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- Newsgroups: misc.activism.progressive
- Path: sparky!uunet!haven.umd.edu!darwin.sura.net!wupost!mont!pencil.cs.missouri.edu!rich
- From: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu (Rich Winkel)
- Subject: Timor: Horta cautious on UN talks initiative
- Message-ID: <1992Sep5.001855.17790@mont.cs.missouri.edu>
- Followup-To: alt.activism.d
- Originator: rich@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
- Sender: news@mont.cs.missouri.edu
- Nntp-Posting-Host: pencil.cs.missouri.edu
- Organization: PACH
- Date: Sat, 5 Sep 1992 00:18:55 GMT
- Approved: map@pencil.cs.missouri.edu
- Lines: 62
-
- /** reg.easttimor: 348.0 **/
- ** Topic: Ramos-Horta cautious on talks **
- ** Written 7:55 am Sep 4, 1992 by gn:tapol in cdp:reg.easttimor **
- Horta cautious on UN talks initiative
-
- Source: BBC World Service report
- Date: 3 September 1992
- Byline: Iain Simpson
- Abridged slightly
-
- [Throughout this report, Ramos-Horta is referred to as if he
- were the Fretilin representative. In fact, he is the official
- spokesperson of the CNRM, the National Council for the Maubere
- People.]
-
- ----------------------
-
- The UN Secretary-General Dr Boutros Ghali (in Jakarta for the
- Non-Bloc Summit), has invited the foreign ministers of
- Indonesia and Portugal to hold informal discussions on the
- question of East Timor. He said the talks would probably take
- place during the UN General Assembly in New York which starts
- this month. The last round of talks broke down late last year
- following the cancellation of the planned Portuguese
- parliamentary visit to East Timor and the killing of civilians
- on 12 November.
-
- The latest offer of talks has drawn a cautious reaction from
- the East Timorese resistance movement:
-
- Jose Ramos-Horta, the independence movement's European (sic)
- representative said:
-
- "We will not accept more than one or two meetings between the
- Portuguese Foreign Minister and his Indonesian counterpart
- because I don't think they need more than one meeting or two
- to discuss the format for the Timorese to be involved."
-
- He said the Portuguese are not only aware of the concerns of
- the East Timorese but are effectively following the proposal
- for talks laid down by Fretilin (sic). He says Fretilin (sic)
- are prepared to sit down for talks with the Indonesians at any
- time and without preconditions, as long as the talks are held
- under UN auspices. So far, Jakarta has not been willing to
- meet officially with representatives of Fretilin, apparently
- fearing this would lend the organisation some legitimacy. But
- Mr Ramos-Horta says the clock is ticking and Indonesia will
- soon have to agree to talks.
-
- "Time is running out for Indonesia. There is a consensus in
- the UN in New York among experts observing the situation in
- East Timor and in Indonesia that Indonesia cannot continue at
- this pace for the next three to five years," he said.
-
- If it is eventually included in the talks process, Fretilin
- (sic) says it will demand an immediate end to the hostilities
- in East Timor, the release of all the people it classified as
- political prisoners and an improvement in the human rights
- situation on the island.
-
- ** End of text from cdp:reg.easttimor **
-
-