RI, Timor may seek foreign funds for peace commission<\/p>\n
Agence France-Presse, Dili<\/p>\n
Indonesia and its former territory East Timor may seek foreign
\nfunding for their Commission of Truth and Friendship
\ninvestigating past bloodshed, East Timor's foreign minister Jose
\nRamos-Horta said on Monday.<\/p>\n
Horta said that for the initial six months, the two countries
\nhad raised US$1.5 million to fund the commission, which was set
\nup in August to investigate the 1999 violence surrounding East
\nTimor's push for independence from Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Horta said this was more than the commission had sought for
\nthe first six months, but after that there would be a review of
\nwhether it needed more cash.<\/p>\n
\"If needed, Indonesia and Timor Leste (East Timor) will
\nsubsidize it and also if needed we will seek support from the
\ninternational community,\" Ramos-Horta said.<\/p>\n
The 10-member commission is similar to South Africa's post-
\napartheid body. It has said it plans to talk to former East
\nTimorese rebel leaders, top Indonesian Military officers and
\nformer pro-Jakarta militiamen.<\/p>\n
Militias, which the United Nations said were recruited and
\ndirected by the Indonesian Military, went on an arson and killing
\nspree before and after East Timorese voted for independence in a
\nUN-sponsored ballot in August 1999.<\/p>\n
They killed about 1,400 independence supporters and laid waste
\nto much of the infrastructure in the half-island that Indonesia
\ninvaded in 1975.<\/p>\n
An Indonesian court set up to try military officers and
\nofficials for atrocities in East Timor has drawn international
\ncriticism.<\/p>\n
Of the 18 people tried by the rights court, 17 have been
\nacquitted and one is still appealing.<\/p>\n
East Timor gained full independence in May 2002 after more
\nthan two years of United Nations stewardship.<\/p>\n
Its government opposes calls for an international tribunal for
\nsuspects, saying the priority is reconciliation with its giant
\nneighbor.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ri-timor-may-seek-foreign-funds-for-peace-commission-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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