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Open Letter to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon
His Excellency Ban Ki-Moon
Secretary-General
The United Nations
1 United Nations Plaza
New York, New York 10017-3515
December 13, 2007
Mr. Secretary-General,
We are a coalition of more than 70 human rights organizations from
14 countries around the world, concerned about justice for the
people of Timor-Leste.
On this, your first visit as Secretary-General to Timor-Leste, we
remind you that its people suffered countless war crimes and crimes
against humanity during the Indonesian invasion and 24-year
occupation of their homeland. These crimes occurred in violation of
the UN charter, numerous United Nations resolutions and human rights
treaties.
We draw your attention to the solemn commitments of the Security
Council, expressed in Resolutions 1264 and 1272, and those of your
predecessor, His Excellency Kofi Annan, to bring those responsible
to justice. In this context, we congratulate you for
refusing to legitimize the bilateral Commission for Truth and
Friendship (CTF) and for reiterating that the UN "cannot endorse
or condone amnesties for genocide, crimes against humanity, war
crimes or gross violations of human rights, nor should it do
anything that might foster them".
It is clear that both Indonesia's Ad Hoc Human Rights Court and the
CTF have proven manifestly unsuitable in design and implementation
to the task of delivering justice in accordance with international
law.
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UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (at podium, left) and
Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão (right) address the
media following their meeting at the Prime
Minister's office
Photo by: UNMIT
Photo/Martine Perret
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The Serious Crimes process (which only dealt with crimes committed
in 1999) was terminated by the Security Council in May 2005 although
its work was far from complete. Since then the United Nations
Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) has re-established the
Serious Crimes Investigation Team to complete investigations into
outstanding cases from 1999. UNMIT's recent "Report on human rights developments in
Timor-Leste August 2006 - August 2007," highlighted the role that
the report of the Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation
Commission (CAVR) can play within Timor-Leste in both 'unifying'
Timorese society and helping to 'foster a democratic culture based
on the rule of law'.
We urge you to convene an open debate at the United Nations of the
CAVR's recommendations to the international community. Both the CAVR
and the UN Commission of Experts recommended the creation of 'an ad
hoc international criminal tribunal for Timor-Leste' should
Indonesia, under a strict time frame, continue to fail to credibly
prosecute senior officials responsible for the devastation in 1999.
This call for substantive justice for past crimes is widely
supported within Timor-Leste, especially by the Church and civil
society. However, the leaders of Timor-Leste need the support of the
United Nations and other key international actors in addressing
this, as they cannot be expected to bear such a difficult diplomatic
burden on their own.
Accordingly, in anticipation of an ad hoc international criminal
tribunal, we urge you to fully reconstitute the Serious Crimes
process, providing it with sufficient resources and backing. This
should be done in accordance with recommendations 7.1.1 and 7.1.2 of
the CAVR Report - namely, the UN itself should provide the resources
and judicial expertise, not Timor-Leste's court system. The Serious
Crimes process must investigate war crimes and crimes against
humanity committed from 1975 onwards, not just those committed in
1999. Indonesia, which is currently a member of both the Security
Council and UN Human Rights Council, must extradite for trial those
charged by the Serious Crimes process.
In February 2000, your predecessor called for "justice to prevail
over impunity" while standing in a churchyard in Liquiça, the site
of one of the most notorious 1999 massacres. We urge you to do all
within your power to ensure this occurs.
Sincerely,
John M.
