By Lincoln Wright
July 8, 1999
The ballot for independence on East Timor could be postponed for a second time unless there was a halt to the militia-driven violence, a leading United Nations official warned yesterday. The UN's Assistant Secretary General for Asia/Pacific Affairs, Alvaro de Soto, said from New York that the UN "may have to consider suspending preparations for the electoral process if security in the territory does not rapidly improve".
On Sunday, militia attacked a UN aid convoy near Liquica, sparking a row over just how committed Indonesia's army was to securing the freedom of the East Timor ballot. There have now been several attacks on the UN's assistance mission there, which East Timor political spokesman Jose Ramos Horta said was unacceptable for a nation like Indonesia.
The ballot was originally arranged for August 8, but has been suspended for two weeks until August 21 or 22. On July 13, the UN Secretary General Kofi Annan will decide if East Timor is peaceful enough to go ahead with the August 22 vote.
With the Australian defence Force's 3000-strong 1st Brigade waiting in Darwin on 28-day combat-ready status, Prime Minister John Howard downplayed comments made by Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, who had suggested ADF troops could play a role in the aftermath of the ballot. Speaking from Tokyo, Mr Howard said, "I've read what Mr Downer said and I know exactly what he said and the point I'm making is that Australian troops would only go somewhere as a result of an invitation". "The important thing for a country like Australia is to be ready, which we are, to offer help that we are through the civilian police, offer the aid . . . and then deal with each development as and when it comes."
Indonesia's immediate responsibility for security on East Timor was also echoed by Mr Downer, Defence Minister John Moore and the UN's Special Envoy on East Timor, Jamsheed Marker, who finalised several days of discussions with senior Howard Government ministers in Canberra. Mr Marker said, "As for a peacekeeping force, that is a whole different ballgame. You don't pick up a peacekeeping force off the shelf in a department store. We don't know yet whether there is justification for that. And we will see that when the time comes."
However, Mr Howard did indicate that in the aftermath of the East Timor ballot, Australia would have to provide assistance, particularly if East Timor voted for independence and Indonesia's army and police forces left. Mr Howard said, "Australia will help. We feel we have a particular responsibility but we can't do it all on our own and we will need the assistance of other countries, including of course Japan".
A leading pro-Indonesia East Timor militia group, the Forum for Unity, Democracy and Justice, warned yesterday it would boycott the UN electoral mission on East Timor.
A spokesman for Labor's foreign affairs shadow Laurie Brereton said that without changes to the security mix on East Timor, a further delay to the ballot would not achieve very much.
