Subject: ETimor Leader Held Until Referendum - 'For
His Own Safety'
Date: Sat, 14 Aug 1999 09:53:58 -0400
From: Joyo@aol.com08-13-99 1203EDT
ETimor Leader Held Until Referendum
Associated Press
By SLOBODAN LEKIC
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - For his own safety, a top pro-independence leader will remain
under house arrest until after a referendum on East Timor's future, a senior Indonesian
official said Friday.
Nugroho Wisnumurti, Indonesia's negotiator for East Timor, said Indonesia wants to be
sensitive to the international community's concerns about Jose Alexandre ``Xanana''
Gusmao.
``But this consideration has to be balanced with the need for the government of
Indonesia to make sure that his security ... should be guaranteed,'' Wisnumurti said.
Gusmao heads the National Council for Timorese Resistance, which has spearheaded
opposition to Indonesian rule since Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975. He was jailed in
1992 but transferred to house arrest in January as part of preparations for the Aug. 30
U.N.-sponsored referendum, when the East Timorese will vote on whether or not to remain a
part of Indonesia.
Gusmao has attained near-legendary status among independence supporters. Many want him
to be East Timor's first head of state if voters opt for independence.
Wisnumurti was speaking Friday after a meeting of officials from the United Nations,
Indonesia and Portugal, East Timor's former colonial master. The groups are trying to
hammer out security arrangements in East Timor, which has been wracked by continuing
violence in the months leading up to the referendum.
Independence activists accuse the Indonesian military of supporting anti-independence
militias in a campaign to derail the vote. In recent days, some Indonesian officials have
warned that East Timor could slide into civil war if its people vote for independence.
But Jamsheed Marker, the U.N. envoy in charge, pronounced himself satisfied with the
security preparations.
``All parties reaffirmed their commitment to carry out their respective obligations,''
Marker said. ``This was not just a verbal reiteration of this commitment but actual
measures that will be taken.''
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