Miller, National Coordinator
East Timor & Indonesian Action Network, USA
UN Representative, International Federation for East
Timor (IFET)
Yasinta Lujina, Coordinator
Viriato Seac, Researcher
La'o Hamutuk Institute for
Reconstruction Monitoring and Analysis, Timor-Leste
Mericio Akara, Program Manager
Luta Hamutuk - Timor Leste
Jose Caetano Guterres. Coordinator of Coordinating
Committee
Dr. Phyllis Ferguson
East Timor Reflection Network
Timotio de Deus, Director
Judicial System Monitoring Program (JSMP)
Antero Benedito
Peace and Community Development Centre
Naldo Rei
Media Advisor and Author of "Resistance: A
Childhood Fighting For East Timor"
Jose Teixeira
Former Minister for Natural Resources, Minerals and
Energy Policy, R.D.T.L. Government
Member, Timor-Leste Parliament
Rafendi Djamin, Coordinator
Indonesian Human Rights Working Group
Suraiya IT, Chair
International Forum for Aceh
Ms. Nel Pattinama, supervisor
Maluku Masa Depan Foundation
Moluccan Human Rights Organization
The Netherlands
Paul van Zyl, Executive Vice President
International Center for Transitional Justice
Charles Scheiner
International Secretariat
International Federation for East Timor
Brad Adams, Director for Asia
Human Rights Watch
Anselmo Lee, Executive Director
Tadzrul T. Hamzah, South East Asia Programme Officer
FORUM-ASIA, Thailand
Tupou Vere, Director
Pacific Concerns Resource Centre
Gus Miclat
Asia-Pacific Solidarity Coalition (APSOC), Philippines
Juan Federer, Former Coordinator
East Timor International Support Center
Pedro Pinto Leite, Secretary
International Platform of Jurists for East Timor, The
Netherlands
Bobbi Nassar, UN Representative
International Federation of Settlements and Neighborhood
Centers
Robert B. Fisher, Chairperson
VIVAT International
James Dunn, UNTAET expert on crimes against humanity in
East Timor 2001-2002
Dr Clinton Fernandes
Australian Coalition for Transitional Justice in East
Timor
Dr Helen M. Hill, Chairperson
Australia-East Timor Association (Victoria)
Brendan Doyle, Treasurer
Jefferson Lee, Projects Officer
Australia East Timor Association (NSW)
Rob Wesley-Smith, Convenor
Australians for a Free East Timor, Darwin
Eko Waluyo
Indonesia Solidarity, Sydney
Miriam Tonkin, Chairperson
Australia East Timor Friendship Association, (SA)
Brian T. Manning
Campaign for an Independent East Timor, Australia
Celine Massa, Campaign Organiser
SEARCH Foundation, Australia
Maire Leadbeater, Spokesperson
Indonesia Human Rights Committee, Auckland
Kevin McBride
National Coordinator
Pax Christi Aotearoa-New Zealand
Geoffrey C. Gunn, Professor of
International Relations
Nagasaki University, Japan Former consultant sociologist
to UNTAET; former consultant to CAVR on "international
actors."
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Kyo Kageura
Japan East Timor Coalition
Carmel Budiardjo, Director
TAPOL, the Indonesia Human Rights Campaign, UK
Christine Allen, Executive Director
James Whitehead, Director of International Programmes,
Progressio, London, UK
Gabriel Jonsson, Chairman
Swedish East Timor Committee
Dr. Monika Schlicher, Executive Director
Watch Indonesia! Working Group for Democracy, Human
Rights
Environmental Protection in Indonesia and East Timor,
Berlin, Germany
Bruno Kahn Directeur de recherche
CNRS Paris, France
Carlos.Semedo
France-Timor Leste
David Webster, former Coordinator
East Timor Alert Network, Canada
Matt Easton, Director
Human Rights Defenders Program, Human Rights First
Ed McWilliams, retired senior Foreign Service Officer,
former Political Counselor, U.S. Embassy, Jakarta
West Papua Advocacy Team
Jim Winkler, General Secretary
General Board of Church and Society. The United
Methodist Church, USA
Rev. Dr. Dennis M. Davidson, President
Unitarian Universalist Peace Fellowship
David Robinson, Executive Director
Pax Christi USA
