No one knows whether the militias have withdrawn to consolidate forces or to avoid an Indonesian military operation designed to disarm them. But a small window of opportunity has opened in the border camps and a growing number of refugees is climbing out. Some, of course, prefer to stay in the makeshift shelters. Remarkably, others continue to collect their Indonesian pensions, which will be withdrawn if they return. Those with militia links remain fearful of reprisals and unwilling to budge.
Aid agencies disagree.
Life in the camps is hell. While numbers are impossible to verify, those now back in East Timor tell of rampant intimidation over the border. They say there are nightly roll calls by militias who patrol with machetes. They claim many refugees are forced to leave behind relatives when they go to market as insurance that they will come back. Rumors circulate that peacekeepers rape women and beat men who cross the border.