Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri called for the creation of an international tribunal in a neutral country to try Indonesian military officers accused of human rights abuses during East Timor’s long struggle for independence. The accused officers have thus far been able to avoid conviction or been given minimal sentences. The trials in Indonesia have been criticized by observers as too lax, with twelve out of eighteen charged being acquitted, and only five convicted. War crimes trials have also been held in Dili, East Timor’s capital, with 250 people indicted and thirty convicted. Indonesia, however, refuses to send its officers to Dili and is unlikely to do so without international pressure. Prime Minister Alkatiri will discuss the idea of an international tribunal with Indonesia’s president Megawati Sukarnoputri in Jakarta on June 10.
