East Timor - Focus on Human Rights, 2002

Arms
Business
Children's Rights
Counterterrorism
Economic, Social & Cultural Rights
Health & Human Rights
HIV/AIDS
International Justice
LGBT Rights
Migrants
Prisons
Refugees
United Nations
Women's Rights
More...

East Timor
Human Rights Watch Key Documents

Indonesia: Justice For East Timor Still Elusive
(New York, February 21, 2002) -Human Rights Watch called Indonesia's indictment today of senior officials for crimes against humanity a positive development, but said serious questions remained about the government's commitment to accountability for the 1999 violence in East Timor.

Trial Welcome but Justice Still Elusive in Timor
(New York, January 26, 2001) Human Rights Watch today welcomed the first successful prosecution by an East Timorese court of a militia member, but said real justice for East Timor was a long way off.

Urgent Need for Independent Timor Investigation
(New York, September 8, 2000) Human Rights Watch today backed the call from the Indonesian Human Rights Commission for an independent investigation, with U.N. participation, into the killings of aid workers in West Timor on September 6.

Indonesia Must Act on West Timor Killings
(New York, September 6, 2000) Human Rights Watch said that the deaths today of at least three U.N. refugee aid workers in West Timor were directly attributable to the Indonesian government's failure to control the militias.

East Timor: Serious Obstacles to Justice Remain
(New York, September 2, 2000) Human Rights Watch today welcomed the naming of nineteen suspects by Indonesian prosecutors investigating the terror and destruction in East Timor last year.

Ban Arms Sales to Indonesia Unless Timor Militias Stopped
(August 17, 2000, New York)—Human Rights Watch today called on the Indonesian army to disband, once and for all, militias operating in West Timor. If it fails to do so, donor countries should reinstitute the ban on commerical military sales to Indonesia imposed in September 1999 at the height of the army-led violence in East Timor.

East Timorese Refugees Face New Threat
(New York, March 30, 2000) -- Human Rights Watch today called on Indonesian authorities to lift a March 31 deadline on humanitarian aid to East Timorese refugees living in West Timor. The Indonesian government has given the refugees, some 100,000 people, until the end of the month to choose whether to go back to East Timor or remain in Indonesia. Indonesia says it will end all delivery of food and other assistance as of March 31.

East Timor Justice at a Crossroads
(New York, February 1, 2000) -- Human Rights Watch today called for stepped-up efforts to bring to justice those responsible for the killing, mass destruction, and forced expulsions that wracked East Timor last September.

Statement of Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International at the 54th Session of the United Nations-General Assembly, Oct. 6, 1999
Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International would like to share with the committee some assessment of the dangers East Timor faces as it moves toward independence in accordance with the results of the 30 August 1999 referendum. These dangers have clear implications for protection of human rights, the paramount concern of both our organizations, and for the ability of the United Nations to oversee a successful decolonization process in East Timor.

Strong Independent Commission of Inquiry Urged for East Timor
(New York, September 27, 1999) -- Human Rights Watch today urged the United Nations Commission on Human Rights to vote for the creation of an international commission of inquiry into possible crimes against humanity in East Timor. But the group warned that the effectiveness and credibility of an investigation could be undermined if it were closely tied to the Indonesia's National Commission on Human Rights, commonly referred to by its Indonesian acronym, Komnas-HAM.

Protect Refugees in West Timor
(New York, September 23, 1999) -- Human Rights Watch today welcomed an agreement that would give staff of the UNHCR safe access to the violence- wracked refugee camps in West Timor, but cautioned that no discussion of resettlement or return should take place before the physical security of all who fled or were forced to West Timor is completely secured.

Rights Group Calls for Timor Probe
(New York, September 23, 1999) -- Human Rights Watch today will urge the U.N. Commission on Human Rights, meeting in emergency session in Geneva, to establish a high-profile commission of inquiry to investigate human rights abuses in East Timor.

East Timor Alert: Stop Transmigration!
(New York, September 20, 1999) -- Human Rights Watch warned today that tens of thousands of East Timorese pushed out to West Timor by Indonesian army-backed militias could be "transmigrated" to other parts of Indonesia within weeks, making it nearly impossible for them to return home.

Accountability for Crimes Against Humanity in East Timor
(New York, September 20, 1999)— On September 14, the United Nations Security Council condemned the violence perpetrated in East Timor since the August 30, 1999 referendum and demanded "that those responsible for such acts be brought to justice." This briefing paper examines some of the issues surrounding such accountability. Those guilty of human rights abuses in East Timor could be brought to justice before a new ad hoc international tribunal, before the courts of Indonesia, or before the courts of other countries. The first step, however, will be solid documentation of the human rights crimes that have been committed.

HRW Urges Adoption of UN Security Council Resolution On East Timor
(New York, September 14, 1999)-- Human Rights Watch today called for immediate adoption of a resolution now under consideration by the U.N. Security Council that would enable immediate deployment of a multinational force in East Timor. But it warned that the lack of clarity over the exact role of the Indonesian armed forces needed urgently to be resolved either in the resolution or in subsequent protocols in order to forestall further atrocities.