Rev. James Kofski, Associate
Asia/Pacific and Middle East Issues, Maryknoll Global
Concerns, Washington
Eileen Gannon,OP
Dominican Leadership Conference
Marie Lucey OSF, Associate Director
Leadership Conference of Women Religious
Sister Joan Kirby
Temple of Understanding
President, Committee of Religious NGOs at the UN
Judith Mayer, Coordinator
The Borneo Project, USA
Rev. John Chamberlin, National
Coordinator
East Timor Religious Outreach
Sharon Silber & Eileen B. Weiss, Co-Founders
Jews Against Genocide
Kirsten Moller, Executive Director
Global Exchange
Elaine Donovan, co-founder
Concerned Citizens for Peace, Hemlock, NY
David Hartsough, Executive Director
PEACEWORKERS, San Francisco
Bill Ramsey
Human Rights Action Service, St. Louis
Vivek Ananthan,
Center For Creative Activities, Philadelphia
Dr. Brad Simpson, Assistant Professor of History
University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Director, Indonesia and East Timor Documentation
Project,
National Security Archive
Carol Jahnkow, Executive Director
Peace Resource Center of San Diego
Diana Bohn
Nicaragua Center for Community Action (NICCA), Berkeley,
CA
Andy Mager, Staffperson
Syracuse Peace Council
Roland Watson, Founder
Dictator Watch
Alan Muller, Executive Director
Green Delaware
Herbert Rothschild Jr., Coordinator
Peace Action, Greater Houston Chapter
Jeff Ballinger
Press for Change
Sr. Sheila Kinsey, OSF, Leader
Justice, Peace & Integrity of Creation Office Wheaton
Franciscans
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Additional signers Gustaf Dupe, Chairman
Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners (KAP
T/N)
Chairman, Association of Prison Ministries, Indonesia
Chairman, Law Enforcement Watch (LEW), Jakarta
General Secretary, Jakarta Christian Communication
Forum, (FKKJ)
Mountains Community Resource Network
Blue Mountains, Australia Shulamith Koenig, Founding President
PDHRE, People's Movement for Human Rights Learning;
Recipient of the 2003 UN Human Rights Award |
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see also:
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-- TAKE ACTION FOR
JUSTICE --
Urge UN
Secretary-General to Act for
Justice for East Timor
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Surat kepada Sekretaris Jenderal Perserikatan
Bangsa-Bangsa (PBB) mengenai Keadilan bagi Timor-Leste
Yang Terhormat Ban Ki-Moon
Sekretaris Jenderal Perserikatan Bangsa-Bangsa
1 United Nations Plaza
New York, New York 10017-3515
Desember 13 2007
Yang Terhormat Bapak Sekretaris Jenderal
Kami adalah koalisi yang terdiri atas lebih dari 70 organisasi
hak asasi manusia dari 14 negara yang peduli atas keadilan bagi
penduduk Timor-Leste
Dalam kunjungan pertama Anda ke Timor-Leste sebagai Sekretaris
Jenderal, kami mengingatkan bahwa penduduk negara ini telah
menanggung tak terhitung penderitaan akibat kejahatan perang dan
kejahatan melawan kemanusiaan selama invasi dan 24 tahun pendudukan
Indonesia. Kejahatan-kejahatan ini merupakan pelanggaran atas Piagam
Perserikatan Bangsa-Bangsa, sejumlah resolusi Perserikatan
Bangsa-Bangsa dan perjanjian-perjanjian internasional mengenai hak
asasi manusia.
Kami meminta perhatian Anda terhadap komitmen Dewan Keamanan
sebagaimana dinyatakan dalam Resolusi 1264 dan 1272, dan pendahulu
Anda, Kofi Annan, untuk menyerahkan mereka yang bertanggungjawab
atas kejahatan-kejahatan itu ke hadapan pengadilan. Dalam hal ini,
kami memuji keputusan Anda menolak legitimasi Komisi bagi Kebenaran
dan Persahabatan (Commission for Truth and Friendship)(CTF) yang
bilateral, dan pernyataan ulang Anda bahwa Perserikatan
Bangsa-Bangsa "tidak menyetujui atau merestui amnesti bagi genosid,
kejahatan melawan kemanusiaan, kejahatan perang dan kejahatan serius
atas hak asasi manusia serta mereka yang mendukungnya.
