---------------------------------------------------------- Visit Indonesia Daily News Online HomePage: http://www.indo-news.com/ and click banner our sponsor ---------------------------------------------------------- KOLOM SUPANGKAT: WHY NOBODY HEEDED BISHOP BELO'S GESURES? The Suharto regime pressured the Vatican to tell Bishop Belo not get involved in politics and to install a second Bishop to balance him in East Timor. I don't know whether there was a "quid pro quo" for this deal but the Vatican obliged and the regime managed to silence him. His Nobel Peace Prize and the fall of the Suharto regime both unleashed Belo from his non-poliitical status. Statements after statements he made has heightened his image. During Suharto's tenure, Belo was summoned to the capital, nobody knew what they said to him. Now he has the guts to refuse the invitation by President Habi- bie. According to Belo who has met him once, a second meeting is unwarranted since there would be no breakthrough. President Habibie would feel humiliated to talk to Xanana the prisoner even when he wanted to. After the guerilla leader was moved to private house, he delegated Minister of Justice Muladi to tell Xanana that "he is here not to just sit but to talk". Now Belo is no longer under surveilance or under restriction. His image as both spiritual and moral leader is getting stronger. He has the guts to refuse a Pres- idential invitation for talks. Bishop Belo now says that "the Timorese leaders do not represent the people", and "President Habibie's new statements on East Timor has to be legitimized by a Presidential decree". He wants the people to talk, negotiate their differences. He is not blind to the fact that the integrationists went to Jakarta to talk but the pro-independence and the guerillas did not.He wants them to talk too. It is undisputed now that Bishop Belo is just the kind of leader both Indonesia and Portugal need to bring a peaceful settlement by negotiating the way and means of voting. But his gestures went by unheeded. He is in the field and he is opening up to Portugal, Indonesia, the integrationist and the pro-independence people. Apparently he agreed with UN Secretary Gen- eral Kofi Annan that the solution of the problem must involve the East Timorese people. Indonesia's position which refused referendum, plebiscite or any voting system is clearly getting more isolated except by the integrationists whose numbers only God knows. Now they tried to persuade Belo to be more pro-integration without referendum as the last option in the long run as he always wanted. It is impossible for Portugal to ask Belo to do more than he already had done. But the UN Secretary General could ask him to set up a preliminary dialog among the pro- in- dependence and the integrationists becase he is the only East Timorese leader, even a spiritual one who is in position has has access to them. H.S.Hidayat Supangkat United Nations correspondent ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Didistribusikan tgl. 16 Feb 1999 jam 16:03:37 GMT+1 oleh: Indonesia Daily News Online <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> http://www.Indo-News.com/ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
