Subject: LUSA: Timorese students stage protest in
Surabaya
Date: Fri, 25 Sep 1998 07:25:18 -0400 (EDT)
From: "Sharon R.A. Scharfe" <pet@web.net>25 SET 98 - 11:37 East Timor:
East Timorese students stage protest in Surabaya
Jakarta, Sept. 25 (Lusa) - A group of East Timorese students held a peaceful protest
rally in the East Javanese capital of Surabaya on Thursday, demanding an immediate
referendum in the occupied territory.
Dozens of university students and pro-democracy activists from other parts in Indonesia
joined the East Timorese protesters in the half-hour rally in front of the US consulate in
the city.
A statement handed to a US consular official outlined three demands: An immediate
referendum on independence for East Timor, rejection of a ''special autonomy'' status
offered by Jakarta and mediation by the United Nations to ensure an internationally
supervised referendum in the occupied territory.
''Implement UN resolutions and hold referendum in East Timor,'' and ''Autonomy No,
Referendum Yes,'' were among the slogans on banners unfurled during the half-hour protest
rally.
Indonesian occupied East Timor, a former Portuguese overseas province, in December
1975. Jakarta annexed the half-island off northern Australia in July 1976.
However, the UN still considers Portugal the rightful administering power of East
Timor. Portugal and Indonesia have held talks on the issue of East Timor under the
auspices of the UN in New York.
Indonesia's new regime under B.J. Habibie has offered to grant ''special autonomy'' to
East Timor in return for international recognition of its sovereignty over the territory
of some 800,000 inhabitants.-Lusa nnnn
Copyright© 1996 Agência Lusa E-Mail Agência Lusa
For more information on Parliamentarians for East Timor, Please Contact: Sharon
Scharfe, International Secretariat Parliamentarians for East Timor Suite 116, 5929-L
Jeanne D'Arc Blvd., Orleans, ON K1C 7K2 CANADA Fax: 1-613-834-2021 E-Mail: pet@web.net
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