Jenny Grant, Jakarta – Riot police yesterday violently broke up a Jakarta demonstration by about 1,500 East Timorese who were calling for a referendum on the future of the territory.

About 250 soldiers and police armed with guns, rattan sticks and riot shields dispersed the crowd of mainly students who had rallied in the grounds of the Foreign Ministry.

Two East Timorese women and a security guard were taken to hospital, a ministry spokesman said.Some demonstrators hurled bottles, rocks and shoes at the troops as they were beaten with sticks and forced on to waiting buses. Several female students wept as they were carted away, many without shoes and their handbags, which were left strewn in front of the building, a witness said.

A military spokesman said the protesters were taken to a boarding house owned by the Ministry of Social Affairs and bus stations on the outskirts of the city. Pijar pro-democracy group activist Bonar Tigor Naipopos was bundled into a military car and taken to an unknown location.

Police confiscated protesters' flags, banners and pictures of jailed East Timorese leader Xanana Gusmao. Earlier, the crowd had waved the red, yellow and black East Timorese flag, rarely seen in public because of its association with the outlawed guerilla group Fretilin. In open defiance, they displayed giant photographs of Gusmao, calling him their president and leader.

Protesters called for a United Nations-sponsored referendum on the future of the former Portuguese territory. "Today, we want to shout to the world and the Indonesian Government to respect our rights and give us a referendum," said student leader Dioniso.

But the military's handling of this most significant demonstration indicates a split between what Mr Habibie's administration wants and how the military handles dissent.