INDONESIA: ABDURRAHMAN WAHID MEETS WITH XANANA GUSMAO IN PRISON

(2 Feb 1999) English/Nat
An influential Muslim leader, who met East Timor's jailed guerilla leader Xanana Gusmao on Tuesday, said the territory's population should decide its own political future.
Abdurrahman Wahid made the remarks after talking to Gusmao at the prison in Jakarta where he is being held by the Indonesian regime.
It follows a surprise offer last week from Indonesia to consider independence for East Timor if its people rejected a proposal for autonomy.
After meeting Xanana Gusmao, East Timor's jailed guerilla chief, Abdurrahman Wahid said the people of the Indonesian-controlled territory should decide their political future.
Indonesia invaded the former Portuguese colony in 1975 and annexed it a year later.
Separatist guerilla fighting and human rights abuses have plagued the half-island territory ever since.
Wahid, a government critic who is considered a possible presidential candidate, said he opposed independence for East Timor but acknowledged the decision was not his to make.
Wahid, who is chairman of Indonesia's biggest Muslim group, visited Gusmao at Jakarta's Cipinang jail on Tuesday.
He presented the East Timorese rebel leader with a traditional batik shirt.
Gusmao gave Wahid a scarf from East Timor.
The rebel leader is waiting to be moved to a house owned by the Indonesian justice ministry near the prison.
He has welcomed the move to more comfortable surroundings, saying it will allow him greater freedom to help in efforts to reach a peaceful settlement in East Timor.
Talks between Indonesia and Portugal, which the United Nations still considers the administering power, have gained momentum in recent months.
Meanwhile, about 50 separatists gathered for a subdued protest in East Timor's capital, Dili.
They met at Santa Cruz cemetery, where Indonesian troops fired on separatists in 1991, drawing international condemnation.
A national fact-finding commission found that at least 50 people died in the shooting and dozens were missing.
Human rights activists put the death toll at about 200.
Pro-Indonesian activists have warned of the possibility of civil war among rival East Timorese factions if Indonesia withdraws troops from the territory.
But at the jail meeting, Gusmao told Wahid that Indonesia should disarm pro- Indonesian civilians in East Timor to avoid bloodshed.
SOUNDBITE: (English)
"He wants the "Ratih" deleted (removed) from Timor Timur (East Timor). Ratih is the paramilitary, now in Timor Timur."
SUPER CAPTION: Jhonson Panjaitan, Xanana Gusmao's lawyer
Wahid, in turn, said pro-Indonesian activists needed protection.
About 200 people from several villages around Dili were sheltering at the home of a pro- independence leader in the city on Tuesday.
They said they had fled their homes after harassment by pro-Indonesian armed groups.
An estimated 3-thousand villagers were also taking shelter in a village 80 kilometres (50 miles) southwest of Dili.
They fled after violence and threats between pro- and anti-independence groups.
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[@putramatebean2606]

Alhamdulillah.Almarhum Gusdur adalah Bapak Bangsa Sejati.Semoga amal ibadah Nya diterima oleh Allah SWT

[@vl4dimir536]

Zanana Gusmao org baik. beliau org cerdas dan terpengaruh

[@NahumNkri-bn4xp]

Gusdur guru bangsa tahu akan masa nya bagi Timor Leste utk merdeka

[@joaquimmota4635]

Excelency Bapak Gus Dur, bapak yang hampir sempurna hati dan pikiran, Beliau berjiwa besar karena berkekuatan keragaman rakyatnya. Dalam Penampilan Beliau, tidak ada tempat cerai berai.

[@art2691]

Masih ingat headline koran masa itu, PERTEMUAN DUA GUS, Gus Dur dan Gus Mao

[@IHerman]

Well, at what years is this? Is this before gusdur become president?

[@nejw8w9ws]

February 1999, 8 months before Gusdur became president (October 20th 1999).

[@florianoxavier8928]

Barata tama elevante nian tilun laran.......

[@bramantyoprahoro7284]

Xanana Gusdur

[@cokincipit7977]

Johnson Panjaitan :)

[@nimitz1876]

ML

[@madkhaliqfarhan]

Durmao