| Subject: RT: Special Timor council to be set up
after vote Date: Sat, 14 Aug 1999 10:15:27 -0400 From: "John M. Miller" <fbp@igc.apc.org> Received from Joyo Indonesian News: Special Timor council to be set up after vote JAKARTA, Aug 13 (Reuters) - The United Nations has endorsed the setting up of a special council to oversee the disputed region of East Timor after it holds an August 30 ballot on independence, a top U.N. official said on Friday. There are widespread fears that the post-ballot period could be violent and that pro-Jakarta forces may reject a vote for independence, which is the widely expected result. The council is expected to come into effect the day after the ballot. The plan had been agreed by pro-Jakarta and pro-independence leaders who met earlier this week under a U.N.-organised talks in Jakarta, Jamsheed Marker told a news conference. ``They have come out with an understanding which included the formation of an East Timorese consultative body aimed at facilitating East Timorese cooperation and reconciliation in the aftermath of the popular consultation,'' Marker said. ``This body will be made up of 25 representatives,'' Marker added. Pro-independence Falintil guerrillas have said they will not accept a vote for special autonomy within Indonesia, as they do not believe such a result is possible in a free ballot. Details remain unclear but Portugal's special envoy to Indonesia told reporters that the committee would consist of 10 officials each from pro-Jakarta and pro-independence groups. ``Another five come from a neutral body, such as the church,'' Ana Gomes said, adding that U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan would endorse the officials' appointments. She said the committee would come into effect on August 31, a day after the ballot. Marker was in Jakarta to attend a senior officials meeting between Indonesia, Portugal and the U.N. aimed at discussing the situation in East Timor after the historic ballot. Marker described the meeting as both ``positive and constructive'' and said that they had very productive discussions on issues related to the situation after the ballot. Indonesia invaded East Timor, for centuries a colony of Portugal, in 1975 and annexed it in the following year in a move never recognised by the U.N. The U.N still regards Lisbon as East Timor's administering power. The next senior officials' meeting is scheduled to be held on August 26 in Lisbon. Back to August Menu |