E. Timor defendants acquitted

JAKARTA: The Supreme Court upheld the acquittal of five top- brass military and police defendants in a case involving East Timor human rights abuses during 1999, a justice said.

The five are former Suai military commander Lt. Col. Sugito, former Covalima regent Col. Herman Sedyono, former Suai military commander Lt. Col. Liliek Koeshadianto, the former Suai military command's chief of staff, Capt. Achmad Syamsuddin, and former Suai Police precinct chief Lt. Col. Gatot Subiaktoro. All were charged with gross human rights violations.

The justices ruled there were no command links between the defendants and pro-Indonesia militia, who fought East Timor separatists.

If found guilty the men would have faced 10 years imprisonment or the death sentence.

They were earlier acquitted from wrongdoing by the Jakarta ad hoc human rights tribunal in 2002. -- JP