Part 2 of 2

U.S. Dept of State

East Timor

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2002

Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor

March 31, 2003

...

f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home or Correspondence

The Constitution prohibits such actions, and the Government generally
respected these prohibitions in practice.

Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

a. Freedom of Speech and Press

The Constitution and government regulations provide for the freedom of
speech and press as stipulated in the U.N. International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights, and the Government generally respected these rights
in practice.

There are two daily newspapers, two weeklies, and several bulletin
newspapers that appear sporadically. Their editorials freely criticize the
Government and other political entities.

The Government assumed responsibility for a radio and a television station
formerly operated by UNTAET, and in May the Constituent Assembly passed
legislation creating a Public Broadcast Service. At year's end, the Service
was still being organized. The government radio service was available
throughout the country. Broadcast television was available only in Dili. In
addition to the government-operated station, there were six nongovernment
radio stations, three in districts outside Dili. Additionally, small
community radio stations were being organized.

While insufficient resources constrained development of print and broadcast
media, there are no political or legal impediments to new entries to the
media market.

In November UNMISET issued indictments against two Indonesian army officers
for the September 1999 killing of Dutch journalist Sander Thoenes in Dili.
A spokesman for the Indonesian Attorney General's office was quoted as
saying that Indonesia would not send the two officers to East Timor to
stand trial. In September 2000, the U.N. announced it was investigating the
October 1975 murders of five Australia-based journalists in East Timor; the
investigation continued at year's end.

There were no legal or administrative restrictions on Internet access.
The Government did not restrict academic freedom. The University of East
Timor, whose facilities were destroyed in September 1999, reopened in a new
location in November 2000. Several private, post secondary, educational
institutions opened during the year.

b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

The Constitution provide for the freedoms of assembly and association as
stipulated in the U.N. International Covenant on Civil and Political
Rights, and the Government generally respected these rights in practice.
Many peaceful demonstrations occurred throughout the year. Most centered on
complaints over allocation of jobs, salaries, severance pay issues, and
admission of students to the university.

On December 4, what began as a student demonstration in Dili degenerated
into violence that left 2 persons dead and 15 injured. The police fired
warning shots, and there were unconfirmed reports that shots were fired
from the crowd. The police were believed to have committed at least one of
the killings and wounded those injured. After the shooting, the crowd set
fire to several buildings including a house owned by the Prime Minister's
family, and a supermarket; an automobile in front of the Dili mosque was
burned and many windows in the mosque were broken. At year's end,
investigations into the disturbances and the police response were underway.
Both U.N. and government officials said that they would provide police
additional training in human rights and in appropriate crowd control
techniques.

The Constitution recognizes the right to form opposition political parties
and the right to be informed regularly and directly on issues of public
interest. Although the Government generally respected these rights,
opposition parties complained that the ruling Fretilin excluded members of
other parties from positions in the executive branch of government
including positions which, under the applicable regulations, should have
been selected on merit without regard to political affiliation.

c. Freedom of Religion

The Constitution provides for freedom of religion. More than 90 percent of
the population is Roman Catholic, and Protestant churches previously were
identified with the Indonesian military and with pro-Indonesia East
Timorese. Accusations that Protestant clergymen were linked to
pro-Indonesia East Timorese militias sometimes led to harassment of church
members; however, there were no reports of such harassment during the year.

The Muslim community consists of ethnic East Timorese, longtime residents
of Arab descent, and ethnic Malay migrants from other parts of Indonesia
who have lived in East Timor for many years. The former groups were well
integrated into East Timorese society, but the latter group experienced
some harassment. On December 4, an automobile in front of the Dili mosque,
which was inhabited by ethnic Malay Muslim migrants who initially fled from
East Timor during the violent period in September of 1999, was burned and
windows in the mosque were broken (see Section 2.b.).

Although some of the participants in the wide-ranging December 4 violence
were arrested, there were no arrests in most cases related to attacks on
churches or mosques, largely because of insufficient resources (see
Sections 1.c. and 1.e.).

For a more detailed discussion see the 2002 International Religious Freedom
Report.

d. Freedom of Movement within the Country, Foreign Travel, Emigration, and
Repatriation

The law provides for these rights, and the Government generally respected
them in practice.

