II

106TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 3254

To provide assistance to East Timor to facilitate the transition of East

Timor to an independent nation, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

OCTOBER 27 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 22), 2000

Mr. KENNEDY introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred

to the Committee on Foreign Relations

A BILL

To provide assistance to East Timor to facilitate the transition of East Timor to an independent nation, and for

other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘East Timor Transition

5 to Independence Act of 2000’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 Congress makes the following findings:

8 (1) On August 30, 1999, the East Timorese

9 people voted overwhelmingly in favor of independ10 ence from Indonesia. Anti-independence militias,
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1 with the support of the Indonesian military, at2 tempted to prevent then retaliated against this vote

3 by launching a campaign of terror and violence, dis4 placing 500,000 people and murdering hundreds.

5 (2) The violent campaign devastated East

6 Timor’s infrastructure, destroyed or severely dam7 aged 60 to 80 percent of public and private prop8 erty, and resulted in the collapse of virtually all

9 vestiges of government, public services and public se10 curity.

11 (3) The Australian-led International Force for

12 East Timor (INTERFET) entered East Timor in

13 September 1999 and successfully restored order. On

14 October 25, 1999, the United Nations Transitional

15 Administration for East Timor (UNTAET) began

16 providing overall administration of East Timor,

17 guide the people of East Timor in the establishment

18 of a new democratic government, and maintain secu19 rity and order.

20 (4) UNTAET and the East Timorese leader21 ship currently anticipate that East Timor will be22 come an independent nation as early as late 2001.

23 (5) East Timor is one of the poorest places in

24 Asia. A large percentage of the population live below

25 the poverty line, only 20 percent of East Timor’s
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1 population is literate, most of East Timor’s people

2 remain unemployed, the annual per capita Gross Na3 tional Product is $340, and life expectancy is only

4 56 years.

5 (6) The World Bank and the United Nations

6 have estimated that it will require $300,000,000 in

7 development assistance over the next three years to

8 meet East Timor’s basic development needs.

9 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS RELATING TO SUPPORT FOR

10 EAST TIMOR.

11 It is the sense of Congress that the United States

12 should—

13 (1) facilitate East Timor’s transition to inde14 pendence, support formation of broad-based democ15 racy in East Timor, help lay the groundwork for

16 East Timor’s economic recovery, and strengthen

17 East Timor’s security;

18 (2) begin to lay the groundwork, prior to East

19 Timor’s independence, for an equitable bilateral

20 trade and investment relationship;

21 (3)(A) officially open a diplomatic mission to

22 East Timor as soon as possible;

23 (B) recognize East Timor, and establish diplo24 matic relations with East Timor, upon its independ25 ence; and
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1 (C) ensure that a fully functioning, fully

2 staffed, adequately resourced, and securely main3 tained United States diplomatic mission is accred4 ited to East Timor upon its independence;

5 (4) support efforts by the United Nations and

6 East Timor to ensure justice and accountability re7 lated to past atrocities in East Timor through—

8 (A) United Nations investigations;

9 (B) development of East Timor’s judicial

10 system, including appropriate technical assist11 ance to East Timor from the Department of

12 Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation,

13 and the Drug Enforcement Administration; and

14 (C) the possible establishment of an inter15 national tribunal for East Timor; and

16 (5) support observer status for an official dele17 gation from East Timor to observe and participate,

18 as appropriate, in all deliberations of the Asia Pa19 cific Economic Co-operation (APEC) group.

20 SEC. 4. BILATERAL ASSISTANCE.

21 (a) AUTHORITY.—The President, acting through the

22 Administrator of the United States Agency for Inter23 national Development, is authorized to—
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1 (1) support the development of civil society, in2 cluding nongovernmental organizations in East

3 Timor;

4 (2) promote the development of an independent

5 news media;

6 (3) support job creation and economic develop7 ment in East Timor, including support for micro8 enterprise programs and technical education, as well

9 as environmental protection and education pro10 grams;

11 (4) promote reconciliation, conflict resolution,

12 and prevention of further conflict with respect to

13 East Timor, including establishing accountability for

14 past gross human rights violations;

15 (5) support the voluntary and safe repatriation

16 and reintegration of refugees into East Timor; and

17 (6) support political party development, voter

18 education, voter registration and other activities in

19 support of free and fair elections in East Timor.

20 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

22 appropriated to carry out this section $25,000,000

23 for each of the fiscal years 2001, 2002, and 2003.

24 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appropriated pur25 suant to the authorization of appropriations under
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1 paragraph (1) are authorized to remain available

2 until expended.

3 SEC. 5. MULTILATERAL ASSISTANCE.

4 The President shall instruct the United States execu5 tive director at each international financial institution to

6 which the United States is a member to use the voice,

7 vote, and influence of the United States to support eco8 nomic and democratic development in East Timor.

9 SEC. 6. PEACE CORPS ASSISTANCE.

10 (a) AUTHORITY.—The Director of the Peace Corps

11 is authorized to—

12 (1) provide English language and other tech13 nical training for individuals in East Timor as well

14 as other activities which promote education, eco15 nomic development, and economic self-sufficiency;

16 and

17 (2) quickly address immediate assistance needs

18 in East Timor using the Peace Corps Crisis Corps,

19 to the extent practicable.

