By Cindy Shiner
Special to The Washington Post
Thursday, June 18, 1998; Page A27

DILI, East Timor, June 17—In the largest and most dramatic protest of its kind in recent years, thousands of people marched through the streets of this provincial capital today in mournful remembrance of the latest victim of Indonesian occupation.

About 3,000 demonstrators accompanied a black sedan carrying the body of Herman Soares, 21, who was shot by Indonesian soldiers on Tuesday night while collecting wood with his cousin. He died en route to a hospital.

The protesters, led by students from the University of East Timor, sang and prayed as they made their way to the governor's office and then to the provincial parliament. A few dozen students occupied the parliament building briefly and strung up banners critical of the Indonesian military.

"Demilitarize Timor -- When?" read one.

East Timorese students also demonstrated yesterday in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta. It was there that protesters last month took over the national parliament after security forces shot at least four student demonstrators. The deaths triggered protests and riots that were instrumental in forcing President Suharto to step down after 32 years in power.

In an unusual gesture -- and an indication of how things are changing in post-Suharto Indonesia -- the military apologized today for the shooting of Soares and announced that an officer had been detained for questioning.

Protesters have made Soares a martyr in their struggle against the Indonesian military. For several days, students have demonstrated for a referendum on the status of East Timor, which Indonesia invaded in 1975 in the midst of factional fighting and annexed the following year. Tens of thousands of people have been killed in the territory in the past 23 years, and many East Timorese said they hope the recent opening of Indonesia's political system will mean greater freedom here.

"I think it is understandable because we have been living under oppression for so long, so the students are coming out," said legislator Florentino Sarmento, a former soldier with the army of Portugal, Indonesia's former colonial ruler. "It is tense. Hopefully the military will take very hard measures toward the ones who made the shootings."

There are already signs that change is coming. Hardly a soldier was on the street today, unlike seven years ago when army troops shot dead more than 50 people in a similar protest. East Timorese political prisoners have been released, the press is speaking more candidly and demonstrations have gone unhindered.

In addition, students were allowed to occupy the parliament building today, and some of their demands were met, including an apology.

"What has happened was a mistake by the armed forces," Agence France-Presse quoted Col. Mudjino, deputy chief of the East Timor military command, as saying. "I have ordered a thorough investigation. We have apologized to the family, to the bishop and the public in general.

"In essence, our personnel were at fault," he said. "There was no reason for shots to be fired since the soldiers only suspected the victim of stealing wood."

The details surrounding Soares's killing were unclear, but apparently the wood he and his cousin were collecting belonged to soldiers stationed nearby. The cousin, Olandino Soares, said they had been gathering the wood to load down their truck so the vehicle wouldn't make as much noise as they traveled the mountain roads.

The conflict in East Timor has already claimed the lives of two of Olandino's brothers. "It's better to let the military go to their own country," Olandino said. "If they stay here, they'll kill us."

He spoke next to a blood-soaked bed in the home of Herman Soares's family, where the body was brought. Family members wailed as dozens of people shuffled into the living room to pay their last respects to the young man, who was laid out in a simple wooden coffin, holding a spray of white flowers. Two men wearing white surgical gloves sat nearby, waiting to embalm him.

The death was made more sensitive because Soares was the nephew of a priest. Most East Timorese are Catholic and have relied on the church over the years to protect them, by speaking out against human rights abuses allegedly committed by the military. Bishop Carlos Belo won the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize, along with Jose Antonio Ramos-Horta, for efforts to bring peace to East Timor.

But attempts to bring about a cease-fire between the Indonesian military and the small bands of guerrillas living in the mountains have been futile. There are also divisions among the East Timorese themselves over how to achieve more autonomy. The majority of the population, largely poor, uneducated farmers, want independence, including the immediate departure of the Indonesian military. Many of the island's leaders, like legislator Sarmento, would like to see a gradual loosening of ties with Indonesia, but they can't agree on how to go about it or how long it should take.

The Indonesian government has said it is willing to grant special status to East Timor but has not clarified what that means. President B.J. Habibie has ruled out a referendum on independence. In addition, East Timor is hardly a priority now among officials in Jakarta who are trying to keep their country from slipping into economic and social chaos.

The student activists in East Timor appear to be testing the waters to determine how far they can push the authorities. Although they occupied the parliament building here, they left the red-and-white Indonesian flag flying above it. Sarmento said he wasn't surprised.

"The military would shoot them if they took it down," he said.