From: apakabar@igc.org (Indonesia Publications/Task Force)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.portuguese
Subject: East Timor Newsbriefs April 6
Date: 7 Apr 92 02:07:00 GMT
Nf-ID: #N:cdp:1591800152:000:13741
Nf-From: cdp.UUCP!apakabar    Apr  6 19:07:00 1992


From: Indonesia Publications/Task Force <apakabar>
Subject: East Timor Newsbriefs April 6




   IPS, Amsterdam, April 2 - It would take at least five years before
development relations between the Netherlands and Indonesia could be
restored, Dutch Development Cooperation Minister Jan Pronk said here
Wednesday.
   Pronk stopped short of suggesting that a new Indonesian government
was necessary before development ties could be resumed, saying instead
that "a new political generation," which usually lasts five to seven
years, might be needed.
   The basis for this conclusion was the "toughness" of the words used
by Jakarta when it broke off its development relations with The Hague
last week.
   Speaking at a press conference here, Pronk said the colonial past
remains a dominant factor in Indonesia's relations with the Netherlands,
which colonized the South-East Asian nation for three centuries.
   "It is deeply rooted in Indonesia and that brings me to the
conclusion that you need a new political generation which can look over
it," he said, adding that the climate "needs to be cleared" before
relations could be restored.
   The Liberal Party (VVD) and the Christian Democratic Party (CDA) -
the coalition partner of Pronk's Social Democratic Party (PVDA) -
criticized Pronk's remarks, saying they could have a negative impact on
Dutch trade and industry in Indonesia.
   "Pronk should not disqualify the present (political) generation in
Indonesia," said the chair of the Parliamentary Commission on
Development Cooperation, Jan de Hoop Scheffer, of the CDA. The Dutch
parliament is scheduled to discuss the issue tomorrow.
   Pronk said there were indications that part of the activities by
Dutch non-governmental development organizations could be continued, but
it remains unclear whether the 250 development workers can stay in
Indonesia.
   He said his government would continue to link development aid to
human rights, but drastic measures like freezing aid would only be taken
in dramatic cases such as the Dili massacre.
   Although Indonesia has not broken off diplomatic, cultural, political
and economic relations with the Netherlands, Dutch industrial groups are
worried that the crisis between the two countries could affect business
relations.


   IPS, Amsterdam, April 6 - The Dutch government's policy linking
development aid to human rights has backfired, leaving the country
isolated after Indonesia broke off development ties with its former
colonizer last week, experts say. 
   Nico Schulte Nordholt, professor of Asian development issues at
the University of Tiente, said the Dutch decision to freeze development
aid did not have enough backing from other European countries, the
United States or Japan. 
   "Indonesia played the diplomatic game much better and succeeded in
isolating the Netherlands," he said. 
   Schulte Nordholt said Dutch Development Cooperation Minister Jan
Pronk is now "broken-winged" and his policy of linking aid to human
rights has failed, at least in the short term. 
   He said Third World governments are "not very happy" with the
conditions for development aid and can always point to Pronk's failure
if other Western countries also try to link aids to human rights. 
   In the Netherlands, the Indonesia affair has sparked an internal
crisis, with Pronk in the center of the controversy, said Schulte
Nordholt. 
   An interview this week with the Dutch paper Het Algemeen Dagblad in
particular drew criticisms from Dutch politicians. 
   Pronk said a "new political generation" might be needed in Indonesia
before relations could be restored, since the colonial past is still too
vivid in the mind of the present government -- a statement he reiterated
at a press conference Apr. 1. 
   Schulte Nordholt said Pronk's remarks reflected his "personal rancor"
towards Indonesian President Suharto. They have turned the issue into a
"crisis" and led to political attacks on Pronk. 
   Pronk faced a series of criticisms during a debate in parliament Apr.
2. The Christian Democratic Party (CDA) and the Liberal Opposition Party
(VVD) said he should no longer have anything to do with Dutch-Indonesian
relations, which fall under the responsibility of Foreign Minister Hans
Van Den Broek. 
   But retired professor Wim Wertheim said Jakarta just wanted to get rid 
of the Netherlands as a critical donor and permanent chair of the 
Inter-Governmental Group for Indonesia. 
   Indonesia has asked the World Bank to take over the presidency, held
by the Netherlands since its founding in 1967. 
   "The World Bank believes IGGI has served Indonesia well and would
have continued to do so. However, the World Bank respects the Indonesian
government's wishes to establish a consultative group. The bank will
consult with the relevant governments and inform (Jakarta of its
decision)," a bank spokesman said. 
   Indonesia received $4.75 billion in loans and credits at last year's
IGGI meeting, mostly coming from the World Bank and Japan. 