20 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be

22 appropriated $2,000,000 for each of the fiscal years

23 2001, 2002, and 2003 to carry out such subsection.

24 (2) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appropriated pur25 suant to the authorization of appropriations under
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1 paragraph (1) are authorized to remain available

2 until expended.

3 SEC. 7. TRADE AND INVESTMENT ASSISTANCE.

4 (a) OPIC.—Beginning on the date of the enactment

5 of this Act, the President should initiate negotiations with

6 the United Nations Transitional Administration for East

7 Timor (UNTAET), the National Council of East Timor,

8 and the government of East Timor (after independence

9 for East Timor)—

10 (1) to apply to East Timor the existing agree11 ment between the Overseas Private Investment Cor12 poration and Indonesia; or

13 (2) to enter into a new agreement authorizing

14 the Overseas Private Investment Corporation to

15 carry out programs with respect to East Timor,

16 in order to expand United States investment in East

17 Timor.

18 (b) TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT AGENCY.—

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Trade

20 and Development Agency is authorized to carry out

21 projects in East Timor under section 661 of the

22 Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2421).

23 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to

25 be appropriated to carry out this subsection
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1 $1,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2001,

2 2002, and 2003.

3 (B) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts appro4 priated pursuant to the authorization of appro5 priations under subparagraph (A) are author6 ized to remain available until expended.

7 (c) EXPORT-IMPORT BANK.—The Export-Import

8 Bank of the United States shall expand its activities in

9 connection with exports to East Timor.

10 SEC. 8. GENERALIZED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES.

11 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con12 gress that the President should encourage the United Na13 tions Transitional Administration for East Timor

14 (UNTAET), in close consultation with the National Coun15 cil of East Timor, to seek to become eligible for duty-free

16 treatment under title V of the Trade Act of 1974 (19

17 U.S.C. 2461 et seq.; relating to generalized system of pref18 erences).

19 (b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The United States

20 Trade Representative and the Commissioner of the United

21 States Customs Service are authorized to provide technical

22 assistance to UNTAET, the National Council of East

23 Timor, and the government of East Timor (after inde24 pendence for East Timor) in order to assist East Timor
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1 to become eligible for duty-free treatment under title V

2 of the Trade Act of 1974.

3 SEC. 9. BILATERAL INVESTMENT TREATY.

4 It is the sense of Congress that the President should

5 seek to enter into a bilateral investment treaty with the

6 United Nations Transitional Administration for East

7 Timor (UNTAET), in close consultation with the National

8 Council of East Timor, in order to establish a more stable

9 legal framework for United States investment in East

10 Timor.

11 SEC. 10. SCHOLARSHIPS FOR EAST TIMORESE STUDENTS.

12 (a) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary of State—

13 (1) is authorized to carry out an East Timorese

14 scholarship program under the authorities of the

15 United States Information and Educational Ex16 change Act of 1948, the Mutual Educational and

17 Cultural Exchange Act of 1961, Reorganization Plan

18 Number 2 of 1977, and the National Endowment

19 for Democracy Act; and

20 (2) shall make every effort to identify and pro21 vide scholarships and other support to East Timor22 ese students interested in pursuing undergraduate

23 and graduate studies at institutions of higher edu24 cation in the United States.
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1 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

2 are authorized to be appropriated to the Department of

3 State, $1,000,000 for the fiscal year 2002 and $1,000,000

4 for the fiscal year 2003 to carry out subsection (a).

5 SEC. 11. PLAN FOR ESTABLISHMENT OF DIPLOMATIC FA6 CILITIES IN EAST TIMOR.

7 (a) DEVELOPMENT OF DETAILED PLAN.—The Sec8 retary of State shall develop a detailed plan for the official

9 establishment of a United States diplomatic mission to

10 East Timor, with a view to—

11 (1) officially open a fully functioning, fully

12 staffed, adequately resourced, and securely main13 tained diplomatic mission in East Timor as soon as

14 possible;

15 (2) recognize East Timor, and establish diplo16 matic relations with East Timor, upon its independ17 ence; and

18 (3) ensure that a fully functioning, fully staffed,

19 adequately resourced, and securely maintained diplo20 matic mission is accredited to East Timor upon its

21 independence.

22 (b) REPORTS.—

23 (1) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than three

24 months after the date of the enactment of this Act,

25 the Secretary of State shall submit to the Committee
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1 on International Relations of the House of Rep2 resentatives and the Committee on Foreign Rela3 tions of the Senate a report that contains the de4 tailed plan described in subsection (a), including a

5 timetable for the official opening of a facility in Dili,

6 East Timor, the personnel requirements for the mis7 sion, the estimated costs for establishing the facility,

8 and its security requirements.

9 (2) SUBSEQUENT REPORTS.—Beginning six

10 months after the submission of the initial report

11 under paragraph (1), and every six months there12 after until January 1, 2004, the Secretary of State

13 shall submit to the committees specified in that

14 paragraph a report on the status of the implementa15 tion of the detailed plan described in subsection (a),

16 including any revisions to the plan (including its

17 timetable, costs, or requirements) that have been

18 made during the period covered by the report.

