U.S., EU concerned over security in East Timor

U.S., EU concerned over security in East Timor

SINGAPORE (JP): The United States and the European Union
expressed concern over security in East Timor on Monday, warning
that failure to ensure a conducive environment could foil plans
for a fair referendum in the disputed province.

"We look to the Indonesian government to meet its obligation
to create a secure and credible environment for the August vote,"
U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said at a meeting of
the ASEAN Regional Forum here.

"We are deeply concerned by continuing violence that could
create an atmosphere of intimidation and preclude a fair
referendum."

Albright was one of the 22 foreign ministers attending the
annual consultation forum on regional political and security
issues.

President B.J. Habibie's government decided earlier this year
to allow East Timor, which was integrated into Indonesia in 1976,
to choose between wide-ranging autonomy as part of the country or
independence.

Reasons for the postponement of the United Nations-sponsored
ballot from the originally scheduled Aug. 8 include fears over
the security situation.

Albright said she welcomed the presence of the UN Mission in
East Timor (UNAMET), describing it as a positive development.

"We encourage both proindependence and prointegration East
Timorese to work together to build a future better than the
past."

Speaking in her capacity as president of the Council of the
European Union, Finnish foreign minister Tarja Halonen noted that
"preparations for the ballot have been marked by incidents of
violence and intimidation that could jeopardize a free and fair
polling".

Halonen urged Jakarta to take "sufficient measures" to ensure
the ballot can be conducted in peaceful conditions.

"The settlement of the East Timor question will have wider
positive implications for southeast Asia as a whole and we urge
the international community to help in every possible way," she
said.

Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas responded by
listing the steps taken by the Indonesian government and
explained the complexity of the situation because the two rival
Timorese factions were involved in a long-standing historical
dispute.

He underlined Indonesia's desire to see a peaceful settlement
regardless of the outcome of the ballot because continued
conflicts could only be detrimental to the country in raising new
problems, such as refugees.

The Indonesian foreign ministry's director general for
political affairs, Nugroho Wisnumurti, told The Jakarta Post that
apart from the concerns expressed, countries such as Australia
and the Philippines commended Jakarta on its steps to help
facilitate the implementation of the ballot.

In East Timor's capital Dili, a member of the prointegration
militia group Aitarak was stabbed to death on Monday afternoon
during a clash with proindependence supporters at Mercado Lama
Market, eyewitnesses said.

The victim, a Buginese from Sulawesi known only as Botak,
became involved in the clash while guarding the market. Another
two people were seriously wounded during the brawl, but police
were unable to identify them.

"After Botak's death, the prointegrationists opened fire on
their rivals and forced people to stop their activities," one of
the witnesses said.

Aitarak militia members also barred UNAMET personnel from
entering the market. East Timor Police spokesman Capt. Widodo
refused comment, saying police were still conducting their
investigation.

Also on Monday, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) chairman Abdurrahman
Wahid arrived in Dili for a two-day visit to meet with Dili
Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo, government, military and
community leaders in a bid to accelerate the peace process in the
province.

In New York, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan was scheduled to
report to the UN Security Council later on Monday his decision
whether the direct ballot would take place on Aug. 21 or Aug. 22,
or be postponed again. (33/prb/mds)