Australian and New Zealand troops will arrive soon in East Timor
to maintain order in the country, which has been racked by violence
in past weeks, the tiny nation's foreign minister said
Wednesday.
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"We have asked help from Australia, New Zealand, Portugal and
Malaysia. Australia and New Zealand will come soon," Jose
Ramos-Horta told reporters after meeting diplomats from those
countries.
Meanwhile, Portugal will send 120 military police troops to East
Timor to help maintain order in the country, the Portuguese Foreign
Ministry said Wednesday.
"The Portuguese Government already responded to the appeal by
the East Timorese authorities, confirming its readiness to take
part at first with a contingent of military police troops in the
multinational force," the ministry said in a statement.
A spokesman at the ministry said there would be 120 troops.
East Timor was a former Portuguese territory and Lisbon has been
concerned about the recent violence that has hit the country. It
actively supported East Timor's move to win independence from
Indonesia.
Dili has blamed the violence on a group of rebel military
policemen.
Australia led a UN-backed intervention force to East Timor in
1999 to quell violence by pro-Indonesian militias after East
Timorese voted for independence from Jakarta. About 1,000 people
died in the violence.
UN peacekeepers left a year ago and the UN mission of 130
administrators, police and military advisers was scheduled to
finish in East Timor on May 20, but was extended for a month after
the riots.
Shooting between a group of rebel military policemen led by an
Australian-trained major and loyal government troops killed at
least one person and wounded six in East Timor on Tuesday. There
was fresh fighting Wednesday and the government in a statement
again blamed "the breakaway, renegade elements" for stirring the
trouble.
Ramos-Horta said the rebel group must be disarmed.
"The foreign troops will work together with the government and
(East Timor's military) to take away weapons from civilians,
including those from Alfredo Reinaldo's group," the minister said,
referring to the rebel major.
Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said earlier that
parts of East Timor had been reported descending into violence and
pledged to send military help if needed.
Reinaldo and his men left their station last month to support
the plight of the more than 500 soldiers sacked by the
cash-strapped East Timor government earlier in April.
The sackings prompted demonstrations joined by people the
government says have broader motives.
Five people were killed and thousands of East Timorese fled
their homes when protests by the disgruntled soldiers initially
turned violent late last month.
(China Daily May 25, 2006)
