---------------------------------------------------------- FREE for JOIN Indonesia Daily News Online via EMAIL: go to: http://www.indo-news.com/subscribe.html - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - Dengan mengClick banner sponsor anda menyumbang Rp. 1000,- untuk HomePage IndoNews. ---------------------------------------------------------- KOLOM SUPANGKAT: INDONESIA WOULDN'T TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER Indonesia wouldn't take no for an answer. Opposition leader Megawati Sukarnopute- ri takes a hardline position in rejecting the sullen policy of the cabinet, saying that once East Timorese are our brothers they should stay as our brothers forever. President Habibie always says that he wants to do whatever the Timorese wants, autonomy OK, independence OK as soon as the end of this year. His foreign policy adviser Dewi Fortuna Anwar went further, she wants to sponsor the membeship of ASEAN after its independence. So far so nice to hear until we heard from Foreign Minister Alatas that there is absolutely no referendum because referendum will bring civil war instead of peace. The only alternative for referendum is consultation of a few thousands selected people, no matter that there are indeed 800.000 people in East Timor. Of course such a position is not acceptable to both Portugal and UN Secretary General and his personal assistant Jamsheed Marker. Let alone the pro-indepen- dence people in East Timor and abroad whose total could not be verified without free and open referendum or plebiscite or any voting system. So far they have been locked out, even the All Intra East Timorese Dialog has been disconnected vehemently from theTripartite by Indonesia. Who in the world would believe that 8000 (1%) or up to 80.000 (10%) could be counted as representing the 800.000 population of East Timor? This is a charade we are presenting to the whole world notably after we massacred them in Santa Cruz and persecuted the pro-independence movement, crushed the guerillas? We are promising independence only after pushing their head into the impassable needlehole: rejection of autonomy by a bunch is OK but not by referendum of the whole 800.000 population, then the proposal for independence will be presented to the next elected regime by August 1999. This kind of logic drives me nuts! H.S.Hidayat Supangkat ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Didistribusikan tgl. 19 Feb 1999 jam 10:04:26 GMT+1 oleh: Indonesia Daily News Online <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> http://www.Indo-News.com/ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
