E. Timor militia leader sentenced to 10 years in jail

E. Timor militia leader sentenced to 10 years in jail

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The ad hoc human rights court sentenced the former pro-Jakarta
militia leader Eurico Guterres to 10 years in jail on Wednesday
for his role in a massacre in East Timor three years ago, making
him the second person of East Timorese origin to have been
convicted in the landmark trial here.

The verdict quickly sparked anger from Eurico, who questioned
the fairness of the human rights trial for failing to punish
military and police officers for their involvement in the
atrocities that marked the territory's breakaway from the
republic after 23 years of occupation.

"It is unfair that a civilian like me must serve 10 years in
jail, but all the military and police officers were acquitted
even though they were responsible for the violence," a dejected
Eurico said.

"What I did was to try to maintain the unity of Indonesia, but
now I have to go to jail."

Eurico, however, does not have to start serving his jail term
right away as the judges did not order his immediate
imprisonment, despite the fact that they had convicted him of
committing an extraordinary crime.

The desolate ex-militia figure demanded that former president
B.J. Habibie and former Armed Forces commander Gen. (ret) Wiranto
be brought to justice for their crucial roles in the widespread
destruction and violence prior to and after the referendum that
resulted in East Timor's independence.

Eurico said he was considering an appeal to the High Court.

The verdict against Eurico has given rise to widespread
suspicions that civilians are being scapegoated for the 1999
chaos in the former Indonesian province, while military and
police officers are being allowed to escape scot-free.

Prior to the start of Eurico's trial, former East Timor
governor Abilio Jose Osorio Soares was sentenced to three years
in jail.

A total of 18 defendants have been or will be brought before
the human rights tribunal.

Eurico's sentence is still below the minimum sentence of 11
years in jail stipulated in Law No. 26/2000 on human rights
tribunals, the legal basis for the trial.

"We find him guilty of having allowed his followers to murder
and torture people in the house of Manuel Viegas Carrascalao on
April 17, 1999, in Dili, where 12 people were killed and three
others injured," presiding judge Herman Heller Hutapea
pronounced.

Herman said that prior to the massacre, Eurico had delivered a
speech to militia members during a ceremony broadcast by a local
radio station ordering them to kill Manuel and his family.

Manuel was one of the East Timorese leaders who supported
independence for East Timor.

"His speech fired up the militiamen and they responded by
screaming "kill, kill, kill", and even fired shots into the air,"
Herman said.

"As the militia's leader, Eurico should have realized that he
could control and stop his followers from attacking Manuel's
house, but he didn't do so."

The court, however, said that the former East Timor military
commander, Brig. Gen. Tono Suratman, and other government
officials who attended the ceremony, must also be held
responsible for the attack.

"Tono ignored a report from Manuel that his house would be
attacked by pro-Jakarta militiamen. He did not take any action
until the incident occurred," he said.

"Government officials attending the ceremony were also
unwilling to use their powers to prevent the attack".

Over 1,000 are believed to been killed during the widespread
violence and some 250,000 people were forced to flee to East Nusa
Tenggara after the referendum

Human rights activists have called for an international
tribunal to try the suspects, claiming that the ad hoc court had
failed to provide justice for the victims of the atrocities.

But observers have expressed pessimism that such an
international tribunal for East Timor would materialize due to
weak support from permanent members of the United Nations
Security Council, including the U.S., Russia and China.