U.S. ship brings aid to E. Timor; RI invites aid groups to return
U.S. ship brings aid to E. Timor; RI invites aid groups to return
DILI, East Timor (AP): A U.S. warship arrived in Dili Saturday to take part in an ongoing American humanitarian mission in East Timor as an Indonesian general invited foreign aid workers to return to the violence-wracked western half of the island.
The 25 marines and 200 sailors on board the ship, the USS O'Brien, will spend two days in the devastated city repairing a school and hosting boy scouts, said Cmdr. Stephen Beckvonpeccoz.
The humanitarian mission is the U.S. Navy's fifth to the territory since its people overwhelmingly voted in a U.N.- supervised ballot to break free from Indonesian rule 13 months ago.
Last month, four warships, including guided missile carrier USS Bunker Hill and amphibious assault ship USS Tarawa, conducted operations in East Timor waters for three days.
The flotilla arrived a week after anti-independence militiamen killed three U.N. refugee workers in the West Timor town of Atambua. Militia gangs, which are backed by some sections of the Indonesian military, fled across the border when international troops ended their orgy of violence and destruction in East Timor after last year's referendum
The presence of the Bunker Hill fueled speculation that Washington was sending a warning to Jakarta to clamp down on the militias, which have been using the Indonesian province of West Timor as a springboard for armed incursions into East Timor.
On Saturday, West Timor's military commander Maj. Gen. Kiki Syahnakri said he had invited international relief organizations to return to the province.
Aid workers helping the estimated 130,000 East Timorese refugees in the area fled the territory after the Atambua slayings. They have demanded security guarantees before continuing their work.
"The situation there is even safer than before the Atambua incident," he was quoted as saying by Indonesia's online news service Satunet.com.
Beckvonpeccoz said security levels would remain normal during O'Brien's visit to East Timor.
"It's always prudent to be concerned about threats in the area so we will have some marines to provide security for people at the sites, but they will not be patrolling the city," said Beckvonpeccoz. "It's not like the USS Tarawa (visit) with 2,000 marines. This is just one destroyer."
He also denied speculation that the U.S. was thinking of setting up a military base in East Timor.