KEEPING AN UNEASY PEACE

September 23, 1999
		Peacekeepers in East Timor encounter more resistence as they extend their control in the capital of Dili. Ian Williams of ITN reports.

Online NewsHour Special Report: East Timor Independence Sept. 20, 1999: A background report on U.N. peacekeepers in East Timor. Online Backgrounder: A look at East Timor's stormy history. Sept. 15, 1999: A discussion with Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer. Sept. 14, 1999: An newsmaker interview with Madeleine Albright. Oct. 25, 1996: Online Forum: Nobel Peace Prize winner Jose Ramos-Horta responds to viewer questions. Nov. 13, 1996: A discussion with Jose Ramos-Horta. Oct. 11, 1996: Two East Timorese dissidents win the Nobel Peace Prize. Browse the NewsHour's coverage of Asia.     United Nations Mission in East Timor Indonesian Embassy in Washington National Council of Timorese Resistance U.S. Embassy in Jakarta Carter Center	IAN WILLIAMS: It was the most tense moment since the peacekeepers arrived. There was anger and confusion as Australian soldiers were sent scrambling after bursts of gunfire were heard in the center of Dili. (Gunshots) British special forces entered a building where they thought the firing had come from. It was a barracks belonging to the Indonesian army. And when they emerged, there was a tense standoff. (Yelling) The British left, allowing the Indonesians to return to a task that's preoccupied them for most of the week, trashing the barracks they'll soon be leaving. The shooting was blamed on Indonesian soldiers firing into the air from the back of a lorry. But it was enough to alarm the general in charge of the peacekeepers. MAJ. GEN. PETER COSGROVE, U.N. Force Commander: It's the case that when people are running around shooting weapons in the air or near other people, the temperature goes right up. This could so easily have led to deaths, both on the part of civilians, who are minding their own business, and soldiers, who are trying to bring security into an area where there has been none. IAN WILLIAMS: The tension didn't prevent a steady stream of refugees from returning to Dili. The peacekeepers have established safe havens to prevent them from being harassed by the militia or the army. Among those returning, Ruii Manuel, who worked as a U.N. translator during the vote on independence; he made the risky journey here to plead for security and food for 3,000 refugees with whom he's sheltering in the hills. He also revealed how local U.N. workers had received anonymous letters warning them about militia plans to burn the city. But his U.N. bosses dismissed them. RUII MANUEL, Former U.N. Mission Translator: At first, they tried to give the letters to the... some of the international staff. But they said...okay. IAN WILLIAMS: But the international staff didn't take the letters seriously. RUII MANUEL: Yeah, they didn't take the letters seriously. They just said that... actually, just...how can I say, nonsense. IAN WILLIAMS: But the peacekeepers will have to sort out Dili before they can deploy much further afield. And in spite of a number of arrests of suspected militia members, that's not proving an easy task. This afternoon, the mayor's office was set on fire, just a short distance from an Australian checkpoint. It was one of the few buildings that was still intact. Suspicion again fell on Indonesian soldiers who have even been burning their own barracks, determined to leave nothing behind as they prepare to leave East Timor. By the end of tomorrow, the majority of Indonesian soldiers and police will have pulled out of East Timor, not a moment too soon for many people here. But two battalions will remain. And tonight, cooperation with them looks shakier than ever.