During the year, the Indonesian Government restricted the freedom of
movement of residents of the Oecussi enclave, physically separated from the
rest of the country by Indonesian territory. Restored ferry service between
Oecussi and Dili and between Atauro Island and Dili provided greater
freedom of movement; however, the land route through Indonesia remained
difficult due to security concerns and bureaucratic roadblocks.

Violent activities by pro-Indonesian militias in 2000 and 2001 forced
thousands of villagers to abandon their homes temporarily.

During the year, the Government worked closely with the U.N. High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for
Migration (IOM) to provide for the repatriation of refugees from West
Timor, including provision of transportation, shelter, and food. Almost
225,000 of the approximately 250,000 former residents who fled, or whom
pro-Indonesia militia removed forcibly to West Timor and elsewhere in
September 1999, returned to the country. During the year, the Government of
Indonesia announced that it would end aid to the refugee camps in West
Timor and revoke refugee status for the individuals remaining. In practice
it did stop providing repatriation assistance but did not revoke refugee
status. It was not clear how many of these persons wished to return to East
Timor but felt unable to do so either because of fear of reprisals from
militias in West Timor or because of instances of attacks and harassment of
returning refugees suspected of being former militia members.

At year's end, it was not clear whether the Government had formally acceded
to the 1951 U.N. Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967
Protocol; Parliament reportedly had given its advice and consent. During
the year, the granting of asylee and refugee status took place on a
case-by-case basis. On July 28, a small boat with 56 Sri Lankans requested
assistance. A UNHCR official persuaded them to disembark temporarily and
interviewed them. All voluntarily returned to Sri Lanka. The Government
appeared inclined to deal with refugee and asylee requests in accordance
with international standards.

There were no reports of the forced return of persons to a country where
they feared persecution.

Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to Change
Their Government

The Constitution provides citizens with the right to change their
government peacefully through periodic elections. On May 20, Xanana Gusmao
was inaugurated as the first President, and, in accordance with the
Constitution, the members of the Constituent Assembly were sworn in as the
first National Parliament. The 88-member Assembly, elected in August 2001,
was charged with writing a constitution, which was completed in March and
came into effect with independence. Some observers criticized the provision
that saw the Constituent Assembly automatically become the Parliament, and
that there is a 5-year gap until the next election.

With independence, UNTAET's mandate expired, and it was succeeded by
UNMISET. UNMISET maintains responsibility and command of the U.N. Peace
Keeping Force and the U.N. Police Forces. The UN-PKF remains responsible
for external defense, and UNPOL remains responsible for civil policing in
cooperation with the ETPS.

The 29-member Cabinet, consisting of Ministers, Vice Ministers, and
Secretaries, is dominated by members of Fretilin, the party that won the
majority of seats in the Constituent Assembly.

Under the Constitution ratified in March, "laws and regulations in force
continue to be applicable to all matters except to the extent that they are
inconsistent with the Constitution;" and Indonesian and UNTAET laws and
regulations continue to be in effect.

Both the Government and UNTAET made significant efforts to include women in
appointed political bodies. There are 24 women in the 88-seat Assembly. The
Minister of Justice, the Minister of Finance, and three vice ministers are
women.

Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and Nongovernmental
Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights

A wide variety of domestic and international human rights groups generally
operated without government restriction, investigating and publishing their
findings on human rights cases. Government officials generally were
cooperative and responsive to their views. There are no restrictions on the
right of persons to form NGOs, and numerous NGOs were established over the
last 3 years, devoted to a wide variety of issues.

The Government actively promoted investigation of human rights abuses. In
October 1999, the U.N. Human Rights Commission appointed the International
Commission of Inquiry on East Timor (ICIET), which issued a report in
January 2000 that made several recommendations, including the establishment
of an international tribunal to prosecute those responsible for the mass
abuses associated with the events of 1999. UNTAET facilitated visits to
East Timor of members of the KPP-HAM (see Section 1.a.). Within UNMISET
there is a Human Rights Unit and an SCIU to investigate past human rights
violations and to bring the perpetrators of past abuses to justice.
Nevertheless, resource constraints as well as bureaucratic and
organizational difficulties within the judiciary hampered progress (see
Section 1.e.). Dissatisfaction with Indonesia's Ad Hoc Tribunal on East
Timor led to discussion of formation of an international truth and justice
commission.

