Subject: IHT- Interview with Ali Alatas on E. Timor
From: "Paula" <paularoque@mail.telepac.pt>Received from Joy: Paris,
Wednesday, February 3, 1999
Jakarta Goal for East Timor: Autonomy
Q & A /Ali Alatas, Foreign Minister
By Robert Kroon International Herald Tribune
In a surprise move, the Indonesian government said last week it was ready to pull out
of East Timor if no better solution could be found for the former Portuguese colony it
annexed in 1976. Indonesia's foreign minister, Ali Alatas, discussed the issue with Robert
Kroon of the International Herald Tribune. -
Q. You have always referred to East Timor as the ''pebble in the Indonesian shoe.'' Are
you now ready to remove that pebble once and for all and accept independence for East
Timor?
A. There is some misinterpretation here. Indonesia does not intend to discard East
Timor just like that. For the past several weeks, we have been talking at UN headquarters
in New York with Portugal about the territory's future, under the auspices of
Secretary-General Kofi Annan. East Timorese representatives, both here and abroad, are
also being consulted.
What we have in mind is very wide-ranging autonomy for the territory, and right now we
are trying to fill in the details to make this meaningful for all concerned. It involves
security matters, the economy, political ramifications and cultural affairs. I'll be back
in New York in a few weeks to take stock of negotiations.
Q. Is the Fretilin leader Xanana Gusmao, who is serving a 20-year sentence in Jakarta
for sedition, also taking part?
A. Yes, Xanana Gusmao is part of the process. He will be released from Cipinang prison
this week and moved to a private house.
Q. What would be the relationship between East Timor and Jakarta in the construction
you have in mind?
A. Granting far-reaching autonomy to East Timor would be unprecedented in Indonesian
history, but there are many examples in other countries. The self- rule status now being
proposed for Kosovo is a case in point.
Q. Self-rule, wide-ranging or not, still falls short of total independence.
A. That's right, but it is the best solution. If we cannot agree on an autonomous
status with the parties by April, the only alternative may be abandoning East Timor
altogether. That doesn't mean we will pack up in anger. We will hand the problem back to
the people.
Q. What does that mean?
A. Well, by April, Indonesia will move into general elections for the Peoples'
Consultative Assembly. East Timor will also elect its representatives, and if they opt for
independence, so be it.
Q. Ramos Horta, East Timor's representative-at-large, and Xanana Gusmao have always
insisted on a referendum so the people can decide their own future. Is that acceptable to
Indonesia now?
A. No. A referendum is a recipe for civil conflict. Already now there is fighting
between pro- and anti-independence factions, and we don't want to be stuck with this
problem for another couple of years.
Q. You have long argued that a poor ministate of 800,000 people is not viable. If you
dump East Timor, wouldn't you just hand another basket case to the international
community?
A. I don't want to go into that now. Anyway, Ramos Horta doesn't agree with that point
of view. We are not dumping East Timor, and that's why we think wide-ranging autonomy is
by far the most realistic, rational and viable formula for a peaceful solution.
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