Indonesian Ex-Military Chief Calls E. Timor Trials Unfair
JAKARTA, Jan. 9 (AP) -- Indonesia's disgraced former military commander
Gen.
Wiranto Wednesday described as unfair the prosecution of 19 military
officials and militiamen for alleged human rights abuses in East Timor
in
1999, saying soldiers under his command did nothing wrong.
His comments come shortly before the trials are scheduled to start in
a
special human rights court.
Wiranto was armed forces commander when East Timor voted to break away
from
Indonesia on Aug. 30, 1999. News that the territory had opted for
independence in a U.N.-sponsored referendum sparked a bloody rampage by
the
Indonesian army and its militia proxies.
Hundreds of people were killed and about 250,000 others forced to flee
their
homes. The violence only ended when international peacekeepers arrived.
Wiranto and other military commanders have been blamed for the bloodshed
by
Indonesian and international rights campaigners.
"I know exactly what we did there. We did not do anything wrong,"
he said.
"It is not fair to try us ... as human rights abusers."
Though three generals are on the list of 19 defendants, Wiranto's name
has
been excluded.
Under Indonesian law, the armed forces' top brass cannot be held accountable
for crimes committed by soldiers in the field, and prosecutors say they
have
no evidence of any wrongdoing by Wiranto.
Still, Wiranto described as biased the criminal investigation, saying
it
relied on foreign sources, including the U.N. and neighboring Australia,
for
evidence.
"We invited about 4,000 foreign observers and reporters to observe
the vote,"
said Wiranto, who was forced to resign two years ago by the then President
Abdurrahman Wahid.
"Not a single monitor died. How can we have committed human rights
abuses
when there were foreign observers and reporters before and after the vote."
Militiamen killed two journalists and six East Timorese working for the
U.N.
mission there at the time.
The Ad-Hoc Human Rights Court - which will hear cases of military atrocities
in Timor and other Indonesian troublespots - was initially scheduled to
open
on Dec. 1. However, it was postponed until Jan. 15, because current President
Megawati Sukarnoputri hadn't chosen the tribunal's judges.
Now, a week before the first case is supposed to start, Megawati - who
has
close ties with the army brass - has still not selected the justices,
and
government officials say it is almost certain the trials will again be
postponed.
The cases will be closely watched by the international community, which
has
expressed outrage over human rights abuses in East Timor.