JSMP PRESS
RELEASE - 15 JULY 2003
Special Panel Dismisses Indictment against Alleged Aitarak Militia Members
On 11 July the Special Panel for Serious Crimes in Dili dismissed a prosecution indictment against two alleged members of the Aitarak Militia and ordered them to be released from detention.
The prosecution had charged Domingos Amati and Francisco Matos with the
murder of Antonio Pinto Soares (aka Charles) in September 1999 in Hera,
Dili District.
On 24 June 2003 the defence requested the dismissal of the indictment
claiming that the facts as stated in the indictment did not establish
the basic elements for a charge of murder.
In delivering its decision, the Court found that the facts alleged did
not support the necessary mental element (mens rea) for the crime of murder
as required under Indonesian criminal law. In these circumstances, the
Court stated that the trial should not continue before the Special Panel.
However, the Court also expressed its opinion that the actions of Domingos
Amati and Francisco Matos may constitute manslaughter or maltreatment
resulting in death, which could be prosecuted in the Dili District Court.
"By dismissing the indictment before the Special Panel for Serious
Crimes, the Court is not indicating that serious offences should go unpunished
but that these matters must be dealt with by the appropriate court. What
remains to be seen is whether a charge will now be brought before the
Dili District Court." - said JSMP