31 January 2000
State Official Says Indonesia Should Conduct Rights Investigation
(Roth adds process must move forward rapidly, with integrity) (970) By Wendy Lubetkin Washington File European Correspondent Davos, Switzerland -- Assistant Secretary of State Stanley O. Roth says the United States wants to see justice done in the examination of possible human rights abuses in Timor, but believes Indonesia should be allowed to pursue its own investigation. "Our position has been that we want to see what happens in the Indonesian domestic process before making any determination as to whether there is a need for a follow-up international process," Roth said. "The key thing is that the process has to move forward with integrity; it has to move forward reasonably expeditiously -- not drag out over many years," he continued. "There has to be a sense that it is credible, not simply that everybody gets off the hook at the end. Beyond that I think we really should give the Indonesians a chance to conduct the investigation and the prosecution." Roth, who is assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, made the comments at a press briefing at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland January 31 where he touched on a wide range of topics including economic recovery in Asia, China, and the State Department's announcement that a high-level North Korean delegation would be coming to the United States. Earlier the same day, Indonesia's national human rights commission and the five-member International Commission of Inquiry on East Timor appointed by the United Nations both released reports on their investigations of possible human rights abuses in Timor. Roth said he had not seen either report, but said he had just attended a luncheon in Davos at which Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid told a group of business and political leaders that the Indonesian commission's report would be followed up by a vigorous investigation. According to Roth, President Wahid told luncheon guests the report calls for investigation into the role of 40 people, including General Wiranto and five other generals. "To the extent that the Indonesians do a bona fide job, that individuals are not only investigated, but prosecuted, and possibility convicted, then there would seem to be little need for an international effort," Roth said. "If that doesn't happen -- and given the previous history of investigations in Indonesia that is possible -- then the pressure for an international tribunal would grow." Roth emphasized that "one should not confuse the question of an international tribunal with the question of whether there could be international assistance to the Indonesian investigation." He noted that the international community has much better access in East Timor than the Indonesian government, and that there may be crucial evidence there. "One can easily see the need for cooperation between the international investigation and the domestic. But this will have to be worked out in the future," he said. "Beyond that I think we really should give the Indonesians a chance to conduct the investigation and the prosecution. We are still at an early stage," Roth continued. "As you know, this is not an indictment. This is a recommendation that the case be turned over to the Attorney General for further investigation and that within a short period of time, that he has to make those decisions." Roth also discussed the announcement by the Secretary of State's traveling party in Moscow that the North Koreans will send a high-level delegation to the United States in the near future. "It is, as Jamie Rubin, the spokesman for the State Department said, potentially a major breakthrough in U.S.-North Korean relations," he said. "The final details are still being worked out in terms of the dates and the names of the individuals who will be in the delegation," Roth added. Asked whether there would be a business component to the visit, Roth responded that the focus of the high-level visit would be "security issues, particularly related to the weapons of mass destruction and the delivery systems, and to some extent the overall bilateral relationship, and the issue of sanctions." "But I would not see this as a commercial trip. That is not the type of trip it is. There is no doubt, however, that North Korea would like to see more of an economic relationship with the United States," he said. Asked about the U.S. decision to pursue a resolution on China's human rights record at the upcoming U.N. Commission on Human Rights, Roth said the United States felt it had little choice. "I think it is obvious that 1999 was a very bad year for the human rights situation in China," he said. "We saw backwards movement in a number of areas whether it was with respect to the democracy party, whether it was with respect to Falun Gong, or that we saw no progress on ratifying the international covenants." However, Roth said, there is "room for positive momentum" on two other major U.S.-China issues this year: discussions on permanent Normal Trading Relations (NTR) status for China and an agreement concerning the damage to the Chinese embassy in Belgrade. Roth said he was struck by the "overwhelming spirit of optimism" about Asia at this year's session of the World Economic Forum. Last year "they were predicting doom and gloom, or saying that it would take ten years for Asia to recover," Roth recalled. "There was talk of a lost generation ... and here we are a year later with Korea on the verge of 10 percent growth, Thailand on the verge of 5 percent growth and almost every country except for Indonesia, doing well economically." (The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State.)
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