In May 2001, an NGO known as the Judicial System Monitoring Program (JSMP)
was established. The JSMP monitored the serious crimes trials, provided
legal analysis, and disseminated information regarding the judicial system.

Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Disability, Language, or
Social Status

Government regulations prohibit all forms of discrimination. Nonetheless
violence against women was a problem, as was discrimination against women
and ethnic minorities.

Women

Domestic violence against women was a significant problem. In December
2001, then-chief minister Mari Alkatiri expressed concern over mounting
domestic violence against women, stating that "cases of domestic violence
are increasing" and that many "consider the beating of women to be a
private affair." Reports of domestic violence increased during the year;
however, this may indicate more willingness to turn to the police rather
than an actual increase in incidence of such violence.

Rape is a punishable offense, as specified by Indonesian law. As of
September, 95 cases of rape or attempted rape had been reported to the
police, but few of these cases have resulted in prosecutions. Women's
groups were concerned that the authorities were encouraging women to
resolve rape and domestic violence cases through traditional practices,
which usually provide only for compensation to be paid to the victim. In
such cases, the perpetrator is not held accountable under criminal laws,
and the punishment falls short of international standards. UNTAET attempted
to address this issue by establishing a Vulnerable Persons Unit to address
cases of violence against women and other vulnerable groups.

On September 12, the Special Panel for Serious Crimes sentenced Francisco
Soares, an East Timorese who served in the Indonesian military and as a
pro-Indonesian militia leader, to 4 years' imprisonment for raping a woman
in Dili in September 1999. This was the only rape conviction by the Serious
Crimes Panel.

It was alleged that TNI-backed militias raped numerous women during the
September 1999 violence in East Timor and kept many as sex slaves (see
Section 1.c.). Kirsty Sword Gusmao, the wife of President Xanana Gusmao,
reported to the international press in November 2000 that 33 pregnant East
Timorese women returned to East Timor and said that they had been abducted
and forced to serve as sex slaves for the TNI in West Timor, Indonesia.

Government regulations prohibit persons from organizing prostitution;
however, prostitution itself is not illegal. The Government has deported
some alleged prostitutes on the grounds that they violated the terms of
their visas.

Customary practices discriminate against women. For example, in some
regions or villages where traditional practices hold sway, women may not
inherit or own property. UNTAET regulations implemented the U.N. Convention
on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women and during
the year the country ratified the Convention; however, discrimination
complaints were not a priority, and no cases were reported. UNTAET created
a Gender Affairs Unit, and this unit continued under the Government as the
Office for the Promotion of Equality within the Prime Minister's office.
The unit provided training to women entering public service and attempted
to ensure women have a voice in the new government and civil society
structures.

There were no reports of gender-based employment discrimination during the
year; however, women usually deferred to men when job opportunities arose
at the village level.

The East Timorese Women's Forum offered some assistance to women who have
been victims of violence and established a women's and children's shelter
for victims of domestic violence and incest. East Timor Women against
Violence is a human rights NGO that advocates on behalf of women.

Children

The Constitution makes primary education compulsory and free; however, many
schools assessed fees to pay for materials or infrastructure needs. Many
families cannot afford these fees, which limited the number of children a
family will send to school. UNTAET and international donors rebuilt and
replaced the educational infrastructure destroyed by the Indonesian
military and pro-Indonesia militias in September 1999, and the majority of
children returned to school after having fled their villages during the
1999 violence. Shortages of schools and educational materials remained a
problem at year's end. In the past, UNTAET coordinated widespread
inoculation programs and provided free medical care in some areas of the
country; however, these programs were largely inactive during the year.

Over 2,000 children were separated from their parents during the forced
exodus to West Timor in 1999, and the UNHCR stated that approximately 1,500
remained separated from their parents. Of these, 431 were in the country,
635 were in West Timor, 380 were in other parts of Indonesia, and the
whereabouts of 18 were unknown. An estimated 170 children were taken from
the camps in West Timor in 1999 and 2000 to orphanages in Java. Eight of
these children were reunited with their families in 2001, 13 were reunited
during the year, and approximately 150 remained in the Java orphanages.

