U-N says militias impeding return of refugess to East Timor

The United Nations says pro-Jakarta militias in West Timor are impeding the return of more than 100-thousand refugees to East Timor.

It says the militias have also threatened personnel from the U-N High Commissioner for Refugees.

UNHCR spokesman, Paul Stromberg, says the militias are misinforming the refugees, saying the situation in East Timor is getting worse.

About 126-thousand refugees have voluntarily returned to East Timor in the last three months, but up to 120-thousand people are still in several camps in West Timor.

Hundreds of thousands East Timorese fled the territory following the violence by pro-Indonesia militias after the August referendum on independence.

=A9 1999 Australian Broadcasting Corporation