Wiranto may be charged with 'omission'
JAKARTA (JP): A government-sanctioned inquiry said on Wednesday that Gen. Wiranto could be charged with "omission" for allowing violence and destruction to continue in the ravaged territory of East Timor after the Aug. 30 self-determination ballot.
Albert Hasibuan, chief of the Commission for the Investigation of Human Rights Abuses in East Timor, alleged that Wiranto had knowledge of the violence in the territory but did not do enough to prevent it from continuing.
Wiranto, who is now coordinating minister for political affairs and security, was the Indonesian Military (TNI) commander and defense minister at the time.
"I believe that Wiranto could be charged with omission or failure to take action," Albert told The Jakarta Post.
"He knew what was happening there, but he allowed the violence to continue and by this (inaction) more killings and destruction took place."
The commission, formed in late September, in its midterm report last week said the military was either directly or indirectly responsible for the violence.
Wiranto is among a number of Army generals to be questioned by the commission later this month. Wiranto has appointed former justice minister Muladi and a number of lawyers as his legal consultants.
Albert, however, said on Wednesday that prointegration militia leaders Eurico Guterres and Joao da Silva Tavarres would be questioned first to verify the militia's alleged links to the military.
"We think that the militia members' account will be instrumental to us in confirming TNI's alleged involvement in the violence," Albert said.
He said TNI Commander Adm. Widodo A.S. had promised during a meeting with the commission last week that the military would fly the militia leaders from East Nusa Tenggara to Jakarta.
Albert added that during the meeting Widodo gave the commission a booklet containing the results of the military's investigation into the East Timor violence.
Albert claimed, however, that the military had "turned facts around" in its investigation.
For example, he noted that the military claimed the incident in the East Timor town of Suai was triggered by a gunfight between prointegration militias and proindependence supporters. However, according to Albert, witnesses said militias had attacked refugees seeking shelter in a church.
"It's obvious that it tends to scale down the seriousness of the violence, the death toll and the destruction level in East Timor," Albert said.
The commission said earlier that TNI was allegedly involved in the militia attack on the Suai church on Sept. 6 in which at least 26 people were killed.
The chief of the UN commission's inquiry into East Timor violence, Sonia Picado, said earlier this week that after comparing notes with Indonesian counterparts, both inquiries had found traces of evidence that the Indonesian TNI was responsible for the violence.
The UN commission on Wednesday met here with Indonesian foreign minister Alwi Shihab.
In a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Alwi stressed that Jakarta's compliance to work with the UN commission was based on its desire to cooperate and not due to the UN human rights commission's resolution, which Indonesia rejects.
The statement also stressed that the commission's visit here "was not to investigate but to consult with the Indonesian side".
Alwi further asserted that "any attempt to take action against those found responsible for human rights violations must take into account the strategic interests of establishing good relations and cooperation between Indonesia and East Timor in the future".
Alwi stated on Tuesday that Indonesia would not allow its generals to be tried overseas. (byg)