Precedence: bulk MILITIA HARRASS SECOND UN POST IN VIQUEQUE, EAST TIMOR DILI, East Timor, July 1 (AFP) - The UN mission in East Timor (UNAMET) has withdrawn seven staff from its unarmed outpost in the town of Viqueque after the second incident of harrassment by pro-Indonesian militia in a week, a UNAMET spokesman said Thursday. "Following an incident in Viqueque in which about 15 armed militia threatened UN staff at their residence, seven electoral officers were temporarily relocated to Dili," spokesman David Wimhurst said. The incident was the second militia action against a UNAMET outpost since the UN started deploying personnel ahead of a vote on the territory's future scheduled for August. In the first incident Tuesday some 100 militia attacked the UN office in Maliana, slightly injuring 12 people, one of them a woman volunteer electoral officer. Wimhurst said the seven volunteers would "remain in the East Timor capital until the security situation in Viqueque has been resolved," but that seven other non-volunteer staff would remain in the post, some 110 kilometers (69 miles) southeast of Dili. He said UNAMET's chief security officer, who travelled to Viqueque Wednesday, would return Thursday for more discussions with the Indonesian police, who are responsible for security in the territory. "UNAMET expects that the Indonesian police who are responsible for the security and safety of all UN staff in East Timor will rapidly take the necessary measures to allow the electoral officers to return to their duties in the Viqueque regional headquarters," he said. Wimhurst said that on Tuesday militia in the area twice surrounded the UNAMET residence, where they "basically intimidated our staff" shouting "UN go home" and "UN has to leave here." "The second time they were armed," he said, but could not say what kind of weapons they were carrying. He said the first incident happened around midday, and the second shortly afterwards, despite discussions with local authorities and even the militia leaders. So far there had been no reports of harrassment at 11 other UN posts throughout the territory which have been set up to establish voting and voter-registration centers for polls, he added. Indonesia and Portugal agreed in May that the United Nations should send unarmed police and polling experts to East Timor to conduct a poll of whether its people wanted to accept an Indonesian offer of autonomy or independence. However violence in the former Portuguese colony which was invaded by Indonesia in 1975 has contributed to a two-week postponement in the vote which had been scheduled for August 8. After the first attack Tuesday, the United Nations, Washington and Australia all reacted with alarm, reminding Indonesia that it was responsible for reining in the Indoneswian-army backed militia. Jamsheed Marker, the special representative of UN Secretary General Kofi Annan called the attackers in Maliana "hoodlums" and said they would not deter the UN from its mission. "To the hoodlums who carried out this despicable attack on the UNAMET premises, UNAMET is not scared nor will it ever be," Jamsheed Marker said shortly before leaving Jakarta. "The mission is on track. A setback of this kind would not deter us from our work," he added at the end of a visit which included a trip to the troubled territory. ---------- SiaR WEBSITE: http://apchr.murdoch.edu.au/minihub/siarlist/maillist.html
