UN finds no evidence of Timor massacres

Michael Pollak mpollak at panix.com
Thu Oct 14 22:18:01 PDT 1999


[Besides the Reuters byline and the UN spokeperson, this report was posted on the East Timor International Support Center website (www.easttimor.com) which is a very pro- East Timor independence group. Of course, it could still be wrong . . . ]

U.N. Sees No Evidence Of Mass Murder In East Timor

14/10/99

Reuters

DILI - The United Nations said Wednesday it had uncovered no evidence

to support allegations that pro-Jakarta militia engaged in mass murder

in East Timor.

"We've heard horrendous stories for which so far there's not a shred

of evidence," Michel Barton, spokesman for the U.N. Office for the

Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (OCHA) in Dili told Reuters.

"There's no evidence so far of very large massacres. There have been

murders. There have been terrible things that have happened here.

"But we don't believe that people in their thousands have been killed

and their bodies buried or thrown in the sea. If this had been the case

we would have found evidence of this by now and none has been found."

Miltia groups rampaged through East Timor last month, destroying

virtually every city, town and hamlet after the population voted

overwhelmingly in favor of independence in a U.N.-supervised

referendum.

About 400,000 of East Timor's 890,000 people remain unaccounted for.

Aid officials say some are dead but the vast majority remain in hiding

in the hills, awaiting assurances that it's safe to return to their

homes.

A U.N.-mandated international military force, known as INTERFET,

continued its deployment among the western regencies of East Timor

Wednesday with an air mobile operation in the Bobinaru region.

INTERFET troops have been pouring into those areas along the border

with West Timor for the past week, hoping to stamp out the last

militia activity and secure the region for badly needed humanitarian

assistance.

The United States began resupplying INTERFET troops in the east around

Los Palos Wednesday using CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopters based on the

USS Belleau Wood, which is anchored in waters just off the capital,

Dili.

Washington has limited U.S. involvement here primarily to logistics,

communications and intelligence support.

The U.N. force and Indonesian military officials are still sorting

through conflicting versions of a shoot-out involving their forces in

the hamlet of Motaain straddling the border between East and West

Timor last Sunday.

An INTERFET spokesman said Wednesday the multinational force

commander, Australian Major General Peter Cosgrove, would respond

favorably to any constructive suggestions by Indonesian armed forces

commander General Wiranto on how to avoid future clashes along the

border.

"Commander (of) INTERFET is open to any suggestions from General

Wiranto," said Colonel Mark Kelly.

"He respects General Wiranto. He certainly respects solutions and

options

that he has presented. We will have to look at those closely."

Kelly said media reports that the Indonesian army was disarming

militia forces in West Timor, if true, also would be welcome.



More information about the lbo-talk mailing list