John Martinkus, Dili – Pro-Indonesian militia challenged the authority of Australian troops in the East Timorese enclave of Oecussi this morning, the fifth time in the past three days.
The clashes with the militia, including one this week in which militiamen were wounded and one reportedly killed, have baffled the Australian-led Interfet UN peacekeeping force.
Interfet commander Major General Peter Cosgrove contacted Indonesian commander Major General Kiki Syanakhri this morning for the second time this week to express deep concern that the militia activity was continuing.
Colonel Bruce Armstrong said the Indonesian commander responded by assuring Cosgrove he would send a high ranking officer to investigate the situation.
The area around the enclave is controlled by Indonesian regional commander Lieutenant Colonel Manuel Maneral, whom General Cosgrove has accused of having links with the local militia leader Moko Soares, believed to be responsible for the recent incursions into Oecussi.
Colonel Armstrong said he was confident the situation would be resolved in short order but admitted the incursions baffled him.
"Everything he [the local Indonesian commander] is doing defies logic," he said.
"These guys are coming over the border and what they're trying to do is a dangerous game, a very dangerous game for some of these militia [as] they're not even armed.
"Someone is revving them up across the border to come across the border to antagonise our troops by either firing at them or pointing weapons at them."
The latest incident took place near the village of Bobometo between 6am and 6.30am local time today and involved five militia armed with rifles crossing the border and harrassing local East Timorese.
"It appears the locals stood up to them," Colonel Armstrong said. "The militia were armed with rifles and shots were fired. It is believed at least one local was injured." Australian Interfet troops have moved into the area and more reports were expected.
In an earlier incident in the village of Mahata in the same south west border area of Oecussi, five militiamen raised their rifles at Australian troops patrolling in the area. "The Interfet patrol fired six quick shots causing the militia to run to the border," Colonel Armstrong said.
General Cosgrove yesterday confirmed there had been three other separate incidents involving the militias, the most serious when Australian troops returned fire after being attacked by militiamen armed with automatic weapons.
"After firing at Interfet, fire was returned. As a result of this action it is my understanding that a militiaman was wounded and I have unconfirmed information that he subsequently died," General Cosgrove said yesterday.
Tensions between Interfet, the militias and the Indonesian military (TNI) are high in the coastal enclave which is surrounded on three sides by Indonesian-controlled West Timor.
UNHCR spokesman Paul Stromberg today announced the suspension of UNHCR convoys repatriating East Timorese refugees from Oecussi to mainland East Timor because of the current situation.
Colonel Armstrong also confimed the Jordanian peacekeeping force would be replacing the Australians in the enclave area in a little over a month, despite East Timorese concerns over Jordanian links to former Indonesian special forces commander General Prabowo.
Prabowo was in command of Indonesian special forces in East Timor in the early nineties and his period of command was characterised by brutal operations to wipe out the Falintil pro- independence guerrillas in the territory. After the fall of President Suharto in May 1997 Prabowo sought exile in Jordan.