19 (3) FORM OF REPORT.—Each report submitted

20 under this subsection may be submitted in classified

21 or unclassified form.

22 SEC. 12. SECURITY ASSISTANCE FOR EAST TIMOR.

23 (a) AUTHORIZATION.—Beginning on and after the

24 date on which the President transmits to the Congress a
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1 certification described in subsection (b), the President is

2 authorized—

3 (1) to transfer excess defense articles under

4 section 516 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961

5 (22 U.S.C. 2321j) to East Timor in accordance with

6 such section; and

7 (2) to provide military education and training

8 under chapter 5 of part II of such Act (22 U.S.C.

9 2347 et seq.) for the armed forces of East Timor in

10 accordance with such chapter.

11 (b) CERTIFICATION.—A certification described in this

12 subsection is a certification that—

13 (1) East Timor has established an independent

14 armed forces; and

15 (2) the assistance proposed to be provided pur16 suant to subsection (a)—

17 (A) is in the national security interests of

18 the United States; and

19 (B) will promote both human rights in

20 East Timor and the professionalization of the

21 armed forces of East Timor.

22 (c) STUDY AND REPORT.—

23 (1) STUDY.—The President shall conduct a

24 study to determine—
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1 (A) the extent to which East Timor’s secu2 rity needs can be met by the transfer of excess

3 defense articles under section 516 of the For4 eign Assistance Act of 1961;

5 (B) the extent to which international mili6 tary education and training (IMET) assistance

7 will enhance professionalism of the armed

8 forces of East Timor, provide training in

9 human rights, promote respect for human

10 rights and humanitarian law; and

11 (C) the terms and conditions under which

12 such defense articles or training, as appro13 priate, should be provided.

14 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 1 month after the

15 date of enactment of this Act, the President shall

16 submit a report to the Committee on Foreign Rela17 tions and the Committee on Appropriations of the

18 Senate and the Committee on International Rela19 tions and the Committee on Appropriations of the

20 House of Representatives setting forth the findings

21 of the study conducted under paragraph (1).

22 SEC. 13. AUTHORITY FOR RADIO BROADCASTING.

23 The Broadcasting Board of Governors shall further

24 the communication of information and ideas through the

25 increased use of audio broadcasting to East Timor to en-
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1 sure that radio broadcasting to that country serves as a

2 consistently reliable and authoritative source of accurate,

3 objective, and comprehensive news.

4 SEC. 14. REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than three months after

6 the date of the enactment of this Act, and every six

7 months thereafter until January 1, 2004, the Secretary

8 of State, in coordination with the Administrator of the

9 United States Agency for International Development, the

10 Secretary of the Treasury, the United States Trade Rep11 resentative, the Secretary of Commerce, the Overseas Pri12 vate Investment Corporation, the Director of the Trade

13 and Development Agency, the President of the Export-Im14 port Bank of the United States, the Secretary of Agri15 culture, and the Director of the Peace Corps, shall prepare

16 and transmit to the Committee on International Relations

17 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on

18 Foreign Relations of the Senate a report that contains the

19 information described in subsection (b).

20 (b) INFORMATION.—The report required by sub21 section (a) shall include—

22 (1) developments in East Timor’s political and

23 economic situation in the period covered by the re24 port, including an evaluation of any elections occur-
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1 ring in East Timor and the refugee reintegration

2 process in East Timor;

3 (2)(A) in the initial report, a 3-year plan for

4 United States foreign assistance to East Timor in

5 accordance with section 4, prepared by the Adminis6 trator of the United States Agency for International

7 Development, which outlines the goals for United

8 States foreign assistance to East Timor during the

9 3-year period; and

10 (B) in each subsequent report, a description in

11 detail of the expenditure of United States bilateral

12 foreign assistance during the period covered by each

13 such report;

14 (3) a description of the activities undertaken in

15 East Timor by the International Bank for Recon16 struction and Development and the Asian Develop17 ment Bank, and an evaluation of the effectiveness of

18 these activities;

19 (4) an assessment of—

20 (A) the status of United States trade and

21 investment relations with East Timor, including

22 a detailed analysis of any trade and investment23 related activity supported by the Overseas Pri24 vate Investment Corporation, the Export-Im25 port Bank of the United States, and the Trade
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1 and Development Agency during the period of

2 time since the previous report; and

3 (B) the status of any negotiations with the

4 United Nations Transitional Administration for

5 East Timor (UNTAET) or East Timor to fa6 cilitate the operation of the United States trade

7 agencies in East Timor;

8 (5) the nature and extent of United States-East

9 Timor cultural, education, scientific, and academic

10 exchanges, both official and unofficial, and any

11 Peace Corps activities; and

12 (6) a comprehensive study and report on local

13 agriculture in East Timor, emerging opportunities

14 for producing and exporting indigenous agricultural

15 products, and recommendations for appropriate

16 technical assistance from the United States.

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