UNAMET pulls seven personel from Viqueque
JAKARTA (JP): The United Nations Assistance Mission in East Timor (UNAMET) temporarily pulled seven of its 13 personnel from Viqueque following a death threat from an armed prointegration militia group, its spokesman said on Thursday.
The UNAMET acting spokesman, Hiro Ueki, said the 20 strong- militia demonstrated in front of the UN mission post on Wednesday afternoon, and shouted threatening remarks at the personnel.
"A group of militia men with some weapons surrounded the house, threatening UNAMET should go home or they would be killed," Ueki told The Jakarta Post.
Ueki, who is temporarily replacing spokesman David Wimhurst during his absence, said UNAMET decided to transfer the seven volunteers to Dili, but retained six personnel, including three police advisors.
"Today the situation was calm. We will continue to assess the situation tomorrow, and will decide later whether we can send them back to Viqueque," Ueki said.
The attack in Viqueque, 171 kilometers east of Dili, was the second incident after a UNAMET post in the Bobonaro district town of Maliana on Tuesday was ransacked, injuring at least seven people including one UN personnel. Police were still questioning 10 suspects in the Maliana incident.
East Timor Police spokesman Capt. Widodo D.S. said the demonstration in Viqueque, led by Regerio da Silva Amaral and Filomeno Soares Sarmento, was peaceful, and merely aimed to demand UNAMET remain neutral and fair, as its presence in the province tended to take sides with the anti-integration group, Antara reported. The UN has dismissed such allegations.
"Since the arrival of UNAMET's presence in Viqueque, the security condition has turned around from a conducive condition to an insecure one," Widodo quoted the demonstration leader as saying.
A journalist at Suara Timor Timur (STT) reported on his return from Viqueque that the protesters demanded a thorough investigation on the murder of three friends in Lacluta district last month, and another missing in Uimaro subdistrict in Viqueque. Neither UNAMET or the UN civilian police are authorized to investigate crimes.
"During the demonstration, the power supply and telephone lines were paralyzed," Germano de Sousa told the Post.
From Canberra, AP reported Prime Minister John Howard as saying on Thursday he would write to President B.J. Habibie to protest the attack in Maliana.
He also revealed for the first time his personal misgivings about sending unarmed Australian personnel to East Timor.
"We agonized before the police went, about whether they were armed or not," the prime minister said.
East Timor deputy police chief Col. Muafi Sahudji confirmed on Thursday that 400 Falintil soldiers, the armed wing of the proindependence Council for East Timor Resistance (CNRT), signed a peace agreement with rivals in Suai city of Covalima regency on Wednesday. East Timor Military commander Col. Tono Suratman was present at the ceremony.
Minister of Defense and Security/Indonesian Military (TNI) chief Gen. Wiranto said on Wednesday at least 1,000 Falintil soldiers would soon leave the jungle to follow in the steps of their 220 colleagues.
"Police are ready to accommodate and guarantee the security of Falintil members who agree to leave the mountains, including the 400 people," East Timor deputy police chief Col. Muafi Saudji said.
In Dili, about 60 youths from the Renetil and Impetu proindependence groups rallied against the government decision to ban self-exiled Jose Ramos Horta to visit his homeland after an absence of 23 years.
"All East Timorese have the right to come," he said, as quoted by AFP.
In a written report to a Cabinet meeting, Minister of Foreign Ali Alatas insisted on Wednesday Horta would not be allowed to visit the territory for the sake of his own safety. Alatas said last month the government might consider permission as long as Horta did not campaign there.
Horta, the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize co-laureate, arrived in Jakarta on Saturday to attend peace talks which concluded on Wednesday. He said he accepted the ban, which also applied to all East Timorese coming to the talks from overseas.
In front of the hotel where the meeting was held, a prointegration group issued on Wednesday a death threat against Horta if he tried to return home.
"He will be killed as soon as he arrives in East Timor by the Aitarak or the Besi Merah Putih (armed militia group)," group leader Joao Angelo de Sousa said.(33/prb)