Yunus set to clear Balibo incident

Yunus set to clear Balibo incident

JAKARTA (JP): Former minister of information Lt. Gen. (ret)
Yunus Yosfiah said on Thursday he was willing to go to Australia
to clear himself of allegations that he was involved in the
murder of five foreign journalists in Balibo, East Timor, 26
years ago.

Speaking during a hearing with House of Representatives
Commission I for security, defense and foreign affairs, Yunus
said he was willing to testify to prove his innocence in the
incident.

"I have always said to my wife that I really want to fly to
Australia to explain that I am innocent, and if they want to
arrest me, let them do so. But I knew nothing (of the murders),"
Yunus said during the hearing.

He said he had never met the five Australian-based journalists
who were murdered in East Timor in 1975.

He also said two new witnesses in the case -- Olandino
Guterres and Thomas Gonzales -- lied in their testimony.

The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported earlier this
month that United Nations investigators said they had enough
evidence to prosecute Yunus, and were preparing to seek an
international warrant to arrest him for the killing of the
journalists.

The journalists were killed in the border town of Balibo on
Oct. 16, 1975, during the chaos in the former Indonesian province
that followed Portugal's departure from East Timor.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Alwi Shihab repeatedly has said
the Indonesian government will not allow Yunus to be questioned
outside the country, especially because there is no proof of his
guilt.

Yunus contends the testimony of Guterres and Gonzales is based
on their hatred of Indonesian soldiers.

"Their accounts were inconsistent and contradicted each other
on the time, the place and the number of people involved in or
affected by the incident.

"Their testimony is a lie. I never had any direct encounter
with the journalists," he said.

Yunus was a captain when the incident took place and the field
commander of the Indonesian special forces sent to East Timor in
the wake of Portugal's departure. (dja/rms)