Persons with Disabilities

Although the Constitution protects the rights of the disabled, the
Government has not enacted legislation or otherwise mandated a provision of
accessibility to buildings for persons with disabilities, nor does the law
prohibit discrimination against persons with disabilities. Nonetheless
there were no reports of discrimination against persons with disabilities
in employment, in education, or in the provision of other state services.
There was only one school for children with disabilities (in Dili) and its
capacity is only one-third of pre-1999 enrollment. Difficult access to
school in many districts resulted in many children with disabilities not
attending school. Training and vocational initiatives did not give
attention to the needs of persons with disabilities.

National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities

Ethnic Chinese (who make up less than 1 percent of the population) and
ethnic-Malay Muslims sometimes have been subjected to harassment. Tensions
between different language groups also were a problem. Many non-Portuguese
speakers claimed that they were discriminated against in filling political
and civil service positions.
Section 6 Worker Rights

a. The Right of Association

During the year, the Government implemented a Labor Code based on the
International Labor Organizations standards. The law permits workers to
form and join worker organizations without prior authorization. Unions may
draft their own constitutions and rules and elect their representatives;
however, attempts to organize workers generally have been slowed by
inexperience and a lack of organizational skills, as well as by the fact
that the Government has not yet appointed a person to head the Office of
the Registrar of Trade Unions and Employer Organizations. Trade Unions and
employer organizations cannot be registered officially. Labor organizations
included the Socialist Workers Union, the Trade Union Confederation, Oxfam
Workers Union as well as a teachers' union and a nurses' union. Roughly
two-thirds to three-quarters of the country's work force is engaged in
subsistence agriculture.

There are no restrictions that would prevent unions from forming or joining
federations or from affiliating with international bodies.

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

While collective bargaining is permitted, workers in East Timor generally
had little experience negotiating contracts, promoting worker rights, or
engaging in collective bargaining and negotiations.

Dissatisfied workers or disappointed job applicants frequently resorted to
strikes, demonstrations, and sometimes destruction of property. Disputes
usually centered on demands for higher salaries or severance pay for jobs
in which short-term contracts have expired. Many of these disputes were
resolved through the arbitration of local NGOs or the Secretariat of Labor
and Solidarity.

There were no export processing zones.

c. Prohibition of Forced or Bonded Labor

Government regulation prohibit forced labor including by children; however,
in the past, local leaders required a number of returnees accused of
involvement in the post-September 1999 destruction to engage in compulsory
labor as a means of punishing them for their alleged offenses (see Section
1.c.). Examples of such compulsory labor included repairing damaged
structures and community service in villages. The Government tolerated this
practice. More recently the imposition of compulsory labor gave way to a
"reception, truth, and reconciliation" process in which returning
ex-militia members agreed to perform community service as a form of
reparation for offenses they committed.

Forced or bonded labor by children was not known to occur.

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment

The Labor Code largely prohibits children under the age of 18 from working;
however, there were circumstances under which children between the ages of
15 to 18 can work, and there were even exceptional exemptions for children
under 15. The minimum age did not apply to family-owned businesses, and
numerous children work in the agricultural sector. In practice enforcement
of the Labor Code outside of Dili is difficult.

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

An UNTAET directive provided for a minimum wage for civil servants of $65
per month; however, the new Labor Code does not stipulate a minimum wage.
Employers used and employees expect a minimum wage of $85 per month. The
Code provides for a maximum workweek and overtime, minimum standards of
worker health and safety, days off, and other standard benefits. In
practice the Government has not been able to enforce the Code effectively.
The Government has not yet established a national labor board, a labor
relations board, and a minimum wage board all of which are stipulated in
the Code. There are no restrictions on the rights of workers to file
complaints and seek redress. The Secretariat for Labor and Solidarity,
which is responsible for enforcing labor laws, tried to be responsive to
complaints and pressured local businesses to comply with labor standards.

Workers have the right to remove themselves from hazardous conditions
without jeopardizing employment; however, it was not clear that they could
avail themselves of this right in practice.

f. Trafficking in Persons

Applicable law prohibits trafficking in women and children, whether for the
purposes of prostitution or for forced labor, and there were no reports of
trafficking during the year.

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