Unnatural deaths

Unnatural deaths

When the Soeharto government appointed the board of Indonesia's National Human Rights Commission more than a year ago, many observers expected the body to be a tame one. Quite unexpectedly on Wednesday, the commission challenged the all- powerful armed forces when it accused the military on Wednesday of torturing and murdering six East Timorese villagers in Liquisa, west of Dili, on Jan. 12.

The commission in its report said the six died "unnaturally" during an army operation in the former Portuguese colony. While the Indonesian military command maintained the six were Fretilin pro-independence guerrillas, eyewitness reports after the shooting told a different story. Truth will out.

-- The Nation, Bangkok