June 23, 1999
| | |
| ||
| June 23, 1999 | atimes.com | |
| ||
| Southeast Asia Warnings of East Timor election violence By Farhan Haq UNITED NATIONS - The current level of violence byparamilitary groups in East Timor is part of a ''well-organizedcampaign'' to prevent Timorese from voting for independence,according to a report released Monday by Amnesty International. The report, ''East Timor: Seize the Moment,'' accuses theIndonesian government and armed forces of involvement in effortsto harass, threaten and even kill those Timorese who supportindependence in the run-up to the UN-supervised vote scheduled for August 8. Such violations, if they persist, ''can have a severe impact onthe [electoral] process and on the ability of individuals toexercise their basic rights to freedom of expression, associationand assembly,'' Amnesty warned. An Amnesty team, which visited East Timor from May 8-27, citedevidence that at least 34 Timorese had been murdered by securityor paramilitary forces since Indonesia agreed to the self-determination vote in a UN-brokered agreement with Portugal on May5. Another 280 Timorese were illegally detained, dozens weretortured and at least two people ''disappeared,'' the reportsaid. ''These violations are part of a more general, well-organized campaign to threaten and intimidate the East Timoresepopulation into supporting autonomy." The report declared there is ''compelling evidence of directinvolvement by government authorities, the Indonesian NationalArmy . . . and the Indonesian police'' in that effort. ''If you're East Timorese, you would have to be prettycourageous, if not mad, to go to the registration office'' to votein August, said Florence Martin, Amnesty's UN representative, amember of the team sent to East Timor. In light of the continuing violence and harrassment, some UNofficials believe the vote must be delayed by several weeks,perhaps until Aug. 29. But even at a later date, the UnitedNations faces ''an impossible mission'' in establishingconditions for a free and fair vote, Martin said. For one thing, she said, many militias clearly areintimidating voters to opt for autonomy under Indonesian rule,rather than independence, during the August ballot. Indonesia has occupied East Timor since 1975, and this year offered a plan that would give the island state self-governmentexcept for military, foreign and monetary matters. Martin said that, during her time in East Timor, she sawbanners near UN offices that suggested that the United Nationsfavoured the autonomy option - although Secretary-General KofiAnnan has made clear that the world body is neutral on the vote'soutcome. Similarly, Martin alleged that Timorese civil servants areunder pressure - under threat of losing their jobs - to signletters of support for the autonomy option. The Amnesty report cited one militia leader, Eurico Guterres -who was named last week to head a civil defense unit in Dili, EastTimor's capital - as threatening civil servants at an April rally. ''Today, we are going to each government office; we will rid themof civil servants who are against Indonesia,'' the report quotedGuterres as saying. The worst problem, however, remains the random killings. ''The overwhelming majority of victims of the violations havebeen independence activists and supporters or people who have beenlabeled pro-independence because of their family ties, their workor because of their refusal publicly to support autonomy andcontinued integration with Indonesia,'' the report says. Nevertheless, the United Nations is pushing ahead with plansfor the ballot on Aug. 8. Some 270 UN police are to be deployedin East Timor by the end of June but, under the terms of theIndonesia-Portugal agreement, Jakarta has sole authority tomaintain security for the vote. (Inter Press Service) | |||||||||
 |
|
Front | China | Southeast Asia | Japan | Koreas | India/Pakistan | Central Asia/Russia | Oceania Business Briefs | Global Economy | Asian Crisis | Media/IT | Editorials | Letters | Search/Archive |
back to the top ©1999 Asia Times Online Co., Ltd. |
