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Tuesday, 09/12/2000
Coordinating Minister For Security:
West Timor Could Explode
Reporter: Danang Sangga Buana / BI & GB
detikworld - Jakarta,Coordinating Minister for Political, Social
and Security Affairs, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, was highly critical
of the United Nations (UN) and the international community and
warned of renewed violence in West Timor in his encounter with the
press Tuesday 12/9/2000.
Yudhoyono said that Indonesia has truly observed UN security
council resolution 1319/2000, which condemned the deaths of 3 UN
workers in Atambua and urged the Indonesian government to control
the situation, after meeting with Piet A Tallau, Governor of East
Nusa Tenggara, which covers West Timor.
"The UN should trust that Indonesia has fully comprehended the
content of the UN resolution," he said.
The ministers comments come after days of intense pressure on the
Indonesian government to deal with the hundreds of militia members
who fled East Timor after the ballot on independence and are
currently holding around 90,000 East Timorese refugees in a state
of terror in Indonesian West Timor. The militias are inhibiting the
repatriation of refugees and bringing West Timor to the brink of
total lawlessness.
Both the IMF and World Bank have indicated that their financial
support may be in jeopardy if the government fails to take concrete
action.
The minister added that, as well as creating erroneous perceptions
about the situation in Indonesia internationally, the attitude of
the UN may create new dilemmas in the country. Few observers doubt
that the situation will degenerate further as the UNs total
withdrawl from West Timor has left the refugees without aid and at
the mercy of the militia.
Yudhoyono said that in his meeting with East Nusa Tenggara
Governor, Piet A Tallau, they concluded that problems arose because
of horizontal conflicts within the population. They recognised that
there are new tensions between the local population and refugees in
the camps in West Timor brewing beneath the relatively calm surface
at the moment.
Tallau apparently told the minister that conflict would definitely
resurface if the issue was not dealt with properly. "If is not
efficiently managed then this new tension will explode into
conflict at any time," Yudhoyono said quoting Tallau.
The minister also explained that the refugees are in dire need of
food supplies. Ellen Hanson, a UN spokesperson based in East Timor,
said that supplies will be exhausted within six weeks. Tallau
therefore has urged the central government to immediately deal with
this particular issue.
Despite the criticisms, the minister and government are aware that
international intervention are needed to deal with the refugee
problem and Yudhoyono also adopted a conciliatory tone. He said
that after the tragedy the government called a snap cabinet session
which came up with a thorough frame work to deal with the militia
and refugees. Yudhoyono believes that the nation is responding to
the UN security councils resolution.
The United Nations has withdrawn all personnel and refuses to
return to assist with the refugee problem until their security can
be guaranteed and the militias are disarmed. This is a difficult
task, however, as the militias are believed to be aided by elements
of the security forces which even the minister can not control.
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