NEWS & VIEWS
from a CATHOLIC perspective

      DILI, East Timor (CWNews.com) - One Timorese protester was killed on Monday as Indonesian soldiers opened fire on a demonstration demanding independence for the mainly Catholic territory.

      The incident occurred outside the cathedral in Bacau just after three European ambassadors arrived there for a meeting with Bishop Basilio dos Nasciemento of Bacau. The ambassadors to Indonesia from Britain, Austria and the Netherlands are on a trip to East Timor to review political developments in the troubled former Portuguese territory.

      A spokesman for the bishop said one person was killed and five others were injured when the troops tried to disperse the large crowd with bullets and tear gas. Earlier on Monday, Jakarta-appointed East Timor governor Abilio Soares said authorities would get tough on protests, which he said had led to anarchy in the enclave. Street protests have become frequent in Dili since the Indonesian government announced earlier this month that it was willing to give East Timor special status if Indonesian sovereignty over the region was recognized by Portugal and the United Nations. Many Timorese instead want a referendum to decide the future of the territory.

      The shooting comes less than a week after Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Carlos Belo of Dili met with Indonesian President H.J. Habibie to discuss an increase in freedoms for East Timor. Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, invaded the former Portugese colony in 1975 and annexed it the following year in a move not recognized by the United Nations.