UN rights chief asked to visit East Timor
UN rights chief asked to visit East Timor
GENEVA (Agencies): The United Nations Human Rights Commission yesterday committed Indonesia to inviting Jose Ayala Lassio, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, to East Timor this year.
The recommendation was made in a statement by Commission chairman Musa bin Hitam of Malaysia in a consensus declaration that Jakarta is forced to accept, Reuters reported.
Ayala Lassio, an Ecuadorean, will be the highest-ranking UN official ever to visit East Timor.
Musa expressed the Commission's "deep concern" over allegations of continuing violations of human rights in East Timor, including the recent killing of six villagers.
Portugal and Ireland had apparently been calling for a stronger-worded statement by the 53-member commission, but the European Union pushed instead for a consensus "chairman's statement" and negotiated its terms with the Indonesia.
The Indonesian delegation in Geneva is led by the foreign ministry's Director General of Political Affairs Izhar Ibrahim and includes director of international organizations Hasan Wirayuda and senior Timorese politician Lopez da Cruz.
Attempts by East Timor separatist leaders for a resolution condemning Indonesia was rejected by the commission.
The chairman statement followed the presentation of a report by UN rapporteur Bacre Waly Ndiaye who visited East Timor.
There was no immediate reaction from Jakarta to the chairman statement but Irawan Abidin, the chief spokesman of the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, earlier in the day denounced Ndiaye's report as "unbalanced."
In his report, Ndiaye called for the Indonesian government to reopen investigations of the November 1991 clash between demonstrators and security forces that killed over 60 people.
Ndiaye argued that troops recklessly fired on unarmed demonstrators and indicated that the whole affair might not have been the simple accident that the military has suggested.
He strongly recommended that, with the possible aid of the UN, a new inquiry team be formed by Jakarta.
"I would like to repeat the words of the minister who stated that his (Ndiaye's) report is not objective," Irawan said, quoting Indonesia's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ali Alatas.
The acting director of international organizations, Djumantoro P. Purbo, told the Post yesterday that the Indonesian delegation's main objective was to kill any reference pertaining to Indonesia and East Timor in the chairman's statement.
The delegation faced a difficult job, especially with the advent of the Liquisa incident, where Indonesian troops allegedly murdered six civilians.
Irawan said Indonesia hoped the UNHRC would take into consideration Jakarta's sincere efforts to establish an inquiry into the Liquisa incident.
"That is a very positive move by the government," he said, adding that the recent findings in the preliminary investigation of the incident will soon be followed up.
He believes that this will help to "balance out" all the negative reports being fed to the UNHRC. (mds/emb)