Radio Australia
Asia Pacific
Tuesday, 29 April 2003
EAST TIMOR: Concern over future of Serious Crimes Unit
East Timor's
Serious Crimes Unit is losing its high profile chief -- Siri
Frigaard.
She completes her mission this week, raising concerns about the unit's
long
term future. The United Nations is already cutting the number of
international prosecutors from 13 to nine and says it can't guarantee
any
support for the project beyond June 2004.
Presenter/Interviewer: Maryanne Keady
Speakers:
Siri Frigaard, the head of the East Timor's Serious Crimes Unit;
Domingos Maria Sarmento, East Timor's Justice Minister; Nelson Belo, JSMP,
an East Timorese justice monitoring group
KEADY: Days
after the indictments of General Wiranto and other senior
Indonesian figures were announced, the UN publicly denied they were issued
by the UN they claimed the UN was merely providing "advisory assistance"
to
the Government of East Timor.
East Timor's
President, Xanana Gusmao, claimed it was not a Timorese
decision, but a UN decision and said he was not consulted
But perhaps
most telling was the dispatch of Foreign Minister Jose Ramos
Horta to Jakarta where he told officials Dili would ignore the indictments,
in order to maintain good relations with a very important neighbour.
The person
in the middle Siri Frigaard, the international deputy prosecutor
in Timor leaves this week. She denies that there was political pressure
applied following the indictments, despite the fact that all new
indictments are issued without the UN logo.
FRIGAARD:
There has been no pressure on me at all. I am a public
prosecutor. I'm dealing with the justice. When it comes to the politics,
I
leave it to the politicians.
KEADY: Ms
Frigaard's international stewardship of Serious Crimes has been
considered one marked by efficiency and politically courageous indictments.
But she admits she is pessimistic about the possibility of important
generals appearing in a court of law and says there is no clear idea of
what will happen after the UN leaves.
FRIGAARD:
How many people were killed ..the list is not 100% but we still
have a list of 1310 people being killed. And so far we have only
investigated only 40% of those. They will not have enough skills and enough
people to take over the process. So I am worried about what is going to
happen. I think in June 2004, I think that is a concern, and one
internationals should look into because they need help.
KEADY: East
Timor's Justice minister, Domingos Maria Sarmento agrees and
says East Timor hasn't the money to continue the process: an international
tribunal must be established.
SARMENTO:
I think to start the work of the Serious Crimes Unit, personally
I think it will be difficult. The first thing is when UNMISET leaves East
Timor, those international judges will be gone, and East Timor won't have
the budget to recruit new international judges to replace them. And the
second thing is there needs to be a special tribunal to proceed all of
the
cases, all of the crimes that have been committed.
KEADY: The
idea offered by some that East Timor could take over the process
of this unit is seems incredulous at best, - the UN funds Serious Crimes
to
the tune of five million dollars a year, while the fledging courts of
Timor, survive on virtually nothing from the government's paltry budget.
East Timorese are angry about the political football being played, and
say
any indictments without follow up, are a joke.
Nelson Belo is from JSMP, a justice monitoring group.
BELO: There
is no memorandum of understanding in order to force Indonesia
to co-operate with the East Timorese government, or within the UN about
the
indictments, about the custody. So they have to force Indonesian government
to obey on the memorandum of understanding they are going to do.
KEADY: He
also says the international community is once again failing in
its duties to protect Timorese:
BELO: We
lose trust for the UN. When the campaign for the referendum UNAMET
say that whatever going to happen in East Timor, UNAMET is not going to
leave but in reality UNAMET left. And this one is going through the same
things.
KEADY: It
would seem there is little political will to deal with justice in
East Timor. Currently there is no replacement for Ms Frigaard, and Serious
Crimes panels are not operating. The departing Deputy Prosecutor has this
to say:
FRIGAARD:
Then of course the questions we are getting is but my husband was
killed he is not on your victim list. Why haven't you indicted his killer.
So people are still very occupied about it and they are telling their
stories again and again like it was yesterday. So this is strong strong
feeling among the people that they want the justice to be done. So I think
somebody has to take that responsibility and do it.