NEWS & VIEWS
from a CATHOLIC perspective

    DILI, East Timor (CWNews.com) - Anti-independence militias killed three people in Dili on Tuesday, including a Dutch journalist, according to witnesses.

    Sander Thoenes, 30, a reporter for the Financial Times of London, was found dead in a suburb of Dili where pro-Indonesian militias were active, according to Maj. Gen. Kiki Syahnakri, commander of Indonesian forces in the territory. Motorcycle driver Florindo Araujo said he was driving the Thoenes, when they approached a roadblock staffed by at least six armed men wearing what Araujo said were the gray uniforms of the Indonesian police. The two turned around, but some of the armed men gave chase, firing warning shots and eventually shooting out the motorcycle's rear wheel. Araujo, who fled, last saw Thoenes lying in the street.

    Militiamen have vowed to kill Westerners, whom they accuse of helping East Timor in its efforts to break free of Indonesian rule. Thoenes was the first foreigner believed to have been killed since UN peacekeepers arrived on Monday.

    Australian Maj. Gen. Peter Cosgrove, commander of the UN force, said the militias were attempting a show of force in Dili and the attacks were "obviously a reaction to our presence."

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