---------------------------------------------------------- Visit Indonesia Daily News Online HomePage: http://www.indo-news.com/ Please Visit Our Sponsor http://www.indo-news.com/cgi-bin/ads1 ---------------------------------------------------------- ANTARA, July 12 1999 Ballot-registration: RI Objects To UN Security Concerns Behind Delays New York, July 12 (ANTARA) - Indonesia has stated its objection to the assertion taken by the United Nations that security concerns are behind the delays it has made on the popular consultation in East Timor, including the latest one announced by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan pertaining to the beginning of the registration day. When contacted by ANTARA here Sunday morning, Indonesia's Deputy Representative to the UN, Ambassador Arizal Effendi, said Indonesian objectived to security matters being cited as the reason for the postponement. He said that the technical readess of the UN Mission in East Timor (UNAMET)-whose purpose is support the direct ballot on autonomy in the territory- should also be taken into consideration as the cause of the postponement. Here on Saturday, Annan announced-through his letter to the UN Security Council- that he decided to delay the voter registration from July 13 to 16 due to unfavourable security situations. "...the security situation (in East Timor) remains serious despite the deployment of UNAMET personnel," Annan said in his letter to Security Council President, Hasmy Agam, dated on July 10. Previously, Annan had also announced a two-week delay of the polling day from the scheduled August 8 for the same reason. The Indonesian government has rejected the accusations, saying that the security in its 27th province has been steadily improving. Effendi, meanwhile, admitted that there were sometimes security problems in several districts in the former Portuguese colony of East Timor, but he strongly believes that, in general, the situation has been improving. He said that several incidents that have happened in the districts can not be generalized as bad security conditions all over East Timor. "I have explained to UN officials that problems in Manhattan, for example, do not mean that the whole city of New York is unsafe. And so also is the case in East Timor that an incident in a district does not have to reflect the situation in the province completely," he said. UNAMET-UNSCOM Meanwhile, an observer on the East Timor question said that UNAMET needs to be neutral if it does not want to be the next UNSCOM, the UN's disarmament mission to Iraq. Led by Australian executive chairman Richard Butler, UNSCOM (UN Special Commission), which was established in 1991 on the Iraq- Kuwait dispute, was widely-condemned as being exploited by western intelligences, especially US ones. As UNSCOM was accused by Iraq for not being neutral, the United Nations backed it, saying that the commission practiced neutrality in carrying out its duty in Iraq. However, UNSCOM has lately become a problem for the UN since it was proven that the commission was exploited by US intelligence agencies. Up to now, no one likely intends to replace Butler. A candidate, Dhanapala, has said that he would have been ready to replace Butler as long as he was granted authorization to recruit personnel by himself in order to avoid being exploited by certain interests. Citing the UNSCOM case as an example, the observer- who refused to be named- said that there have been indications that UNAMET is also utilized by certain interests. "It can be seen through some facts that every incident occuring in East Timor, involved the same UN personnel. It needs to be investigated," he said. (LNY01/NN07/INT-TA/nn-03/11:59/tb06) ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Didistribusikan tgl. 16 Jul 1999 jam 07:03:20 GMT+1 oleh: Indonesia Daily News Online <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> http://www.Indo-News.com/ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
