Source: UN Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET)
Date: 12 Oct 2000
UNTAET Humanitarian Pillar Situation Report 06 - 12 Oct 2000
Week 39
Security:
A reduction in militia activity was observed throughout East Timor this past week, although there were militia sightings in Cova Lima and Ainaro. PKF believes that the militia groups sighted within East Timor appear to be ex-filtrating back to West Timor, perhaps with the intention to regroup or re-supply. Operations by PKF in Manufahi over the last few weeks are though to be successful. That the PKF were able to convince the local populations that their forces could provide communities with adequate protection, and that all IDPs from villages in Alas and Turiscai had returned to their villages, was a strong indicator of this success.
On 6 October, PKF shot dead an armed militiaman 9km north of Suai town in Cova Lima, believed to be from the ABLAI Militia group. The man was fully armed and combat ready with an SKS rifle, 2 rifle grenades, a quantity of 62 mm ammunition, webbing and pack.
A report of a large group of militias were sighted and blocked in a forest area between Beco and Lolotoe, in Cova Lima district could not be confirmed, and a mortar bomb, which appeared to be live, was discovered one kilometer west of Petileti sub-village, in the Com subdistrict of Lautem.
Over the border in West Timor, there continues to be conflicting reports of the security situation, particularly in the Atambua and Betun areas. The operation to confiscate weapons from the militia is reported to be continuing. There are indications that the TNI are taking a harder stand against the militia but there is no independent confirmation of their success. Requests by the UNMOs to verify the numbers and types of weapons confiscated have not been granted yet. The arrest of Eurico Guiterres in Jakarta last week resulted in approximately 3000 people from refugee camps in Kupang attempting to demonstrate in Kupang. Police quickly diffused the demonstration. There is a general feeling among humanitarian observers that the current lull in West Timor is only temporary, and that supporters of Guterres will attempt to challenge and embarrass the Indonesian Government.
Refugee returns and population movements:
158 people crossed into East Timor spontaneously at various points over the last week. So far during October, 267 refugees returned home to East Timor, bringing to 169,396 the total number of persons who have returned since 8 October 1999. Interviews with recent returnees indicate that there are food shortages in the camps, and that the militia are still preventing people from crossing the border into East Timor. This contradicts reports from the TNI that food is being distributed in the camps, and that people are free to leave if they wish. Other sources in West Timor suggest that while rice is being issued, the 2kg per person is insufficient to meet people's needs. Returnees also report that the militia are still very much in control. UNHCR staff at border points report that returnees are in relatively good health and good nutritional condition, despite the fact that the last UN food aid distributions in West Timor's refugee camps took place in August.
On Saturday, UNTAET was informed that the TNI was going to move some 2000 people through Junction Point Echo in Cova Lima district, and all agencies prepared for this significantly larger number of people. UNHCR dispatched five trucks of additional non-food items to Suai, and WFP sent nine additional trucks of food while IOM dispatched trucks for secondary transport of returnees. Additional fuel stocks were also delivered, with 4,000 LTs already in Suai, while UNTAET authorized the use of its fuel stocks should they be needed. Relief agencies showed close coordination in preparations to receive the large group the TNI said was preparing to return, and agencies undertook a joint mission to the Belulic Leten crossing point. Humanitarian agencies agreed that any returnees eventually arriving in the area would be airlifted from this remote location by helicopter and processed at the Suai transit center. Regrettably, agencies were advised on late Sunday that this movement was not going to happen and there had been a misunderstanding on the part of the PKF.
261 people are still internally displaced in Ainaro District, and PKF are planning to focus on reassuring the IDP population of their security in Ainaro in the coming days, so that the IDPs may return to their homes.
Health:
Associated with the movements of IDPs from Manufahi district is the total of 40 cases of measles now reported from the Alas Sub-District. Cases are occurring primarily among internally displaced persons that recently returned to their home communities. The district health service continues its emergency vaccination program, and no transmission has been reported outside those communities already affected.
In a remote valley north of Maubisse, Aileu district health service a small outbreak of whooping cough was confirmed and a catch-up immunisation campaign for the community followed this week.
The Director-General of WHO, Dr Gro-Harlem Brundtland, will be visiting East Timor on 14 and 15 October. Dr Brundtland will hold a series of meetings with the SRSG, the Division of Health Services, WHO East Timor staff and representatives of NGOs working in the health sector in East Timor.
UNICEF reports that supplies for 60 health centres have arrived and are now being distributed. Designed to make Health Centres fully operational these supplies include a physicians' kit, maternal and child health kit, public health nurse kit, a minor surgical kit, and some consumables.
UNICEF and the Division of Health Services held a planning workshop on 11 October ahead of the proposed National Immunisation Days, November 4 and 11. Oral vaccines will be the target, principally polio and Vitamin A.
