Greetings,

NIHAC has had several presentations on violations of human and health
rights in Timor-Leste (East Timor). Recently a very damning report was
released that, after several years of painstaking documentation, describes
the systematic atrocities endured by the Timorese during Indonesian
occupation. I would like to propose that NIHAC sign on to a letter
requesting that the US government support implementation of the
recommendations of the report (see below). The full report is available
at:

http://www.ictj.org/en/news/features/846.html

Mary Anne


---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 13 Apr 2006 16:36:38 -0400
From: Karen Orenstein <etanorganize@...>
To: Karen Orenstein <etanorganize@...>
Subject: NGO signature request

Dear Friends -

We are writing to urge your signature on the following joint statement calling
on the U.S. government to implement the recommendations of the extraordinary
report of the Timor-Leste (East Timor) Commission for Reception, Truth, and
Reconciliation, known by its Portuguese acronym, CAVR. The statement, from
U.S.-based organizations, urges that the U.S. government be held to account for
its role in the invasion and occupation of Timor-Leste.

The CAVR report is the product of three years of intensive research by hundreds
of East Timorese and international experts and is based on information from
more than 8000 witnesses and victims. It covers the period from 1974 to 1999
and urges increased attention to crimes committed before 1999, including the
99% of the total murders committed under the Suharto dictatorship, which
received strong backing from foreign governments. UN-sponsored justice
processes have so far limited their work to 1999.

The report found that at least 102,800 people died from 1975 to 1999 as a
result of Indonesia's invasion and occupation. Declassified documents show that
multiple U.S. administrations were well aware of Indonesia's intention to
invade Timor and of the tragic consequences of that invasion and occupation,
even as they sought to keep that information from the public and Congress.

The CAVR report is the only justice process to date that focuses solely on the
experiences and needs of the many Timorese victims of the Indonesian
occupation. (see http://etan.org/news/2006/cavr.htm for the full text of the
CAVR report)

To add your organization's support to this statement, please email us your
name, title, and organization by Thursday, April 27. While we appreciate
individuals' support, this sign-on statement is limited to those representing
organizations.

Please forward this statement to like-minded NGOs as well. Thank you for your
consideration.

In solidarity,
Karen Orenstein

========
NGO STATEMENT:
We, the undersigned representatives of U.S.-based organizations, endorse the
findings and recommendations of the report of the Timor-Leste Commission for
Reception, Truth and Reconciliation (CAVR). We appreciate the work of the CAVR
in producing a document that sheds a bright light on the suffering and
resistance of the East Timorese people and illuminates the shameful acts of the
international community, especially those of successive U.S. administrations,
which actively assisted Indonesia’s illegal and brutal occupation.

The CAVR concluded that the United States government’s “political and military
support were fundamental to the Indonesian invasion and occupation.” Scores of
thousands of deaths could have been prevented had the U.S. acted differently.
The report laments that when the U.S. government finally acted decisively for
the East Timorese people – in September 1999 after decades of crimes against
humanity and widespread knowledge of the terror campaign against the East
Timorese in retribution for their independence vote – it served to demonstrate
“the considerable leverage that it could have exerted had the will been there.”

We agree with the CAVR’s assertion that primary responsibility for “pursuing
the daunting task of justice” for the entire invasion and occupation period –
not just for crimes committed in 1999 – belongs with the international
community, not with Timor-Leste or Indonesia.

We believe that the principle of accountability applies to rich and poor,
powerful and less-powerful nations alike, and that the U.S. government must be
held accountable for both its actions and inactions. The refusal of the Bush
administration to respond to the CAVR’s request for information is especially
disconcerting. We urge real cooperation by the U.S. government under similar
future circumstances.

We call on the U.S. Congress and administration to implement the relevant
recommendations of the CAVR report. These are steps required to achieve
justice, to demonstrate lessons learned, and to prevent similar atrocities from
occurring elsewhere in the world. The U.S. government should:

§ Apologize to the people of Timor-Leste.

§ Provide reparations to victims of gross human rights violations in
Timor-Leste.

§ Ensure that U.S.-based businesses which sold weapons to Indonesia during the
occupation of Timor-Leste pay reparations to victims of human rights
violations.

§ Make future “military sales and cooperation with Indonesia…totally
conditional on progress towards full democratisation, the subordination of the
military to the rule of law and civilian government, and strict adherence with
international human rights, including respect for the right to
self-determination.”

§ Actively work through the United Nations to set up an international tribunal
on Timor-Leste, enact CAVR recommendations to renew a more robust mandate for
the Serious Crimes Unit and Special Panels with appropriate material and
political backing, and carry out other recommended actions to ensure those
responsible for serious crimes are brought to justice.

Signed by:




--
Karen Orenstein
National Coordinator East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN)
202-544-6911 (t/f), www.etan.org