UN must not short change justice for East Timor
The US solidarity group, East Timor Action Network (ETAN), urged that the extension of the United Nations mission in East Timor not be the last word on justice for serious crimes in East Timor. "Justice for East Timor must not be short changed. Doing so threatens to destabilise East Timor, as well as current and future UN missions", said John M Miller, spokesperson for the ETAN. "Real accountability for East Timor would provide important momentum to end the Indonesian military's ongoing human rights violations." "Justice must be allowed to take its full course. East Timorese victims should not pay the price for false starts and delays that are largely the result of UN decisions and Indonesia's non- cooperation", added Miller. "Unfortunately, the Security Council has done nothing to further pressure Indonesia on justice." Last week's Security Council action downsizes the UN Mission of Support in East Timor and calls for a shift in resources in the Serious Crimes Unit (SCU) from investigations to trials and appeals. Some on the Security Council called for all UN-funded work on serious crimes to end by May 20, 2005, at the latest. The US had argued for an even more rapid phasing out of the UN's support for serous crimes investigations and prosecutions. Mr Miller said the US must work with the UN Security Council to establish an international tribunal for East Timor. "Only a tribunal would have the resources and political weight to properly try and punish those responsible for genocide and other grave crimes", said Miller. On May 10, an international judge at the Special Panel for Serious Crimes in East Timor issued an arrest warrant for Wiranto, the Armed Forces Commander and Defence Minister in 1999 and now a leading candidate for the presidency of Indonesia. Prior to and after East Timor's overwhelming vote for independence, his troops and their militia proxies conducted a campaign of terror resulting in more than 1400 deaths, displacement of three-quarters of the population and destruction of more than 75 percent of East Timor's infrastructure. Wiranto was indicted on February 24, 2003, for crimes against humanity before the Special Panel, a joint UN-East Timorese court. Soon after, the US State Department placed Wiranto on its visa watch list. Remarks by Indonesia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda, dismissing the recent arrest warrant issued against General Wiranto, highlight Indonesia's refusal to co-operate with the serious crimes process. The SCU has filed 83 indictments accusing 373 individuals. Charges are currently pending against a total of 313 accused. 279 of these remain at large in Indonesia, including 37 Indonesian military (TNI) commanders and officers, four Indonesian chiefs of police, 60 East Timorese TNI officers and soldiers, the former governor of East Timor and five former district administrators. "Indonesian security forces committed countless crimes against humanity as Indonesia defied multiple UN resolutions since 1975 and, in 1999, sought to undermine a UN operation", said Mr Miller* * * For more information visit: http://http://www.etan.org