Subject: KY: E. Timor leader sees 3-year transition
period for Timor
Date: Sat, 24 Jul 1999 12:25:30 -0400
From: "John M. Miller" <fbp@igc.apc.org>E. Timor leader sees 3-year
transition period for Timor
Kyodo News
MANILA, July 24 --
Pro-independence leader Jose Ramos-Horta said Saturday his group would press for a
three-year transition period for East Timor under the supervision of the United Nations
should voters reject an autonomy deal proposed by Jakarta.
Ramos-Horta told a news conference that supporters of integration with Indonesia would
not be discriminated against in the event East Timor wins independence.
A U.N.-sponsored referendum is scheduled for either Aug. 21 or 22 to determine East
Timor 's political status. Voters will be asked whether they support autonomy or
independence from Indonesia.
Ramos-Horta, who arrived in Manila on Saturday for a six-day visit, said if the East
Timorese choose independence his group would immediately call for a conference on national
reconciliation.
"If we win the ballot we will not declare independence right away," he told
reporters.
Ramos-Horta, vice president of the National Council of Timorese Resistance, said he
would leave it up to another pro-independence leader, Xanana Gusmao, to form a government.
However, he added that pro-independence leaders favor an arrangement whereby the new
government would be under the supervision of the U.N. during the three-year period.
He also called on the Indonesian government to allow him and other pro-independence
leaders in exile to return to East Timor "because it is a test to the fairness of the
process."
"How can a democratic process, particularly a vote on the future of the country,
take place in freedom and fairness when the main resistance leaders are not allowed to go
back?" he said.
He said that in the event that the vote turns against independence, Jakarta would need
pro-independence leaders to persuade their supporters -- many of whom would be
disappointed and angry -- to accept the results.
Ramos-Horta, who lives in exile in Australia, urged the Philippines and other countries
to persuade Indonesia to allow other East Timor pro-independence leaders to return to the
troubled territory.
He said Indonesia would face serious economic repercussions from the international
community if it fails to honor its commitments to hold fair balloting and to accept its
results.
Ramos-Horta expressed disappointment that Indonesian opposition leader Megawati
Sukarnoputri appears to support the policy of ousted strongman Suharto over that of
current Indonesian President B.J. Habibie.
He said he believes that Megawati Sukarnoputri "as a newly elected leader, in a
newly elected parliament, in a newly democratic country will not dishonor the democracy by
reneging the right of the people of East Timor ."
While in Manila, Ramos-Horta is expected to meet with Philippine Foreign Secretary
Domingo Siazon, outspoken Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin, members of Congress,
businessmen, academics, journalists and Filipino activists who support East Timor 's
independence.
Organizers of his trip say Horta hopes to receive "humanitarian and political
support" for the U.N.-administered referendum in East Timor .
East Timor , a former Portuguese colony, was invaded by Indonesia in 1975 and annexed
the following year.
Back to July Menu
Human Rights Violations in East Timor
Main Postings Menu
June '98 through February '99 |
