Mark Dodd – Eight East Timorese refugees were injured yesterday by thugs using police-issue pistols and machetes in Dili, in an attack diplomats fear was designed to trigger a new wave of violence.
The attack, which left two of the wounded with life-threatening injuries, occurred at 1.30pm in a park just metres away from the five-star Dili Hotel in the city centre.
Witnesses said up to four gunmen armed with police-issue Glock 9mm pistols and an FNC assault rifle opened fire without provocation. At least one of the assailants was said to have attacked the refugees, ethnic easterners, with a machete. Other refugees said the attackers were police from the western region of the country who supported army rebel Alfredo Reinado.
Major Reinado, a central figure in the unrest that racked East Timor three months ago, led an escape by 57 prisoners from Dili's Becora jail on Wednesday.
"This ratchets up the tension," said a Western security analyst based in Dili. "It's designed to scare the population – it's destabilising for the Government. I'm concerned about the claims they were police."
Several hundred UN and Australian police, backed by an international military force, were last night continuing the manhunt for the escapees, who include pro-Jakarta militiamen jailed for 1999 war crimes.
The Weekend Australian understands that East Timorese police have not been engaged to help in the search for the wanted men, ignoring a potentially vital source of local knowledge.
Repeated requests for additional security to be based around the Becora prison were ignored, East Timorese interim Prime Minister Jose Ramos Horta said yesterday. "I presume the Australian forces – as experts in security – thought it was not necessary, although we had asked repeatedly," Mr Ramos Horta said on ABC radio.
Justice Minister Chris Ellison said on Thursday that prison security was the sole responsibility of the East Timorese Government. But the UN mission in Dili has challenged that, saying "external security" around the jail was the responsibility of the international force – a veiled reference to the Australian Defence Force.
Under the security arrangements in East Timor, the Becora prison falls within the New Zealand army's area of operations, although command responsibility ultimately rests with Australia, whose 1500-strong military force acts independently of the UN.
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, due to arrive in Dili tomorrow for crisis talks, said yesterday he hoped the escapees were rounded up quickly. "Our concern is these people have been convicted or in some cases perhaps they have been charged and they're awaiting trial, and it does concern me they should escape in this way," Mr Downer said on Adelaide radio.
Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd has condemned the Howard Government for wanting to cut back the military in Dili, saying the jail break underscored the fragile security in the country.
The AFP has taken a prominent role in the hunt for the Becora escapees, with dozens of officers, including detectives, working round the clock, but they are handicapped by the lack of a radio room and operations centre to co-ordinate the search.
Maj Reinado was in the Becora prison awaiting trial. He was accused of attempted murder and possession of illegal weapons, charges stemming from his involvement in the unrest that led to the downfall of former East Timorese prime minister Mari Alkatiri.
Maj Reinado, a dual Australian-East Timorese citizen, was arrested on July 25. He received training in military leadership in Canberra and his wife lives in Perth. A former military police commander, Maj Reinado deserted from his unit on May 4 with 20 armed followers in sympathy with 600 army rebels angered by regional discrimination in the force.