Minister Will Quit, President Insists

Indonesian Security Minister Gen. Wiranto, accused of allowing pro-Indonesian militias to devastate East Timor, will resign next week, President Abdurrahman Wahid said today. Wahid, who is in Bangkok, Thailand, for a U.N. trade meeting, said that he would meet with Wiranto after he returns to Indonesia tonight and that he expects the general to resign within two days. Wahid first called for Wiranto’s resignation Jan. 31 after a government investigation blamed the general for the mayhem in East Timor after the territory voted Aug. 30 to break away from Indonesia. Wiranto’s refusal to quit his Cabinet position has sparked fears of a coup attempt by the country’s powerful military.