JSMP News

SERIOUS CRIMES UNIT INFORMATION RELEASE

9 December 2003

SCU: INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION

FORMER EAST TIMORESE MILITIA MEMBER FOUND GUILTY OF THE MURDER OF TWO EASTTIMORESE UNAMET STAFF IN SEPTEMBER 1999

At 9.00am on 9 December 2003, Judges at the Special Panels for Serious Crimes convicted Salvador Soares of Crimes against Humanity for the murder of two East Timorese UNAMET employees in Maliana on 2 September 1999. The Special Panel of Judges sentenced the former Dadurus Merah Putih militia member from Maliana to 10 years and 6 months imprisonment. The two UNAMET employees were specifically targeted in a joint Indonesian military (TNI)
-Dadurus militia attack led by a TNI Sergeant as violence began to escalate in Maliana immediately after the popular consultation.

The Special Panel of 2 International Judges and an East Timorese Judge convicted Salvador Soares of one count of murder as a Crime against Humanity and acquitted him of one count of torture as a Crime against Humanity. The former Dadurus Merah Putih militia member was found guilty of
murder as a Crime against Humanity for the stabbing of Ruben Barros and responsible for the murder of Dominggos Pereira on 2 September 1999. The defendant was found not guilty of torture as a Crime against Humanity for the beating of Ruben Barros during the incident in front of the family home of Barros in Maliana town.

The Special Panel Judges sentenced Soares to 10 years and 6 months imprisonment with time deducted for his time spent in detention. Salvador Soares was arrested near Maliana crossing into the territory of Timor Leste in June 2002 and since that time has been held in detention awaiting trial. The trial of Salvador Soares had began on 29 September 2003.

On 21 June 2002, the Maliana UNAMET indictment was issued by SCU charging 10 individuals including the former Bobonaro district TNI Intelligence Chief, Lieutenant Sutrisno and Bobonaro district TNI Intelligence member, Sergeant Asis Fontes and 8 other militia members including Salvador Soares with Crimes against Humanity of murder and torture.

The remaining 9 indicted persons in the case remain at large in the Republic of Indonesia. Lieutenant Sutrisno is believed to continue to serve in the Indonesian armed forces. INTERPOL Arrest Warrants have been issued by INTERPOL in relation to five of the indicted persons in the case including Lt. Sutrisno and Sergeant Asis Fontes who is also believed to be
residing in Indonesia.

SCU Prosecutor in the trial, Mr. Marek Michon comments that the conviction of Salvador Soares is an important demonstration to the families of the victims and the community that justice can be achieved in the courts of Timor Leste. Mr. Michon added that the conviction is of much significance
in Timor Leste and to the United Nations as the two victims in the case were East Timorese UNAMET employees working on the administration of the popular consultation in East Timor on 30 August 1999.

This is the second conviction at the Special Panels for the murder of East Timorese UNAMET staff since trials began at the Special Panels for Serious Crimes in Timor Leste. On 26 July 2001, Agustinho da Costa of Tim Pancasila from Ermera was sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for the murder of a UNAMET interpreter in Atsabe in Ermera district on 31 August 1999. The
Court of Appeal upheld the sentence in July 2003. To date, the indictments issued by the Serious Crimes Unit have included charges for the murder or disappearance of 10 East Timorese UNAMET staff in the period following the popular consultation in September 1999, with convictions now having been secured in relation to the murder of three UNAMET victims.

Since trials began at the Special Panels for Serious Crimes in Timor Leste in 2001, 41 defendants have now been convicted with 1 defendant having being acquitted of all charges in a Special Panel verdict on 8 December 2003. To date, the Serious Crimes Unit has indicted a total of 369 persons
with 281 of those accused presently outside the jurisdiction of Timor Leste including 37 Indonesian TNI Military Commanders and Officers, 4 Indonesian Chiefs of Police and 60 East Timorese TNI members.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT SCU CONTACT scu@un.org