In East Timor, senior UN official calls for justice to be served
7 August -- At the conclusion of a three-day trip to East Timor, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson today said that the international community had a responsibility to ensure that those responsible for last year's post-referendum violence did not escape justice.
Speaking at a press conference in Dili, the High Commissioner said that "the most important thing is to bring perpetrators to justice," and that this could be done either through Indonesian or East Timorese courts, or by an international tribunal. "I don't rule out the need - if it comes to that - for an international tribunal," she said.
Mrs. Robinson stressed that the violence in September 1999 occurred while East Timor was under UN guardianship, and that this meant that the UN must ensure that Indonesia's judicial process is credible, according to a statement from the High Commissioner's office.
Earlier today, Mrs. Robinson delivered a keynote speech at a workshop titled "Human Rights and the Future of East Timor," where she stressed that the process of nation-building must be based upon basic human rights principles.
Echoing the High Commissioner's comments, Sergio Vieira de Mello, the head of the UN Transitional Administration in East Timor said that he hoped the international community could help the East Timorese to build a society based on human rights principles. "We hope that, in partnership with the East Timorese people, we can build a society . where everyone is protected by the law, where women can participate fully in public life, where state officials are accountable for their actions and where individuals are free to engage in peaceful and lawful political activities without fear."
On the issue of minorities in East Timor, Mrs. Robinson said that she was concerned about the Muslim community. "[Muslims], after all, have made a commitment to the new East Timor," she said. "They will enrich through the very diversity of being a minority within this community. I hope the political leaders will speak out on the importance of minorities."
The High Commissioner also emphasized the need to create safe conditions for the return of East Timorese refugees in West Timor and elsewhere in Indonesia.
She left Dili today for Jakarta, Indonesia, for the next leg of her trip that includes visits to Mongolia and the Republic of Korea.
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