Remark: This is the content part of an Amnesty International Urgent
Action alert. -- John MacDougall (apakabar@igc.org)

UA 109/92   Prisoners of Conscience/Unfair Trial               1 April 1992

INDONESIA/EAST TIMOR:
          Fernando de Araujo            )     charged with subversion
          Joao Freitas da Camara        )
          Agapito Cardoso               )
          Domingos Barreto              )     charged under Articles 154
          Virgilio da Silva Guterres    )     and 155 of Criminal Code

The trials of Fernando de Araujo and Joao Freitas da Camara began on 16
March 1992 and the trials of Agapito Cardoso, Domingus Barreto and Virgilio
da Silva Guterres began on 17 March 1992. All of the trials are still in
progress. Amnesty International is concerned that if convicted all five
defendants will be prisoners of conscience. The five are East Timorese
arrested in connection with the November 1991 Santa Cruz massacre. Amnesty
International believes that they may be being charged and tried solely for
protesting against and publicizing human rights violations in East Timor.

Amnesty International has repeatedly expressed concern that political
trials in Indonesia and East Timor may fail to meet international standards
of fairness. Amnesty International has written to the Government of
Indonesia to request permission for observers to visit the country to
attend the trials of those charged in connection with the Santa Cruz
massacre, but it has to date received no reply.

Fernando de Araujo and Joao Freitas da Camara are both charged under
Indonesia's sweeping Anti-Subversion Law with undermining the Indonesian
Government, which carries a maximum penalty of death. The accusations
against Fernando de Araujo appear to contain no reference to acts involving
the use or advocacy of violence or other recognizably criminal offences.
Rather they allege that he appealed for news of the Santa Cruz killings to
be conveyed to foreign embassies in Jakarta and to international
organizations, including Amnesty International. The indictment against him
states that these appeals were aimed at "obtaining the sympathy of the
outside world for human rights violations that had taken place in East
Timor". The allegations against Joao Freitas da Camara apparently refer
primarily to his organization of a peaceful demonstration in Jakarta to
protest against the Santa Cruz massacre.

Three others on trial in Jakarta, Agapito Cardoso, Domingos Barreto and
Virgilio de Silva Guterres, are charged under Articles 154 and 155 of the
Criminal Code with "expressing feelings of hostility, hatred or contempt
toward the Indonesian Government". All three are reportedly accused of
participating in the Jakarta demonstration and carrying banners which were
"insulting [to] the Indonesian government".

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

About 100 people were killed and scores were wounded when Indonesian
security forces opened fire for several minutes on a group of mourners at
Santa Cruz cemetery in Dili, East Timor on 12 November 1991. Dozens of
others were badly beaten during the incident. The victims, many of them
school students and other young people, were among an estimated 3,000
people who had gone to the grave of Sebastiao (Gomes) Rangel, a young man
killed on 28 October when Indonesian troops entered the parish church of
Motael Dili, where he and about 20 other political activists had been
hiding. At least 42 people, and possibly as many as 300, have subsequently
been detained, and some have been reportedly tortured.

Since the massacre the government has expressed regret at the deaths and
announced a number of follow-up measures. A National Commission of Inquiry
was appointed to investigate the incident and published its findings at the
end of December 1991. Amnesty International believes that the commission
lacked the independence and technical competence required for an impartial
and thorough investigation. In most important respects the Commission
accepted the military version of events, even where the weight of available
evidence clearly contradicted military accounts. In early 1992 President
Suharto ordered the formation of an Honorary Military Council to "discuss
the necessary measures to be taken in regard to the incident". In late
February 1992 the government announced that disciplinary measures had been
taken against some soldiers and that eight soldiers would be court-
martialled. However, little information about the court-martial proceedings
has been made available. The government has continued to suggest that those
who participated in the procession to Santa Cruz cemetery "provoked" the
massacre.


