Subject: AFP:'Too soon to withdraw troops,' says
commander
Date: Thu, 2 Jul 1998 07:50:07 +0100 (BST)
From: tapol@gn.apc.org (Tapol) AFP, 1 July 1998 Extracts only
[A slap in the face for Habibie, also a rejection of Belo's demand for the withdrawal
of Indonesian troops and their replacement by UN troops.]
Indonesia's military commander in East Timor (sic: the man they are quoting is the new
commander of the Udayana military command in Bali, which oversees East Timor) said
Wednesday it was too soon to consider a troop withdrawal from the former Portuguese
colony, Antara reported.
'East Timorese will need the military not for combat but to help them develop the
province and improve their welfare,' Major General Adam Damiri was quoted as saying.
His comments came a week after Indonesia's president Habibie pledged a gradual
withdrawal of the estimate 15,000 - 20,000 troops from East Timor.
They also came a day after a European Union delegation was forced to cut short a visit
to East Timor because of concerns that their trip had sparked an escalation of violence,
with two East Timorese killed by Indonesian troops.
The commander who was appointed last month after his predecessor was killed in a
helicopter crash, also expressed worries about demands for a referendum on
self-determination. 'We are concerned that a referendum would reopen old wounds. We do no
want to see clashes among the East Timorese people,' he said.
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