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)