Rights body in awkward position

Rights body in awkward position

JAKARTA: East Timorese are scared to report possible
violations to the local representative of the human rights
commission because the office is near a military base.

The observation came from Marzuki Darusman, deputy chief of
the National Commission on Human Rights when he met Monday with
John Shattuck, U.S. under secretary of state for democracy, human
rights and labor.

Marzuki said some East Timorese had openly complained about
the office's location and about the procedures they had to go
through when filing complaints.

"Over the past eight months, people in East Timor have
complained they do not feel free to go to our representative
office. They feel they are being watched," he said as quoted by
Antara.

Shattuck, who arrived here Sunday, plans to go to East Timor
tomorrow or Thursday to meet with local officials and non-
governmental organizations. (pan)