DILI (AFP) -- Troops fanned out across the East Timorese capital Dili Saturday, a day after a protest supporting sacked soldiers saw two people killed, as seven people were arrested over the rioting. Police commissioner Paulo Martins told reporters that 34 people had also been injured in the unrest, which saw some marchers wielding planks and steel pipes smash windows outside Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri's office building.
The rioters also burned at least five cars and Martins said about 100 homes were damaged in Dili's Tacitolu area, while a market was also badly damaged.
"Police have arrested seven rioters and they have been taken for questioning, while the rest of them are still hiding in the surrounding hills of Dili," he told reporters after meeting President Xanana Gusmao.
Hundreds of soldiers were meanwhile deployed across the capital at strategic locations, an AFP correspondent witnessed.
The streets of Dili were largely deserted, with most public transport not operating though a few taxis still sought fares. Shops and markets remained shuttered but the airport was operating, though under tight security.
Several thousand protestors took to the streets Friday for the third rally in a week supporting the 591 soldiers who were sacked last month, weeks after they deserted their barracks complaining of discrimination and poor working conditions.
East Timor's Foreign Minister Jose Ramos-Horta said shortly after the violence that the dismissed soldiers had not taken part in the unrest.
"On the contrary, they tried to calm down the youths who for several days have been the biggest agitators," he told Lisbon-based Radio Renascenca. He instead blamed the unrest on "groups that wanted to take advantage of the situation, some them linked to the opposition."
The foreign minister said both Alkatiri and President Xanana Gusmao were taken to safe places during the unrest.
About 100 policemen had been trying to control the crowd before police fired tear gas to disperse them. It remained unclear whether they had fired shots into the mobs but Home Affairs Minister Rogerio Lobato has criticised police.
"As the home affairs minister, I am not too thrilled with the police's action. They should have been able to perform better coordination, however the police must use every means necessary to control the situation," he said on Friday. He also criticized the protestors for violating the law.
The unrest prompted Australia to advise travellers to Dili to exercise a high degree of caution.
Gastao Salsinha, the most senior of the dismissed soldiers has said that the troops, mainly from East Timor's 10 western districts, deserted because they were being passed over for promotion in favor of those from eastern districts.
Ramos-Horta said earlier this month the government was setting up a panel to review the complaints of the soldiers, who had made up about a third of East Timor's fledgling army.
He said the men may be reinstated but only on a case-by-case basis.
East Timor became the world's youngest nation in May 2002, after a UN-backed referendum that handed the former Portuguese colony independence from Indonesia, which had occupied it for 24 years.
