EAST TIMOR UN PEACEKEEPERS CONTINUE TO ARRIVE 2

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(21 Sep 1999) English/Nat • Tanks, trucks and armoured personnel carriers rumbled off warships in Dili on Tuesday as international forces continued to take control of East Timor. • Australian soldiers took over warehouses pillaged by militia and their Indonesian army backers, while other troops arrested gang members, stripping them of their weapons. • Meanwhile, hundreds of refugees have started to stream out of the hills where they sought refuge at the height of the wave of violence. • They returned to watch the U-N-mandated force take control of the charred capital after the militias' three-week campaign of terror. • In Dare, site of a large refugee camp six miles south of Dili, people burst into tears of joy as international soldiers in full battle gear and a group of United Nations officials drove up in a convoy of U-N vehicles. • Between 190-thousand to 300-thousand people fled into hiding in the mountains and other areas during the violence, in addition to 141-thousand who fled to Indonesian- controlled West Timor, according to a report by the United Nations Children's Fund. • Australian troops used landing craft to unload trucks, jeeps, bulldozers and other heavy equipment from landing craft. • Warehouses were being stocked with food, medicine and other supplies. • At the airport, the airlift continued through the night. • The operation's commanders said they expected to have some 2,800 troops • on the ground by late Tuesday. • About 100 youths, who had just returned from the mountains, laughed, clapped and waved to the peacekeepers. • As an Australian navy catamaran pulled into port, the youths broke into a • traditional East Timorese dance of welcome. • As the peacekeeping force secures East Timor, men, women and children are being stopped, and their bags and luggage searched. • But it seems the locals aren't too worried by the tactics, many of them expressing their happiness that the peacekeepers have finally arrived. • SOUNDBITE: (Indonesian) • I am really happy about the coming of the peacekeeping forces and I hope East Timor will be safe • SUPER CAPTION: Adelina Gusmao • SOUNDBITE: (Indonesian) • We are not afraid anymore. When we saw the planes we were happy. We had a party last night in the mountains • SUPER CAPTION: Garcito Ximenis • Multinational troops stepped up the pressure on remaining gang members in and around Dili. • Outside the harbor area, Australian troops conducted sweeps of burned-out buildings. • Many militiamen fled ahead of the peacekeepers' deployment. • But the real test for the international force - due to reach 7,500 troops - will come when it spreads into remote areas to protect residents from the militia's fury. • Many East Timorese say the arrival of the international soldiers has scared the militia men off and they now feel safe again. • SOUNDBITE: (English) • Militia men go away, go away, not coming to kill him, kill the population. It's ok. • SUPERCAPTION: Vox pop • Most Indonesian troops are due to leave in the next several days, leaving behind a token force that has been ordered to cooperate with the peacekeepers. • With 24 years of iron-fisted Indonesian rule ending, Indonesian President B.J. Habibie urged lawmakers in Jakarta on Tuesday to accept East Timor's overwhelming vote for independence in an August 30 referendum. • He said acceptance would help restore the country's international image. • Members of Indonesia's highest legislative body must still approve the independence vote in a session expected by November. • Opponents have said the presence of peacekeepers violates national • sovereignty. • • Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork • Twitter: / ap_archive • Facebook: / aparchives • Instagram: / apnews • • • You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...

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