---------------------------------------------------------- FREE for JOIN Indonesia Daily News Online via EMAIL: go to: http://www.indo-news.com/subscribe.html - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - FREE - Please Visit Our Sponsor http://www.indo-news.com/cgi-bin/ads1 ---------------------------------------------------------- Precedence: bulk ASIA-PACIFIC COALITION FOR EAST TIMOR (APCET) 05 October 1999 PRESS STATEMENT: Cosgrove is Wrong on=A0Falintil We are appalled to hear=A0 Maj. Gen. Peter Cosgrove, the Australian=A0= commander of=A0 the Interfet,=A0 calling for the disarming=A0 the=A0 Falintil guerilla= army of the East Timorese people.=A0 For East Timor to be at peace, Cosgrove was quoted saying, the Interfet should "take arms out of=A0 the=A0 hands of=A0= those untrained and unsanctioned=A0 as a military force." Perhaps Gen. Cosgrove=A0 said=A0 this in a=A0 fit of=A0 pique at=A0 the= Interfet being accused by the marauding militia of=A0 being biased=A0 against them. Because= if earnestly said, the statement betrays unclear understanding in the East Timor situation.=A0 Or does it betray Australia's own long-term designs in East Timor?=A0 We will not be surprised if this is so, Australia being the only country in the world recognizing Indonesia's sovereignty over East Timor since 1975. Untrained? Unsanctioned? The Falintil is the army of liberation in East Timor. Xanana Gusmao has rightfully asserted this. It=A0is recognized by=A0= the people as its very own army.=A0=20 And it had shown tremendous restraint by adopting a defensive policy in the run up to the referendum and even in the bloody aftermath.=20 Certainly, it would be suicide for Falintil and its people to hand over their weapons while Interfet is not yet in full control over the whole territory while the militia and the Indonesian military retain armed presence in some parts. Who are the bad=A0 guys here anyway?=A0 We thought=A0 it=A0 was clear that= =A0 the militia and the Indonesian=A0 security forces who supported them=A0 were responsible for the carnage and destruction of=A0 Timor.=20 The TNI,=A0 the Indonesian National Army,=A0is=A0not=A0the stabilizing or neutralizing force in East Timor.=A0 It is in fact an illegal force responsible for the brutal occupation of East Timor. So why should Falintil guerillas be the ones disarmed?=A0 Shouldn't the= armed protector of the East Timorese people during=A0 the entire=A0 occupation=A0= years be=A0 the security force in Timor?=A0=A0 The Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA)= had it better. At the very least, they were allowed to transform into a national policing force in Kosovo.=20 We point out again that East Timor has never been=A0 part of=A0 Indonesia= under international law.=A0 And now Indonesia is bound to accept the result of the vote.=20 If=A0 Falintil=A0 should ever hand over their weapons, it should only be as= part of a comprehensive peace settlement for the territory.=A0And the prerequisites would be=A0 full deployment of the Interfet=A0in the whole= East Timor; the disarmament of the militia;=A0 and=A0 the full withdrawal of Indonesia from the=A0 territory.=A0=A0=A0=A0=20 Only then will the need for a people's army in East Timor be consummated.=A0= =20 Only then will the road to lasting peace be possible. Asia-Pacific Coalition for East Timor (APCET) <http://www.skyinet.net/~apcet>http://www.skyinet.net/~apcet 27-D Galaxy St., GSIS Heights, Matina 8000 Davao City, Philippines Telefax: (63)(82) 299-2052 Tel: (63)(82) 299-2574 _______________________________________________________ Asian Human Rights Commission=20 Unit D, 7th Floor, Mongkok Commercial Centre 16 - 16B Argyle Street, Kowloon, HONGKONG Tel: +(852) - 2698-6339=A0=A0=20 Fax: +(852) - 2698-6367=A0=A0=20 AHRC Urgent Appeals E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] AHRC E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Private E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]=20 ______________________________________________________ http://www.hk.super.net/~ahrchk ______________________________________________________ Visit the Asian Human Rights Commission's Campaign For Recognition of=20 State-sponsored Disappearances as a Crime Against Humanity=20 http://www.disappearances.org ---------- SiaR WEBSITE: http://apchr.murdoch.edu.au/minihub/siarlist/maillist.html ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Didistribusikan tgl. 7 Oct 1999 jam 13:32:31 GMT+1 oleh: Indonesia Daily News Online <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> http://www.Indo-News.com/ ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
