Jakarta alone is responsible for ending West Timor attacks,
Security Council told
29 September --The head of the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) told the Security Council today that the Government of Indonesia alone was responsible for dealing with violent militia in West Timor.
Briefing the Council in New York, UNTAET chief Sergio Vieira de Mello said the militia were the root cause of problems between Dili and Jakarta. "Only when this problem has been effectively addressed will we be able to resolve the plight of the remaining East Timorese refugees and focus on developing friendly cooperation between East Timor and Indonesia," he said.
Referring to Indonesia's current attempts to 'persuade' the militias to surrender their weapons, Mr. Vieira de Mello said he remained "sceptical" that the measures would be effective. He suggested instead that Indonesia put together a coordinated strategy to "hunt down and break up the militias and bring their leaders to justice."
Mr. Vieira de Mello also recounted to the Security Council the events of 24 September in Atambua, West Timor, where an UNTAET delegation attending a disarmament ceremony was threatened and detained by an agitated crowd of pro-militia supporters led by Eurico Guterres, whom the UN official called a "well-known suspect of crimes against humanity." Moreover, according to a senior Indonesian army official in West Timor, there were still no suspects in the killings of three UN aid workers in Atambua on 5 September, he said.
"There could hardly be a more eloquent demonstration of Indonesia's current inability - or refusal - to deal effectively with the problem," he said. "This is impunity running rampant."
On a more positive note, the UNTAET chief reported that considerable progress had been made in the reconstruction of East Timor. Since mid-July, a new Cabinet structure had become operational, setting policies related to taxation, criminal procedure, transportation and public building reconstruction. Plans are also under way for the holding of national elections in the latter half of 2001, including a civic education campaign, approval of a law on political parties and the creation of a framework in which to hold the vote.
Following Mr. Vieira de Mello's briefing, the Council engaged in an open discussion of the situation in East and West Timor, with more than 20 delegates taking part in the deliberations.
