UN envoy here for talks and East Timor visit

JAKARTA (JP): A special rapporteur from the United Nations' Human Rights Commission for Execution Without Trial is now here on a 10-day visit.

During his stay in this country Waly Bacre Ndiaye, the rapporteur, will meet with high-ranking officials in Jakarta and East Timor, a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said here yesterday.

The ministry also said that Ndiaye's visit is at Jakarta's invitation which was extended at the 50th Human Rights Commission Annual Meeting in Geneva last March.

Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Irawan Abidin, told The Jakarta Post that Ndiaye, who replaced Amos Wako, met with Coordinating Minister for Political Affairs and Security Soesilo Soedarman, Minister of Home Affairs Yogie S. Memet and Head of the National Police Gen. Banurusman Astrosemitro yesterday.

Today he will also meet with the Minister of Defense and Security, Gen. Edi Sudradjat, and the Commander of the Armed Forces, Gen. Feisal Tanjung, before visiting the Cipinang prison later in the evening.

At the prison he plans to meet with both its director and prisoners. East Timor rebel leader Jose Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmao, who was visited by his wife and children last week, is among those imprisoned there.

On Wednesday, Ndiaye is scheduled to leave for Bali to hold talks with the Commander of the Udayana Military Command, Maj. Gen. Adang Rukhyatna, whose jurisdiction includes East Timor, and on the following day he will proceed to the former Portuguese colony.

Irawan said that during his three days in Dili the U.N. envoy would meet with the city military commander, the head of Dili's prosecution office and the head of the local district court.

Ndiaye is expected to return to Jakarta on Monday because on Tuesday he is slated to meet members of the National Commission for Human Rights, Coordinating Minister Soesilo Soedarman and members of the House of Representatives.

The envoy will hold talks with Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman, Attorney General Singgih and Foreign Minister Ali Alatas on Wednesday. He will leave Jakarta the following day.

A special rapporteur is assigned to observe violations of the right to life which take place throughout the world and report the findings to the U.N. Human Rights Commission.

In Indonesia, Ndiaye will investigate claims of torture and arbitrary execution, Irawan said as quoted by Reuters.

During the recent commission's 50th assembly, alleged violations were reported to have taken place in 74 countries, which include developing countries such as Bangladesh, China, Egypt and Indonesia and also developed ones such as Sweden, Britain and the United States, the statement said.

According to Reuters, the trip had been postponed for a month due to Alatas' health condition.

Irawan said the minister, who underwent a heart operation in Australia and returned recently is not in a condition that he can resume his works at the Foreign Office.

The U.N. has not recognized the integration of East Timor into Indonesia, which took place in 1976. It has since been mediating dialogs between Jakarta and Lisbon in the hope of ending the conflict. (pwn)