Written Answers. - East Timor.
Tom Kitt
Question:
21
Mr. T. Kitt
asked the
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs
when he had discussions with the Australian Foreign Minister, Mr. Gareth Evans, in relation to East Timor; the outcome of those talks; and the new initiatives, if any, he intends to take to protect the human rights of the East Timorese.
[13053/95]
Tony Killeen
Question:
27
Mr. Killeen
asked the
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs
if the Government has protested to the Indonesian and/or Australian Governments regarding civil rights abuses in East Timor; and the response, if any, to such protests.
[13185/95]
I propose taking Questions Nos. 21 and 27 together.
As the House will be aware, Ireland has consistently condemned the abuses of human rights in East Timor. We express our concerns directly to the Indonesian authorities on every appropriate occasion. We raise the issue of East Timor in international fora and with friendly countries which are closely involved in the situation.
Last May I raised the question of East Timor with the Indonesian Ambassador and again expressed our concerns to him. I also met with the Australian Foreign Minister, Mr. Gareth Evans, in New York on 18 April, when East Timor was one of the issues we discussed. As an important Pacific neighbour of Indonesia. Australia can play a significant role in influencing the Indonesian authorities in regard to East Timor.
I wrote the following article setting out in some detail the Government's policy and actions in relation to East Timor, which appeared in The Irish Times of 13 July.
I can assure the House that the Government will continue with its policy of active engagement on the issue of East Timor at the international level, including within the appropriate UN bodies.
IRELAND TO THE FORE IN SEEKING INTERNATIONAL ACTION ON EAST TIMOR.
The Government is one of the main advocates of East Timor's struggle for justice, writes the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dick Spring.
The Irish Times in its editorial last Friday called on the Government to reinforce its diplomatic pressure on Indonesia to change its policies on East Timor. The Irish Times is right. The Government should, and will, do more to assist the suffering people of East Timor in their struggle to achieve justice and the basic human rights to which they are entitled.
What Ireland has done already is substantial and, I believe, has contributed to the new signs of movement on the issue outlined in the editorial. The fact is that Ireland has been and will continue to be one of the foremost international advocates of East Timor's case.
That case is a compelling one. A small territory has been invaded and annexed by a powerful neighbour in defiance of international law and the United Nations. The Indonesian military administration of East Timor has been widely condemned, including by the Irish Government, for its gross abuses of human rights that have involved extrajudicial executions, torture, disappearances, unlawful arrests, and arbitrary detentions.
The most horrific and widely known incident was the cold-blooded killing of up to 270 people in November 1991, when Indonesian troops opened fire on a peaceful demonstration at the Santa Cruz cemetery in the East Timor capital of Dill. A UN investigation has concluded that members of the Indonesian security forces were responsible for the killings, and has criticised the Indonesian Government for failing to satisfactorily investigate the fate of those who were killed and those who have disappeared as a result of the massacre.
More recently, in January of this year, Indonesian soldiers shot and killed six men in Liquics outside Dill in an incident which is seen as part of a broader pattern of abuse and which has reinforced the need for international action.
Ireland has been pressing for such action at the UN and within the EU. We have maintained contact with those who may be in a position to influence events, including the Portuguese Government, the Australian Government and individuals inside East Timor and we have taken up the issue directly with the Indonesian Government. Almost all the proposals contained in the action plus adopted at the recent Parliamentary Forum in Lisbon, from which incidentally Deputy Tom Kitt seems to have drawn most of his ideas forThe Irish Times last week, are Irish Government policy and are being actively pursued.
In recent months I have had discussions about East Timor with Gareth Evans, the Australian Foreign Minister. As an important Pacific neighbour of Indonesia, Australia can play a significant role in influencing the Indonesian authorities to change their policies. We will continue to encourage Australia to do so. In May I took up the matter personally with the Indonesia ambassador, so that the Indonesian authorities can be in no doubt about the depth of feeling in the Government and among the broader Irish public about his government's actions.
At the recent session of the UN Commission on Human Rights Ireland was active in ensuring that the issue was given proper attention both by the EU and by the UN Commission itself. One of the positive outcomes of this pressure was the agreement by Indonesia to invite the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to visit East Timor this year, and to report to the UN on his findings. This is a significant commitment and one which we expect the Indonesian authorities to keep to.
The work of the Irish delegation won public praise from the leader of the East Timor delegation at the UN Commission earlier this year "for its firm stand within the EU and in the UN in support of the legitimate rights of the East Timorese people".
Last week my colleague, the Minister of State, Joan Burton, had discussions with Bishop Belo of Dill — one of the courageous churchmen working for a political solution — about the situation in East Timor and the ways in which the Irish Government can help. Bishop Belo played a positive role in the first intra-Timorese dialogue meeting, which had just taken place and which we strongly support.
Ireland has consistently condemned Indonesia's policies in East Timor. But, as the recent activities mentioned above show, our policy goes beyond condemnation to include active international engagement on the issue with clear objectives.
We want Indonesia to end its illegal occupation of the territory.
We want to see a political solution on the basis of International law and justice.
We want to see the people of East Timor enjoy their full human and political rights.
We want to stop the supply to Indonesia of arms that could be used as instruments of oppression in East Timor.
We want to see the release of Xanana Cusmao and other political prisoners.
We want Indonesia to co-operate fully with the United Nations, with the UN Commission on Human Rights and with international NGOs.
I believe that these objectives have overwhelming public and political support in Ireland, where the plight of the people of East Timor has evoked a concerned and sympathetic response. As Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs. I will continue to work to ensure that that concern and sympathy are translated into effective action at international level.
