Vietnam to accept boat people

JAKARTA (JP): Vietnam yesterday pledged to prepare for the return of the more than 8,000 Vietnamese boat people in Indonesia, despite ongoing hunger strikes by some opposed to their repatriation.

The fate of the boat people, currently living in camps on Galang Island in Riau, was discussed by President Soeharto and Vietnamese President Le Duc Anh during their meeting.

Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono, briefing reporters about the meeting, said the two agreed to settle the matter of the boat people on Galang as soon as possible.

Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Manh Cam at a press conference later was more forthcoming, saying his government will "build facilities in Vietnam to facilitate the repatriation."

Cam, who accompanied Anh during the current visit, stressed that the repatriation will be voluntary and will respect human dignity. "We have to install facilities to provide for them once they return," he explained.

The island of Galang, located just south of Singapore, has sheltered some 248,000 boat people since the establishment of a refugee camp in 1975.

A mass hunger strike has emerged on Galang in protest of the repatriation talks. Over 500 people are said to be striking, with reports of nearly 80 people already requiring medical attention due to dehydration.

The issue of Galang, along with a boundary dispute in the South China Sea were the critical bilateral issues discussed by the two presidents and their officials.

Anh is currently on a four-day state visit accompanied by his Foreign Minister, Minister of Trade Le Van Triet and Minister of Food and Agriculture Nguyen Cong Tan.

Indonesia is eager to vacate the remaining boat people so it can develop the island as part of the Batam industrial zone.

Many of the Vietnamese boat people have refused to leave the island since only a quarter of them will be resettled in "third countries" such as Canada, the United States and Australia. The remaining majority will most likely be returned to Vietnam.

The United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees (UNHCR) and government officials on Tuesday rushed to the island to deal with the crisis.

From Batam, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' director of Security, E.G. Rumayar, said the hunger strikes were carried out by those who do not wish to return to Vietnam. He explained that they are demanding to be sent to third countries.

A Comprehensive Plan of Action agreed on by Indonesia, Vietnam and the UNHCR in 1989 set requirements the refugees must meet before becoming eligible to be sent to a third country.

"We hope to empty the island by August 1995," Rumayar told Antara yesterday.

He went on to defend the fate of those on Galang island saying the world has acknowledged the Indonesian government's humane treatment of the boat people.

In Jakarta, Moerdiono also boasted of the bright prospects for those refugees given the chance to go to recipient countries like America.

"I accidentally met a former refugee from Galang island during my recent visit to Seattle. He is now working as a cook at a Japanese restaurant there," Moerdiono said.

Boundary

After the endless negotiations of the past twenty-years to demarcate a continental shelf boundary in the South China Sea, officials from both sides remained upbeat after yesterday's meeting.

"We can close this matter within a short period of time," said Cam confidently.

He said both sides had agreed to accelerate the search of a solution in accordance with international law.

The disputed territory, just north of Indonesia's Natuna island, is thought to contain vast mineral reserves.

An important result of Anh's visit here was the first official public endorsement by President Soeharto of Vietnam's quest for inclusion in the currently six-member Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).

"The President has expressed his support for Vietnam's wish to join ASEAN," Moerdiono announced.

The ASEAN members are Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines.

At present Vietnam and Laos have observer status.

"I believe it will be sooner than people expect," Cam said of Vietnam's membership prospects.

As part of Vietnam's ASEAN lobby here, Foreign Minister Cam visited Ajit Singh, the ASEAN Secretary General in Jakarta, to discuss the membership issue yesterday afternoon.

Anh is scheduled to leave for Bandung today to tour the state- owned IPTN aircraft company and the Asia-Africa Museum.

The 74-year old leader will spend a day on the holiday island of Bali before returning to Hanoi on Friday. (07)