take before a response
would be given.

Embassy officials said the youths had been given water.

Their average age is between 17 and 18 years old, with the
eldest being in his 30s, according to one source.

Apart from requesting political asylum, they have delivered a
petition demanding Timorese self-government.

In the past five months, 50 Timorese youths have forced their
way into embassies in Jakarta and sought political asylum. All 50
had their original request for asylum rejected, and left the
embassies only after Portugal agreed to take them.

Just over a week ago, five East Timorese left for Lisbon after
spending several nights at the New Zealand Embassy located just a
kilometer down the road from the Polish Embassy.

The former Portuguese colony of East Timor was integrated as
part of Indonesia in 1976.

The United Nations, which still regards Lisbon as the
administering power in East Timor, has been sponsoring meetings
between the Portuguese and Indonesian foreign ministers to find
an internationally acceptable solution. The last meeting was held
in London on Jan. 16.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Director of Information
Ghaffar Fadyl yesterday questioned the motivation of the youths'
action.

"If they wish to leave, why should they jump over the fence?"
he said pointing out that the government is not obstructing them
in anyway.

He noted that by looking at their age, it is evident that they
did not themselves experience the Timorese struggle under
Portuguese occupation.

"It isn't wrong to say that they are misguided by
disinformation campaigns from the likes of Ramos Horta and other
NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) that oppose Indonesia," he
remarked.

Meanwhile in the East Timor provincial capital of Dili, police
yesterday were questioning 23 people who tried sneak their way
into Australia by commandeering a fishing boat on Jan. 19.

East Timor police chief Col. Sugianto Andreas said in Dili
that they had used similar tactics of previous "boat people" who
fled to Australia.

"They rented a boat for Kaisar Island (southeast Maluku). But
by the time they were at sea, they threatened (the crew) and
demanded to be taken to Australia," Sugianto said as quoted by
Antara.

Five women were reportedly among the 23 that tried to sail for
Australia.

The attempt was foiled by the boat's four sailors who managed
to furtively steer the boat back towards East Timor.(mds)