UN presses Jakarta to hold East Timor trials
UN presses Jakarta to hold East Timor trials
UNITED NATIONS (Agencies): The United Nations Security Council
(UNSC) urged Indonesia to bring to justice those responsible for
atrocities in East Timor but shied away from recommending or even
mentioning an international tribunal.
The council urged Indonesia to create a transparent, legal
process that conforms with international standards and said swift
and effective action by the government would help mend relations
with East Timor.
The council, in a letter to Secretary-General Kofi Annan, was
acknowledging a Jan. 31 report from a UN investigating team that
recommended a UN tribunal be set up to prosecute those involved
in the violence.
However, the council made no mention of the tribunal and
instead welcomed the government's commitment to take action
"through Indonesia's national judicial system".
"Grave violations of international humanitarian and human
rights law have been committed; those responsible for these
violations should be brought to justice as soon as possible,"
council president Arnoldo Listre of Argentina said in a letter to
Annan circulated on Wednesday.
Listre wrote that council members were "particularly conscious
that early and effective action by the government of Indonesia
would contribute to improved relations between the peoples of
Indonesia and East Timor".
"To that end, they encourage Indonesia to institute a swift,
comprehensive, effective and transparent legal process, in
conformity with international standards of justice and due
process of law," Listre wrote.
The accountability of those responsible for the violations
"would be a key factor in ensuring reconciliation and stability
in East Timor," he added.
Council members also encouraged Annan to consult with the
Indonesian government on any assistance it might need from the
United Nations.
Secretary-General Kofi Annan has supported Indonesia's right
to mount a trial.
Indonesia has said that the first trial could take place in
three months.
On Wednesday, UN peacekeepers officially took over from an
Australian-led multinational force which came into East Timor
following the Aug. 30 ballot.