Jelas bahwa Pengadilan Ad Hoc Hak Asasi Manusia Indonesia dan CTF
telah terbukti tidak sesuai dalam rancangan dan implementasinya
untuk mewujudkan keadilan sesuai dengan hukum internasional.
Proses Kejahatan Serius (Serious Crimes process)(yang dilakukan
hanya atas kejahatan yang dilakukan di tahun 1999) telah dihentikan
oleh Dewan Keamanan di bulan Mei 2005 sekalipun tugas mereka jauh
dari lengkap. Sejak itu, Misi Terintegrasi Perserikatan
Bangsa-Bangsa di Timor-Leste (United Nations Integrated Mission in
Timor Leste, UNMIT) mendirikan Tim Penyidikan Kejahatan Serius
(Serious Crimes Investigation Team) untuk melakukan penyidikan atas
kasus-kasus mulai dari tahun 1999 yang belum sempat diselidiki.
Laporan UNMIT yang terbaru “Laporan Perkembangan Hak Asasi manusia
di Timor-Leste Agustus 2006 – Agustus 2007”, menandai peran yang
dapat dimainkan oleh Komisi bagi Penerimaan Kebenaran dan
Rekonsiliasi (Commission for Reception, Truth, and Reconciliation
Commission)(CAVR) untuk “menyatukan” masyarakat Timor-Leste dan
untuk “mendorong budaya demokratis berdasarkan hukum.”
Kami mendesak Anda untuk mengadakan debat yang terbuka bagi
komunitas internasional mengenai rekomendasi CAVR, di Perserikatan
Bangsa Bangsa. Baik CAVR maupun Komisi Ahli PBB (UN Commission of
Experts) merekomendasikan pembentukan pengadilan pidana
internasional ad hoc bagi Timor-Leste apabila Indonesia dalam waktu
singkat, masih saja gagal mengadili perwira-perwira senior yang
bertanggungjawab atas penghancuran di tahun 1999 dalam suatu proses
yang dapat dipercaya.
Desakan bagi keadilan substantif bagi kejahatan di masa lalu ini
didukung secara luas di Timor-Leste, terutama oleh pihak Gereja dan
masyarakat luas. Para pimpinan Timor-Leste tidak dapat diharapkan
untuk menanggung beban diplomatis itu sendirian.
Sejalan dengan itu, sebagai antisipasi atas pengadilan pidana
internasional ad hoc, kami mendesak Anda untuk secara penuh
membentuk kembali proses Kejahatan Serius (Serious Crime process),
untuk menyediakan cukup sumber daya dan dukungan. Hal ini seharusnya
dilakukan sesuai dengan rekomendasi 7.1.1 dan 7.1.2 dari Laporan
CAVR - yaitu, PBB harus menyediakan sumber daya dan tenaga ahli di
bidang peradilan, bukan bergantung pada sistem peradilan
Timor-Leste. Proses Kejahatan Serius harus menyidiki kejahatan
perang dan kejahatan melawan kemanusiaan yang dilakukan mulai dari
tahun 1975, tidak hanya yang dilakukan di tahun 1999. Indonesia,
yang saat ini adalah anggota baik dalam Dewan Keamanan dan Dewan Hak
Asasi manusia PBB, harus mengekstradisi mereka yang dinyatakan
sebagai tersangka oleh proses Kejahatan Serius.
Di bulan Februari 2000, di halaman gereja di Liquica, salah satu
lokasi pembantaian 1999, pendahulu Anda mendesak “keadilan
mengungguli kekebalan hukum”. Kami mendesak Anda untuk sepenuhnya
mewujudkan janji ini semampu Anda.
Hormat kami,
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