Rights body will cooperate with UN's Timor inquiry
Rights body will cooperate with UN's Timor inquiry
JAKARTA (JP): The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas
HAM) said on Tuesday it was ready to cooperate with the United
Nations in its inquiry into alleged human rights abuses in East
Timor.
Rights body chairman Marzuki Darusman, who is also deputy
chairman of the Golkar party, said Indonesia had a moral
obligation to cooperate with and assist the inquiry.
"Although the decision is a setback for the government, Komnas
is prepared to cooperate with the international commission,"
Marzuki told The Jakarta Post.
"That's the position of the international community ... and it
is best that we recognize it and respect that."
Marzuki said the rights body would continue with plans to
launch its own investigation into alleged human rights violations
in the former Portuguese colony.
"Komnas itself is going to initiate preparatory steps to set
up the institutional framework to enable an inquiry and eventual
legal proceedings, as it is the primary responsibility of the
government to bring those who are found to be involved in human
rights violations to court."
The United Nations Commissioner on Human Rights (UNHCR)
adopted on Monday a resolution calling for an international
commission of inquiry to investigate human rights in the
territory following the wave of violence after the Aug. 30
ballot.
Indonesia and many Asian countries voted against the
resolution, which Indonesian diplomats in Geneva considered non-
binding.
Marzuki said the establishment of the international commission
to investigate the allegations could "take some time".
He said the international commission would focus on events
that occurred between the announcement of the ballot's result on
Sept. 4 and the security handover on Monday from the Indonesian
Military (TNI) to the International Force for East Timor
(Interfet).
An Australian-led multinational force landed in East Timor on
Sept. 20 to restore peace.
"The commission is mandated to assess reports and make an
overall judgment of what actually happened and also what did not
happen... and will eventually end up with identifying persons
and institutions that are responsible for any alleged human
rights violations," Marzuki said.
He added that the primary source for the investigation would
be individuals who had allegedly been forced to leave the
territory.
"I think they have gone through a traumatic experience; we
will also have to start by contacting refugees in West Timor."
The Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI)
said in a statement on Tuesday that the establishment of an
international inquiry on East Timor "would break the cycle of
impunity that has so far been enjoyed by the Indonesian Military
and authorities".
Previous UN commissions of inquiry have led to the
establishment of international war crimes tribunals in the former
Yugoslavia and Rwanda.
A top Indonesian government official expressed hope on Tuesday
that the UN would conduct the inquiry in a neutral manner, and
stressed the need for the international inquiry to consult the
Indonesian rights body.
Minister/State Secretary Muladi however stopped short of
explicitly saying Indonesia would cooperate in the probe.
"We have to permit this inquiry because we are a member of the
UN ... and we hope that the people who come here have good
intentions and are neutral," he said.
Asked how Indonesia would react if the UN inquiry found
evidence of human rights abuses, Muladi said it was too early to
comment on the scenario. (byg/prb)