Timorese Groups Vow to Keep Peace

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Rival armed factions in East Timor agreed Friday to surrender their weapons and maintain peace in the bloodied territory ahead of a U.N.-sponsored ballot on its future scheduled for Aug. 8.

Both parties “agreed to promote order and security and a conducive peace,” said a statement signed by resistance leader Jose Alexandre “Xanana” Gusmao and pro-Indonesia leader Domingos Soares.

A U.N. source had said that a short postponement of the planned vote on autonomy or independence for the former Portuguese colony appeared increasingly likely due to logistical and security problems.