E. Timor's patience wears thin over rights tribunal<\/p>\n
Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The East Timor transitional government is considering turning
\nto an international tribunal due to the repeated delays in the
\ntrial of officers allegedly involved in the 1999 human rights
\nabuses in the former territory.<\/p>\n
Philipe Rodriguez of the East Timor Public Administration's
\nDepartment of Foreign Affairs said in Jakarta on Thursday that
\nthe East Timor people's wish to see the perpetrators taken to the
\ncourt of justice has not materialized.<\/p>\n
Rodriguez said that East Timor has observed every development
\nin the Indonesian government's plan to bring the perpetrators to
\nthe ad hoc tribunal.<\/p>\n
\"We trust the Indonesian government to handle the case and see
\nit as its domestic affair, believing that the trial would be
\nfair.<\/p>\n
\"But we don't see that Indonesia has truly the will to do it.
\nIf this situation persists, we want an international tribunal to
\ntake over the trial,\" Rodriguez said in a seminar.<\/p>\n
The government has established an ad hoc tribunal but the
\ntrial schedules have been repeatedly delayed because President
\nMegawati Soekarnoputri has not yet approved the names of the
\njudges which are already in her hand.<\/p>\n
The names of the judges were proposed by the Supreme Court
\nand the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM). In the
\nlatest promise, the trial would start on Jan. 15.<\/p>\n
The seminar also featured Albert Hasibuan, former chairman of
\nKomnas HAM team assigned to investigate the human rights
\nviolations following the 1999 referendum that led to East Timor's
\nindependence.<\/p>\n
Lawyer Adnan Buyung Nasution, who represents the Indonesian
\narmy generals allegedly involved in the rights abuses also spoke.<\/p>\n
Rodriguez declined to say if East Timor had set any deadline
\nbefore it turns to the UN to set up an international tribunal.<\/p>\n
Albert said the commission concluded that more than 100 people
\nfrom the military, police and civilians in fact deserved to be
\nnamed as suspects.<\/p>\n
Among the big names that the commission believes deserve to be
\ndeclared suspects are (ret) Gen. Wiranto, former Udayana Military
\ncommander Maj. Gen. Adam Damiri, and former Wiradharma Military
\nCommand chief Brig. Gen. Tono Suratman and Brig. Gen. A. Noer
\nMuir, he said.<\/p>\n
The commission cited the principle of chain of command when
\nimplicating Wiranto.<\/p>\n
The Attorney General's Office, however, cut the list of
\nsuspects to 23, arguing that \"Wiranto was not directly involved
\nin the riots\", Albert said.<\/p>\n
The credibility of the investigation by the Attorney General's
\nOffice was questioned after Wiranto was removed from the list of
\nsuspects. He was supposed to be the most important decision maker
\nin the operation that led to the violation of human rights.<\/p>\n
Albert Hasibuan said he believed that the delay was due to a
\npolitical compromise between Megawati and \"certain groups\" in the
\nmilitary.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/e-timors-patience-wears-thin-over-rights-tribunal-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}