TIMOR TODAY 08/12/99

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STORIES

1. East Timorese solemnly mark anniversary of Indonesian invasion 08/12/99 DILI, (AFP) - A street named after the late wife of former Indonesian strongman Suharto was renamed here on Tuesday as East Timor remembered those who died after the Indonesian invasion 24 years ago. Independence leader Jose Ramos-Horta cut a pink ribbon on the busy street just outside DiliÆs airport to officially change the name from Jalan Ibu Tien Suharto to Rua Dos Martires Da Patria, or Street of the Martyrs of the Motherland.

2. CNRT Takes First Steps Towards Reorganization 07/12/99 Dili,á (Lusa) - Thousands of people took part Monday in an open session to discuss reorganization of the National Council of Timorese Resistance (CNRT), which was led by leaders of the pro-independence umbrella group, among them Xanana Gusmao and Jose Ramos-Horta.

3. Refugees Still Harassed in West Timor, Repatriation Problems Continue

08/12/99áDili, (Lusa) - The commander of the UN-mandated International Force for East Timor (Interfet), Gen. Peter Cosgrove, is expected to meet in the next few days with high-ranking Indonesian military officers to evaluate the situation of East Timorese refugees who are still unable to leave Indonesian West Timor. Humanitarian sources have told Lusa that the refugees continue to suffer harassment from militia bands, who stop them from returning home to East Timor. Some frontier posts are rumored to be virtually closed.

4. Jakarta has no regrets over Timor 08/12/99 (The Australian) INDONESIAN Defence Minister Juwono Sudarsono pledged yesterday not to impede a UN investigation into human rights abuses in East Timor but rejected any need to "apologise for our mistakes". Mr Sudarsono also ruled out the prosecution of IndonesiaÆs top generals for atrocities committed by their troops during more than three decades of authoritarian rule and warned that the military could seize control if democracy did not take hold.

5. Indonesian panel to summon Wiranto 08/12/99 JAKARTA, (Kyodo) - An Indonesian government panel on human rights will summon Gen. Wiranto, coordinating minister for politics and security affairs, for questioning on Dec. 15 as part of it investigation into human rights violations and atrocities by pro-Jakarta militias in East Timor, an Indonesian official said Monday. The plan to summon Wiranto and three other senior officials of the Indonesian military was revealed at the first joint session between the Indonesian human rights committee and a five-member United Nations panel led by Sonia Picado, according to the official.

6. IndonesiaÆs tough human rights inquiry returns to E.Timor 08/12/99 DILI, (AFP) - Indonesian human rights investigators returned to East Timor on Tuesday to gather more evidence of abuses during the last months of Indonesian rule. The Indonesian Commission for the Investigation of Human Rights Abuses in East Timor said it would stay in the ravaged former Portuguse colony until December 15. The delegation has returned to "collect further testimony that will be admissible in code of law," said Sydney Jones, director of the human rights division at the UN Transitional Adminsitration in East Timor (UNTAET).

7. 60 Indonesian generals involved in rights abuses in East Timor 08/12/99 (Indonesian Observer) JAKARTA - The Commission for Inquiry on East Timor (CIET) shared information and data with the Investigating Committee for Human Rights Abuses (KPP HAM) on the number of high-ranking military personnel involved in human rights abuses in East Timor. "The number of generals involved (in human rights abuses) is similar, namely 60," said Asmara Nababan, a member of KPP HAM after the meeting at the office of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) in Jakarta yesterday.

8. Indonesia Defense Min: Generals To Escape Prosecution 08/12/99 JAKARTA (AP)--IndonesiaÆs top generals will escape prosecution despite murders, torture, rapes and other atrocities committed by their troops during more than three decades of authoritarian rule, the countryÆs defense minister said Tuesday. Juwono Sudarsono also warned that the military could seize control of the worldÆs fourth most populous nation, perhaps within months, if newfound democracy doesnÆt take hold across the sprawling archipelago. Sudarsono, IndonesiaÆs first civilian defense minister for nearly half a century, said only those soldiers who actually committed crimes and human rights abuses would stand trial.

9. AustraliaÆs Downer on Timor Gap Treaty: Political Comment 08/12/99 Canberra- AustraliaÆs Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, speaking in AustraliaÆs Parliament Dec. 6, comments on talks with East Timorese officials on renegotiating the Timor Gap Treaty. ( East Timor is in the process of replacing Indonesia as treaty partner with Australia over the Timor Gap oil and gas reserves.)

10. Xanana appoints Solidamor as the CNRT Liaison Office in Indonesia 08/12/99 (Bali Post) -CNRT President, Xanana Gusmao, has appointed Solidamor, (Solidarity for Peace In East Timor ) as its temporary liasion office in Jakarta.Solidamor coordinator, Bonar Tigor Naipospos, told the press that the office would handle the CNRTÆs interests in Indonesia.

PHOTOS

a) Jose Ramos Horta, East Timorese independence campaigner and Nobel Peace laureate, left, and Sergio Vieira de Mello, the head of the U.N. Transitional Authority in East Timor, listen during a Mass on the 24th anniversary of Indonesia invasion of East Timor on Tuesday Dec. 7, 1999 at Motael Church in Dili, East Timor. East Timor, former Portuguese colony, was invaded by Indonesian troops on Dec. 7, 1975. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

b) East Timorese independence leader Jose Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmao speaks to foreign media at a news conference Tuesday, Dec. 7, 1999 in Dili, East Timor. Gusmao said that there are 171,000 East Timorese refugees in West Timor. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

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