Students protest killings in East Timor
By Jon Land
Thousands of East Timorese students occupied the provincial parliament in Dili on November 23, angered by a brutal crackdown by Indonesian soldiers. The crackdown has killed up to 50 East Timorese. Many more have gone missing or been detained.
Reports from villages in the Alas subdistrict, south of Dili, have described the systematic rounding up and execution of East Timorese suspected of supporting Falintil guerillas in the area. One eyewitness described the atrocities as worse than those committed by Indonesian troops during the invasion of East Timor in 1975.
It is believed that children as young as 10 have been killed. Most of those killed were tortured and beaten before they died.
In the villages of Taitudak, Betanu and Turin, up to 30 homes have been destroyed, churches have been desecrated and a large number of people have fled to Dili or sought sanctuary with Falintil guerillas in the surrounding forest.
The massacre was precipitated by an increased military presence in the area and resulting intimidation of locals by soldiers and ninja gangs. The presence of Indonesian intelligence agents at dialogue (free speech) meetings coordinated by students also upset and angered residents.
Falintil guerillas and supporters carried out a defensive raid on a military post at Alas on November 9, killing three Indonesian soldiers and capturing several others, and seizing weapons and ammunition. Most of the Indonesian soldiers were released the next day.
The Indonesian military responded by sending more troops into the area and preventing anyone from entering or leaving.
The East Timor Human Rights Centre on November 23 stated that between November 10 and 16, approximately 50 East Timorese were executed and a further 30 detained during military attacks. Two young women in their teens are being kept incommunicado at military barracks in Same, while the whereabouts of the others is unknown.
On November 23, all of Dili's nine high schools closed, and around 5000 university and high school students marched from the University of East Timor to the provincial parliament, shouting pro-independence slogans and calling for the release of imprisoned resistance leader Xanana Gusmao. They demanded to meet with the governor, Abilio Soares.
Speeches called for the withdrawal of Indonesian troops from East Timor, for an act of self-determination and for monitors from the United Nations and human rights organisations to be allowed access to East Timor
A statement released by the Student Solidarity Council of East Timor called on the UN to direct the Indonesian government "to withdraw all its troops, to do so transparently, and to complete the withdrawal within six months".
The statement asked all countries to end military support for the Indonesian government and cease economic assistance until the status of East Timor is resolved.
After occupying the parliament overnight, 3000 students marched to the governor's residence and demanded to meet with him. They also demanded an inquiry into the killings.
A delegation of students was eventually able to meet with Soares and with the chief of the police, the head of ABRI (Indonesian armed forces) in East Timor, the president of the provincial parliament and a representative of the public prosecutor's office.
While the commander of troops in East Timor, Colonel Tono Suratman, agreed to an inquiry and said that soldiers have already been withdrawn from the Alas area, the Catholic Truth and Trust Commission in Dili is concerned that the military will sweep through another nine nearby villages as they attempt to capture Falintil guerillas.
"There is no substantial change in how the military arrest, interrogate and torture people", a commission spokesperson said.
University and high school students have vowed to carry out further protests and strikes against the military if their demands are not met.