Jakarta – East Timor's President Xanana Gusmao said his government could not annul an arrest warrant for Indonesian retired General Wiranto issued by a United Nations-backed human rights tribunal based in Dili, Indonesia's news agency reported Sunday.

Gusmao, who met with Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri, Saturday night on the resort island of Bali, said his government had no authority to annul the arrest warrant issued for Wiranto by the Serious Crimes Unit (SCU) on May 10, but it would do nothing to "carry it out," reported the state-run Antara news agency. The two leaders met to discuss on-going problems in resolving cases of human rights violations perpetrated in East Timor, a former Indonesian territory that suffered a bloodbath in 1999 after the populace voted for independence from Jakarta in a UN-backed referendum.

East Timor was under UN supervision between 1999 and May 20, 2002, when it became a sovereign state. While still under UN control, the international community helped set up the SCU human rights court in Dili, East Timor's capital, to investigate human rights abuses allegedly committed by Indonesian officials and East Timorese militia during the 1999 mayhem in which more than 1,000 people died.

The SCU, which includes foreign and East Timor judges, on May 10 issued an arrest warrant for Wiranto, a popular candidate in Indonesia's upcoming presidential election on July 5, following up on an indictment of the retired general issued by the same court in February, 2003.

The arrest warrant has strained Indonesian ties with East Timor, putting the tiny nation in a tough spot diplomatically, since the territory remains dependent on its giant neighbour for trade and transportation links. "The [East Timor] government does not always follow or recognize SCU's decisions," Gusmao told Antara.

While Gusmao acknowledged that his government could not annul the arrest warrant for Wiranto issued by the SCU, he said they would not do anything to carry it out.

For the arrest warrant to apply internationally, East Timor's government would need to officially present it to Interpol. This would, in theory, make Wiranto eligible for arrest and deportation in all countries around the world.

Both government leaders agreed that they did not want the issue of past human rights violations to disturb their bilateral relations.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda, talking to reporters after the meeting of the two presidents, said that both governments had agreed they did not want the East Timor human rights cases, such as Wiranto's, to be taken to an international tribunal.

"It in both nations' interest that the two countries must be able to face international pressure," he added.

Indonesia has thus far ignored the SCU's arrest warrant as not applicable in Indonesia since it was not officially submitted by the East Timor government.