Forwarded from GreenNet reg.easttimor conference: 
Topic 1170Portuguese school in Dili closed
gn:tapolreg.easttimor 6:47 pm  Apr  2, 1992

Source: Jakarta Post.  Date: 30 March 1992. Dateline:
Dili.  Storytype: news item slightly abridged.

GOVERNMENT SHUTS DOWN 'PORTUGUESE SCHOOL' IN DILI

The govt and the local Catholic diocese have at last agreed to
shut down Estanator [sic: Externato], the only school refusing
to use an Indonesian curriculum, after long and delicate
negotiations.

The school in the former Portuguese colony uses a self-
designed curriculum, in defiance of Indonesian laws that
require all schools to follow the national curriculum.

The announcement of the school's closure by the East Timor
education and culture office broke the government's long
silence concerning the existence of the school, which has
remained open for the 16 years that East Timor has been under
Indonesian sovereignty.

The head of the East Timor education and culture office, R Tri
Wartanta, said that the decision to shut down the school was
made at a meeting last Friday between him and bishop Carlos
Philipe Ximenes Belo, without any pressure from either side.
Under the agreement, the closure will be effective as of the
beginning of April, following the end of the current academic
year.

Estanator accommodates over 300  students at both elementary
and secondary levels.  The 'Portuguese school', as Dili
townspeople refer to it, offers courses in Portuguese,
teaching Indonesian as a second language, and gives only
minimal instruction on Pancasila, the state ideology.

The school has become somewhat notorious among townspeople and
officials alike, following reports that many of its students
were involved in the Nov 12 demonstration that led to a deadly
clash between the protesters and troops, leaving about 50
people dead.

The school is located near the Santa Cruz cemetery where the
tragic incident took place.

A source at Estanator [sic] told the Jakarta Post on Saturday
that the students would be transferred to other schools, both
private and state run.

The closure plan has received support form local military
field commander Brig Gen Theo Syafei and from the chairman of
the Legislative Council (DPRD), Guilherme Dos Santos.

"I was surprised when I learned there was a Portuguese
school," Theo said, recalling the time he first came to East
Timor.

Theo said he had told officials from the local education and
culture office not to hesitate to close down the school.  The
general, known for his no-nonsense manner, proposed that the
transfer of students from Estanator should be the
responsibility of their parents.


Forwarded from GreenNet reg.easttimor conference: 
Topic 1171Princen to testify in Timor trial
gn:tapolreg.easttimor 6:48 pm  Apr  2, 1992

Source: Jakarta Post. Date: 28 March 1992. Abridged.

PRINCEN TO TESTIFY IN TRIAL OF EAST TIMORESE YOUNGSTER

The government will present a noted human rights activist to
testify in the trial of an East Timorese youth who has been
charged with subversion in connection with anti-Indonesia
demonstrations here in November.

"He will be tried, if we find any proof of his involvement in
the anti-Indonesian demonstration by the East Timorese youths
and students," chief of the Jakarta provincial prosecutor's
office, B.T.P. Siregar said, referring to H.C.J. Princen.

Princen is an activist from the Jakarta-based Human Rights
Institute and chairman of the Serikat Buruh Merdeka trade
union.

The indictment of Joao Freitas da Camara said that the
defendant receive Rp50,000 a month from Princen from March
1990 to January 1991. The defendant also got money from the
Australian Council for Overseas Aid (Rp1m), the Darwin-based
Fretilin Commission (Rp380,000 and US$1,000), the English-
based Catholic Institute for International Affairs (250) and
London-based Amnesty International (150).

Da Camara said when he testified in the trial of Dominggus
Bareto de Jesus, who is also charged with subversion (sic)
that he used the money he received from ACFOA to fund the
demonstration.