Precedence: bulk UNAMET (UNITED NATIONS MISSION IN EAST TIMOR) Misi Bantuan Perserikatan Bangsa-Bangsa Di Timor Timur Briefing Summary for Wednesday, 14 July 1999 UNAMET Spokesman David Wimhurst began today's briefing informing correspondents that the Special Representative was to meet with the Indonesian Task Force in the morning to assess progress in improving the security situation. This is a follow-up to the letter the Secretary-General sent to the Security Council asking for a three-delay delay in registration. The Spokesman also announced that UNAMET's contingent to be based in Liquica was travelling there today. The contingent comprises of ten CivPol, two Military Liaison Officers, one security staff and eight district electoral officers. He said, the CivPol and MLOs will be remaining in Liquica and the DEOs will be returning at the end of the day to Dili. UNAMET is in the process of renovating the buildings used in Liquica for accommodations and office space before the DEOs move there permanently. A correspondent asked how today's convoy to Liquica compared to the numbers who were there before the incident. The Spokesman said the number of personnel would be the same as before the incident once a few additional DEOs were sent to Liquica in the next few days. A correspondent asked what precautions UNAMET was taking in the event of encountering armed militia. Mr. Wimhurst reminded correspondents that it is the Indonesian police who are obligated to protect all UNAMET staff. These staff, he added, would not be moving around in areas considered to be a security threat without adequate escort. The Spokesman was asked what responsibilities UNAMET had for registering internally displaced people (IDPs). He said UNAMET was well aware that there are large pockets of IDPs who needed to be contacted and provided with information on the registration process. He added, "none of them have radios and [they] are unaware of our intensive radio campaign. What we will have to do is physically go to these areas and try to inform them directly of the procedures to follow. And we have 2,000 radios donated by Japan some of which will be allocated to these people so that they can follow the information campaign." He added, there would be a balanced distribution of these radios to both the pro-integration and pro-independence sides. A correspondent asked whether there was an attack in Maliana overnight. The Spokesman said there was an incident yesterday when ten unarmed militia tried to enter the UNAMET residence but were stopped from entering by the Indonesian police. He said the incident was a cause of concern for UNAMET and the information will be forwarded to police headquarters in Dili. Continuing, he said, UNAMET is grateful to the Indonesian police for preventing the militia members from entering the compound and he commended them for a job well done. A correspondent asked if the renovations to the UN accommodations in Liquica included any additional security measures. The Spokesman said the renovations were being done simply to improve the structures of the buildings, which are in poor condition. ---------- SiaR WEBSITE: http://apchr.murdoch.edu.au/minihub/siarlist/maillist.html
