Friday, April 18, 2008
RI Asks Horta to Clarify Remarks
Source: The Jakarta Post
Abdul Khalik

Indonesian diplomats in Dili have been asked to seek clarity over reports on Timor Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta's allegation that "elements" from Indonesia were involved in a February attack that almost claimed his life.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Kristiarto Soeryo Legowo said Thursday he had read the statement from the media, but quickly added that Indonesia could not react based only on the news.

"That's why we are now checking the report to ascertain the report's validity. I can't comment based only on a news report," he told The Jakarta Post.

What he heard, he said, was that the Timor Leste president thanked Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono through the country's representatives in Dili for Yudhoyono's support during his treatment after the murder attempt.

Upon returning to Timor Leste from Australia for treatment on Thursday morning, Ramos-Horta linked the assassination attempt to "elements" in Indonesia.

Ramos-Horta was quoted by the Associated Press in Dili as saying the ongoing investigations revealed that notorious rebel commander Alfredo Reinado -- who perpetrated the assassination attempt and was killed in an ensuing firefight -- had "a lot of contacts ... with elements in Indonesia".

He stressed, however, that Indonesia's government and army were in no way implicated and said President Yudhoyono had promised full cooperation in the probe.

House of Representatives lawmaker Djoko Susilo immediately attacked Ramos-Horta for his statement, accusing him of ruining relations between the two neighbors.

"We regret the accusation. We should seek clarification as soon as possible from him, and then file a protest, as elements can be interpreted as police, military or other Indonesian groups. Many will be angry with the statement," he said.

He expressed fear that the statement could wreck havoc on the ongoing reconciliatory process through the Commission for Truth and Friendship, which has finished its report after three years of investigation into alleged gross human rights violations prior to and after the independence referendum in then East Timor in 1999.

While agreeing that the statement could widely impact on ties between the countries, international relations expert Hariyadi Wirawan of the University of Indonesia urged the government and the military to stay calm.

"Ramos-Horta should clarify his statement. We know him as an expert in diplomacy, so there is no way that he said such things without strong evidence. At the very least, the statement could damage the atmosphere of the visit of Timor Leste Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao to Jakarta next Monday," he said.