PARAMILITARY ATTACKS ESCALATE BETWEEN REFERENDUM AND RESULTS Act Immediately to Stop the Violence in East Timor Make three phone calls today to stop the violence. It will make a difference! Pro-Indonesian paramilitaries have renewed their campaign of terror against the people of East Timor following a relatively peaceful day of voting in East Timor. Armed gangs in black t-shirts have been rampaging undeterred through the streets of Dili and other districts of East Timor for the past two days. Since the vote, militias have murdered East Timorese, burned houses, blocked people from leaving East Timor, and surrounded and attacked the UN headquarters in Dili. Their orders come from the Indonesian military. The people of East Timor lined up to vote en masse on Monday, August 30. Over 98% of registered voters risked their lives in the aftermath of extreme paramilitary violence that threatened to derail the vote. It is widely believed that the day of voting was largely free from intimidation and violence because increased international government pressure, particularly from the U.S., helped to force a change in Indonesian military orders to the paramilitary units in East Timor. The UN is expected to release the results of the vote within the next few days. The paramilitaries must not be allowed to turn East Timor into a "sea of fire," as paramilitary leader Eurico Gutteres threatened, if the vote is for independence. The United States has tremendous influence on Indonesia. It must do more to pressure Indonesia to adhere to the May 5 UN agreement setting up the vote. We must keep the pressure on! Call today and get others to call. Call Secretary of State Madeleine Albright at the U.S. State Department (tel: 202-647-5291, fax: 202-647-6434). Tell her the U.S. should suspend all military assistance to Indonesia immediately - until the paramilitary groups are completely disbanded and the military begins a genuine troop withdrawal. Urge her to call Indonesian Defense Minister General Wiranto directly to demand Indonesia contain, disarm, and disband the paramilitaries now. Encourage her to increase U.S. support for an expanded UN mission. Important: Leave a message specifically for Albright. Don't let her staff transfer you to the Indonesia Desk. They're already working hard on East Timor. Call your senators and representatives with the same message. Tell them that they should do everything in their power to ensure that all military and financial assistance is cut off until paramilitaries are disbanded and Indonesian troops begin a genuine withdrawal. Tell them to contact the Department of Defense (or the State Department) directly. The Congressional switchboard number is 202-234-3121. To find out who your representative is, go to http://www.house.gov/writerep. Call the Indonesian Embassy at 202-775-5200 (fax 202-775-5365). Tell them to stop (contain, disarm, and disband) the paramilitary violence in East Timor NOW and ensure a peaceful period around the announcement of the results of the vote and a peaceful transition. For more information, contact East Timor Action Network at 202-544-6911, [EMAIL PROTECTED], http://www.etan.org. END ____________________________________________________________________________ | Eric S. Piotrowski ____________________| "The oppressed cannot remain | | IFET-OP U.S. Interim Coordinator ______| oppressed forever. The urge for | | [EMAIL PROTECTED] ____________________| freedom will eventually come." | | http://www.atlantic.net/~altin ________| - Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. | |________________________________________|_________________________________| Support the International Federation for East Timor's Observer Project http://etan.org/ifet Phone: 831-728-4190 Fax: 831-761-1401