Habibie Decision Welcomed But What Are The Terms? (New York, September 12, 1999)-- Human Rights Watch welcomed Indonesian President Habibie's announcement on Sunday that he was accepting the United Nations' offer of an multinational peacekeeping force for East Timor. It warned, however, that the period between the announcement and the arrival of international troops could be the most dangerous of all for the East Timorese who support independence.

Refugee Camps in W. Timor Offer No Refuge
(New York, September 10, 1999) -- People fleeing the terror in East Timor or being forced out by militias have no protection over the border, Human Rights Watch said today. The same army-backed militias are now in West Timor patrolling the refugee camps, bus terminals, and even the main airport, and some of them have already attacked pro-independence refugees.

East Timor: Martial Law Will Make Things Worse
(New York, September 7, 1999) -- Human Rights Watch said today that President Habibie's declaration of martial law in East Timor, apparently at the urging of Indonesian armed forces commander General Wiranto, could make a terrible situation worse. It urged Indonesia's donors to continue to press Habibie to invite an international peacekeeping force to East Timor.

East Timor: The World Must Act Or Be Complicit In The Killing
(New York-September 5, 1999) Human Rights Watch today charged that Western governments were not doing all they could to stop the violence spreading across East Timor in the wake of the vote in favor of independence there last week.

Indonesian Government Must Prevent East Timor Bloodbath
(New York, September 3, 1999)—The next forty-eight hours could bring widespread death and destruction in East Timor unless world leaders exerted maximum pressure on the Indonesian government, Human Rights Watch said today.

East Timor: Suspend Aid Until Militias Brought Under Control
(September 1, 1999, New York)—In the wake of a new militia attack near United Nations headquarters in Dili, East Timor on Wednesday night, Human Rights Watch called for immediate suspension of all military training and assistance programs to the Indonesian army until there is some evidence that it is making a serious effort to bring its proxy militias under control.

Jakarta's East Timor Tightrope By Sidney Jones August 20, 1999
On Aug. 30, barring further delays, the people of East Timor will vote on whether they wish to remain part of Indonesia as an autonomous region or form an independent state. Virtually all eligible voters, almost 450,000, have now registered, despite violence and intimidation from Indonesian army-backed groups to prevent them from doing so. But there are worrying signs that violence could yet mar the election and its aftermath. More...

More Deaths Inevitable in East Timor Unless Donors Act
(August 27, 1999, New York)— More deaths in East Timor are inevitable unless immediate, collective pressure is brought to bear on the Indonesian government to stop its regular security forces from aiding proxy militias, Human Rights Watch said today, in the aftermath of four and possibly five deaths in Dili on Thursday.

ASEAN Should Address East Timor, Governance Issues
(New York, July 23) — The annual meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers beginning this weekend in Singapore should address key human rights issues in the region that threaten to undermine regional stability and investor confidence, Human Rights Watch said today. It said that members of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and participants from other countries should focus on difficult political transitions in Indonesia and Cambodia, the unchecked violence in East Timor, and the worsening human rights situation in Burma.

Stop Militia Violence
(July 6, 1999) -- Human Rights Watch said today that fresh attacks on United Nations personnel by pro-Indonesia militias in East Timor demonstrate that governments supporting the UN mission there need to get much tougher with the Indonesian armed forces.

East Timor: Donors Must Register More Forceful Protest
(July 1, 1999) -- Human Rights Watch today called on all major donors to the United Nations operation in East Timor to step up pressure on the Indonesian armed forces to disband civilian militias in East Timor.

East Timor: Stop Bank Loans Until Militias Disarmed
(New York, April 20, 1999) — Human Rights Watch charged that the government of President Habibie could have prevented the violence in East Timor on Saturday by acting earlier to disarm pro-Indonesia militias.

Background: The Indonesian Army and Civilian Militias in East Timor
The violence in East Timor on April 17 was sparked by a rally of an estimated 3,000 pro-Indonesia militia members on the grounds of the East Timor governor's office in the capital, Dili. The rally was attended by the governor, Abilio Soares, senior military officers, and the district heads of East Timor's thirteen districts. Eleven of these districts have their own civilian militia ostensibly established to defend communities against guerrilla attacks but in fact to fight individuals and organizations supportive of independence. Some are of long standing, dating back to the 1970s, while others were only formed after the Habibie government's January 27, 1999 announcement that if the East Timorese people rejected the government's offer of autonomy, the government would consider the "second option" of independence.

Joint Demarche Needed On East Timor Militias
(New York, April 9, 1999) —Human Rights Watch called today on governments represented in the Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI), a donor consortium, to make a joint demarche to the Indonesian government urging the disarming of army-backed militias in East Timor.

East Timor Massacre Reports Still Unconfirmed, Both Sides Must Respect Rights
(November 23, 1998) -- Human Rights Watch today urged all parties to the conflict in East Timor to respect humanitarian law after reported abuses by both the Indonesian army and East Timorese independence supporters near the town of Alas, Manufahi district, East Timor.

Indonesia and East Timor: The Prisoner Releases So Far
(August 26, 1998)-- On June 4, 1998, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch issued an appeal for release of political prisoners in Indonesia and East Timor, following President Soeharto's resignation and the lifting of some political controls.