Fifty-third session /Agenda item 10
Economic And Social Council E/CN.4/1997/L.9610
-April 0997
1997/... Situation of Human Rights in East Timor
The commission on Human Rights, reaffirming that all Member States have
an obligation to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms
as stated in the Charter of the United Nations and as elaborated in the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenants on Human
Rights and other applicable instruments,
Mindful that Indonesia is a party to the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
against Women and to the Geneva Conventions of 1949 on the protection of
victims of war,
Recalling its resolution 1993/97 of March 21993, and bearing in mind
statements by the Chairman of the Commission on the situation of human
rights on East Timor at its forty-eighth, fiftieth, fifty-first and fifty-second
sessions,
1- Welcomes
a) The report of the Secretary-General (E/CN.4/1997/51) and his recent
nomination of a special representative;
b) The continuing efforts of the Indonesian National Commission on
Human Rights to investigate human rights violations, and its decision to
establish an office in Dili, East Timor;
c) The commitments by the Government of Indonesia to continue the dialogue
under the auspices of the Secretary-General for achieving a just, comprehensive
and internationally acceptable solution to the question of East Timor;
2- Expresses its deep concern
a) At the continuing reports of violations of human rights in East
Timor, including reports of extrajudicial killings, disappearances, torture
and arbitrary detention as reported in the reports of the Special Rapporteur
on torture (E/CN.4/1997/7), the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary
or arbitrary executions (E/CN.4/1997/60), the Working Group on Arbitrary
Detention (E/CN.4/1997/4 and Add.1) and the Working Group on Enforced or
Involuntary Disappearances (E/CN.4/1997/34);
b) At the lack of progress made by the Indonesian authorities towards
complying with their commitments undertaken in statements agreed by consensus
at previous sessions of the Commission;
c) That the Government of Indonesia has not yet invited thematic rapporteurs
and working groups of the Commission to East Timor, in spite of commitments
undertaken to do so in 1997;
d) At the policy of systematic migration of persons to East Timor;
3- Calls upon the Government of Indonesia
a) To take the necessary measures in order to ensure full respect for
the human rights and fundamental freedoms of the people of East Timor;
b) To ensure the early release of East Timorese detained or convicted
for political reasons and to clarify further the circumstances surrounding
the violent incident that took place in Dili in November 1991;
c) To ensure that all East Timorense in custody are treated humanely
and in accordance with international standards, and that all trials in
East Timor are conducted in accordance with international standards;
d) To cooperate fully with the Commission and its thematic rapporteurs
and working groups and to invite these rapporteurs and working groups to
visit East Timor, in particular the Special Rapporteur on torture, in line
with the commitment undertaken to invite a thematic rapporteur in 1997;
e) To undertake all necessary action in order to upgrade the memorandum
of intent of 26 October 1994 on technical cooperation into the envisaged
memorandum of understanding, and requests in this regard the United Nations
High Commissioner for Human Rights to report on the follow-up to the memorandum
of intent;
f) To bring about the envisaged assignment of a programme officer of
the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at
the Jakarta office of the United Nations Development Programme, as follow-up
to the commitment undertaken, and to provide this officer with unhindered
access to East Timor;
g) To provide access to East Timor for human rights organizations;
4- Decides
a) To consider the situation in East Timor at its fifty-fourth session
under the agenda item entitled "Question of the violation of human rights
and fundamental freedoms in any part of the world" on the basis of the
reports of special rapporteurs and working groups and that of the Secretary-General;
b) To encourage the Secretary-General to continue his good offices
missions for achieving a just, comprehensive and internationally acceptable
solution to the question of East Timor and in this framework to encourage
the all-inclusive intra-East Timorese dialogue to continue under the auspices
of the United Nations.