MILITARY HANDOVER

September 27, 1999
		The Indonesian military says it has handed over control of East Timor to a U.N.-sanctioned multi-national peacekeeping force, but the force's commander says security is still Indonesia's responsibility. -- Posted 4:00 PM ET

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. Sept. 14, 1999: An interview with a journalist detained in East Timor. Sept. 13, 1999: Two United Nations representatives discuss the creation of an East Timor peacekeeping force. 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

After 24 years as the controlling force in East Timor, the Indonesian military said today that it had handed over the task of policing the half-island region to an international peacekeeping force. The force's commander, however, maintains that security in East Timor is still Indonesia's responsibility. Australian Maj. Gen. Peter Cosgrove, head of the international peacekeeping force, said the area remains an Indonesian possession, and thus the Indonesian military's responsibility, until last month's secession vote is approved by the government. According to news reports, Cosgrove's assertion has angered the Indonesian government. "[Cosgrove] came with so many battalions, tanks and everything," Indonesian military spokesman Maj. Gen. Sudrajat told Reuters, "how could he express he does not want to take responsibility for security? That is ridiculous." Indonesia has withdrawn more than 15,000 troops since the U.N.-approved force entered the area. According to Cosgrove, the Indonesian military will maintain a security presence of 1,500 troops who will share peacekeeping responsibilities in the area until the Indonesian government's control of the area is officially brought to an end. Since they arrived a week ago, the peacekeeping troops have moved slowly through the East Timorese countryside, pushing militia members further into the Timorese interior. International peacekeepers used helicopters to secure an East Timorese village Sept. 27, bringing the number of secured areas up to three, including East Timor's capital Dili. Since the independence referendum, pro-Indonesia militia groups have razed much of the East Timorese landscape, reportedly killing thousands and sending hundreds of thousands fleeing to the wilderness of the area's mountainous regions or to refugee camps in neighboring West Timor. As militia attacks continue in areas not secured by the peacekeepers, including refugee camps in West Timor, U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright demanded that the Indonesian military stop "colluding" with militias. "The government and armed forces of Indonesia should understand that what happens in West Timor and to East Timorese living elsewhere in Indonesia is as important to the United States policy as what happens in East Timor itself," Albright said Sunday. Albright said U.S. monetary assistance to Indonesia could hinge on the country's handling of the situation in East Timor. Some of the East Timorese displaced by the militia attacks have returned to areas now under the international force's control, but hundreds of thousands remain displaced.