East Nusa Tenggara not serious fighting for Timor Gap

The chairman of the West Timor Care Foundation, Ferdi Tanoni, said on Monday that the East Nusa Tenggara administration which overseas West Timor and East Nusa Tenggara legislature was not serious in fighting for its share in the Timor Gap Treaty following the separation of East Timor from Indonesia.

"I see the East Nusa Tenggara administration and the legislature are not serious enough in supporting this West Timor Care Foundation that is pressing the central government to renew the Timor Gap Treaty by involving people in West Timor," Tanoni told Antara in Kupang.

He noted that the Timor Gap Treaty was considered void by East Timor and Australia, and therefore the government must pressure both Australia and East Timor to include Indonesia, in this case East Nusa Tenggara, in the amendment process of the treaty as the treaty covers the areas shared by the three parties.

"We have rights over the Timor Gap. And what we are fighting now is not for the interest of the foundation but for the interest of all people in West Timor," Tanoni said.

Meanwhile, East Nusa Tenggara's deputy revenue office Emilius Dembo told Antara that the East Nusa Tenggara Administration had been fighting hard to secure a place in the amendment process of the Timor Gap Treaty.

"The East Nusa Tenggara Governor, Piet Tallo, has presented this matter to the President and Vice President, but there has been no realization yet as this issue covers an inter-government agreement," Dembo said.

"Our struggle has been maximal, but the decision to amend the Timor Gap Treaty lies with the central government, not the East Nusa Tenggara administration," he added.

And the chairman of the East Nusa Tenggara legislature's Commission A, Mell Adoe said that the legislature had also pressed the central government to amend the Timor Gap Treaty with Australia.

"We have sent letters to Jakarta several times, to quickly amend the Timor Gap, if possible, before East Timor becomes an independent state. But so far, our letters have not been responded properly," he said.

But Dembo said the amendment of the Timor Treaty should be conducted after East Timor becomes a full independent state, so that it could be discussed by the three countries together, namely Australia, East Timor and Indonesia.

The East Timor Treaty, signed by Indonesia and Australia foreign ministers over the Timor Sea in 1989, opens opportunities to explore oil and gas in the Timor Sea.

Following the separation of East Timor from Indonesia, Australia and the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) wants to amend the treaty. Besides, East Timor leaders have also wanted to redefine the sea boundaries between East Timor and Australia that would be used as a basis to draft the new treaty. Australia has agreed to amend the treaty, but it should be based on the current sea boundary. (*)