The NGO Action Contre la Faim (ACF), in partnership with UNICEF, have completed establishment of nutrition surveillance activities in Ermera, Aileu and Same, with a further three districts to follow.
Food and Logistics:
Overland food deliveries by WFP from Dili went to Aileu (35 MT), Gleno (105 MT), Liquica (35 MT), Maliana (30 MT), Same (70 MT) and Suai (30 MT). In addition, 75 MT of food were delivered by barge to Oe-cusse. Logistically, WFP has been supporting a number of other UN agencies' operations and UNTAET. Last week, WFP provided logistical support to UNOPS and UNICEF by offloading 76 MT of medical supplies from an Illusion 76 - which landed in Baucau - and transporting them to Dili. School supplies were transported to Liquica and Same for UNTAET.
On October 5, a joint Food-for-Work (FFW) assessment mission brought together participants from USAID, UNTAET, PKF, CIVPOL, WFP and local communities in Alas and Benato. The participants agreed to collaborate on the implementation of FFW activities including rehabilitation of the water supply system, market, and the OMT building. Many people are keen to start FFW projects with the result that in some geographically vulnerable areas, WFP are trying to phase out food distributions and phase in FFW.
In Suai and Maliana districts, a vulnerable group monitoring training conducted by WFP's monitoring and nutrition focal point. This was attended by staff of both WFP and their implementing partners'. Concurrently in Suai and Maliana, food security assessments were conducted in these two areas.
Shelter:
UNHCR finished discharging some 1,300 MTs of shelter material and non-food items from a vessel late on Friday. On 9 October another shipload of goods arrived from Surabaya carrying some 1,600 MTs of shelter materials.
Shelter supplies continue to be trucked into the Maliana area, with UNHCR sending a 20 truck convoy into the mountainous region on 8 October. A boat-load of UNHCR-supplied non-food items and shelter material will be dispatched to the Oecussi enclave during the week, and UNHCR is readying a barge to transport some 700 MT of shelter supplies to Suai.
A total of 19,222 shelter kits have now been distributed, with an expected 26,500 expected to be distributed by year end.
Water and sanitation:
There have been some problems in the handover of urban water supply operations and maintenance from the NGO Oxfam to the Office of Water Supply and Sanitation (WSS) District water teams. These teams are still limited in number and many still have no tools, materials or transport. In most districts it is planned that the teams will be supported technically by a United Nations Volunteer (UNV). However, in Alieu, Bobonaro and Viqueque the UNV is not yet in place, the cause of additional problems. WSS is working to resolve these issues with the full support of the international NGOs who have been involved in the water sector prior to their handover to WSS on 30 September. In the meantime, WSS is seeking submission for its Community Water Supply and Sanitation guidelines. The JICA water and sanitation design team is in East Timor looking at future projects.
UNICEF conducted a Village Entrepreneur Training in Ulmera, Liquica for 23 participants from Liquica (3 villages); Manatuto (2 villages) and Baucau (4 villages). Each training includes preparation of village needs assessment, rehabilitation and construction of village water and sanitation facilities - including local manufacture of large water storage pots, latrine pans and concrete rings for dug wells and latrines, and drain blocks for dug wells.
Education:
WFP is currently offloading 702 cubic meters of timber for the school re-roofing program on behalf of UNICEF. These are scheduled for urgent transshipment to the districts, beginning early next week.
Although it is not known exactly how many schools opened with the beginning of the school year, a 20 per cent increase in enrolments is being reported. This would bring the overall number of primary age enrolments to approximately 200,000 children. A knock on-effect of this unexpected increase in primary school enrolments is the shortage of teachers, and consequent large teacher pupil ratios. Informal discussions to resolve this difficulty in the short term, including among teachers themselves, have led to a number of possible solutions. One such proposition is to increase the number of teachers without increasing the budget, and supplementing their salaries with food, such as rice. While this possibility would certainly mean more teachers could be employed and reduce class sizes, the efficacy and precedent of paying civil servants in the mix of cash and commodities merits further discussion and consideration before a conclusion is reached.
Quick Impact Projects (QIPs):
The Joint QIP Coordination and Management Unit is currently drafting a report for its mid-term project evaluation, carried out from the second half of June till the end of August 2000. Projects have been inspected in eleven of the thirteen districts within the time allocated. The exceptions are Lautem and Manufahi where road conditions made access impossible within the proposed time frame. The report will focus on the QIP's financed through the UNTAET Trust Fund (US$ 1,000,000) and UNOCHA funds (US$ 150,000). The results of this report will be available the first week of November.
To date, 83 projects have received funds from the UNTAET Trust Fund, and another 83 projects received funds from the OCHA Fund. More than 95% of OCHA funds have been disbursed or committed to new project proposals. The UN Trust Fund has approved 100% of its funds, with 83 per cent disbursed so far.
UNTAET
Humanitarian Assistance & Emergency Rehabilitation Pillar
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