UN to verify TNI's Timor role
UN to verify TNI's Timor role
JAKARTA (JP): A United Nations commission conducting an
inquiry into violence in East Timor, after comparing notes with
Indonesian counterparts on Monday, said that both inquiries had
found traces of evidence that the Indonesian Military (TNI) was
responsible for violence following the Aug. 30 ballot in the
territory.
However, no decision has been made on whether a war crimes
tribunal can be established.
Costa Rican Sonia Picado from the UN commission, after meeting
with the Indonesian government-sanctioned team on East Timor,
said that the two commissions had drawn similar conclusions in
their respective investigations.
"I have seen their reports, we have been talking about that
and I can say to you that their conclusions and our conclusions
are very much the same," Picado told reporters.
The nine-member national inquiry on East Timor, led by Albert
Hasibuan, last week accused TNI of having knowledge of or
ordering the mass violence in East Timor.
Picado said the commission's findings and interviews with over
160 witnesses indicated there were "important and serious
violations (of human rights) that took place in East Timor".
"We have seen concrete violations of human rights, with regard
to the rights to life, the rights to liberty and the rights to
property.
"There is no question that there was total destruction of the
country and systematic destruction of property. In some cities,
almost 90 percent of the properties were destroyed," Picado
claimed.
She also said the UN team interviewed a number of witnesses to
verify reports that dozens of women were sexually assaulted in
and outside the East Timor capital of Dili following the UN-
sponsored ballot.
Picado, however, declined to say whether an international war
crimes tribunal would be necessary to try those responsible.
"We cannot come to any conclusion at this point, it would not
be right for us to come to any conclusion before we go back to
Geneva," Picado said, adding that "that would be a decision of
the UN secretary-general (Kofi Annan)".
The five-member UN mission on Friday completed a nine-day
investigation into allegations of atrocities in East Timor.
During its stay in East Timor, the team traveled to Los Palos,
Maliana, Suai and Liquica.
The team is expected to submit its recommendation to Annan by
Dec. 31 on whether the United Nations should set up an
international war crimes tribunal.
It will then report to the UN Security Council, which has the
authority to set up a tribunal.
Other commission members are A.M. Ahmadi, former Indian chief
justice; Mari Kappa, Papua New Guinean deputy chief justice;
Judith Sefi Attah, a former Nigerian Cabinet minister of women's
affairs; and Sabine Leutheubser-Schnarrenberger, a former German
justice minister.
Picado previously served on the inter-American court of human
rights, where she dealt with cases from Argentina as well as
abuses in Brazil and Peru.
Picado said the team was scheduled to meet with Minister of
Defense Juwono Sudarsono and Minister of Foreign Affairs Alwi
Shihab on Tuesday. Before leaving for Geneva on Wednesday, the
team will also meet with Attorney General Marzuki Darusman.
While she seemed pleased to have been given the chance to
compare notes with her Indonesian counterparts, she was
disappointed the team could not go to East Nusa Tenggara to meet
refugees there.
"We cannot go to West Timor because unfortunately the visas
were granted only on Thursday night at 10 p.m. and by now it is
just too late for us to go to there," remarked Picado, who
arrived in Jakarta from Darwin on Sunday. (byg)