PROMOTING HUMAN RIGHTS, PEACE AND DEMOCRACY IN INDONESIA
111 Northwood Road, Thornton Heath,
Surrey CR7 8HW, UK
Tel +44 (0)20 8771 2904 Fax +44 (0)20 8653 0322
Email tapol@gn.apc.org
Website http://www.tapol.org
| News & Statements |
| Bulletin Archive |
| Press Releases |
| Reports & Papers |
| Publications |
| Links |
| How you can help |
East Timor Federation urges international tribunal on Timor vote anniversary, calls case for tribunal "irrefutable"
(This press release was issued by the International Federation for East Timor of which TAPOL is a member)
30 August 2000
Calling "the case for an international tribunal for East Timor … now irrefutable," the International Federation for East Timor (IFET) today urged UN Secretary General Kofi Annan immediately take steps to establish one.
In a letter delivered to the Secretary-General on the anniversary of East Timor's vote for independence, IFET wrote that the recent passage of a constitutional amendment introducing a non-retroactivity principle "confirms our prior assessment that the Indonesian judicial system cannot bring the perpetrators of the violence and destruction in East Timor to justice."
IFET warned that failure by the U.N. "to act decisively to end impunity for crimes committed in East Timor" encourages those responsible for the violence to "continue their reign of terror in the West Timor refugee camps and their attacks on civilians and UN peacekeepers across the border.... As long as the perpetrators of last year's mayhem enjoy impunity, there is no incentive for them to stop."
IFET reminded the Secretary-General that he and other U.N. officials have "repeatedly stated that you are holding the possibility of an international tribunal in abeyance to give the Indonesian justice system a chance to try the crimes." But IFET wrote, "little progress has been made in bringing justice to the people who suffered so much for expressing their desire for freedom. The arguments against allowing Indonesia to take responsibility for trying those responsible for the violence are overwhelming and we urge you to act immediately to set the international process in motion."
In the months leading up to last August 30 vote in East Timor, the International Federation for East Timor sent 140 non-partisan observers to East Timor to observe the U.N.-administered consultation process. IFET was formed in 1991 to support the self-determination process for East Timor at the United Nations. It now has 39 member groups from 23 countries.
ENDS
Search
 |
| Subscribe |