A Fact Sheet - Bring the East Timorese Refugees Home
            Background
            Conditions in the Camps
            East Timorese Refugees Elsewhere in Indonesia
            Important Dates
            What Must Be Done
            Additional Links

            Bring the East Timorese Home
            A Fact Sheet
               We have our freedom now but we will not be happy until our
              families are reunited.
              Antonio, village leader near Bacau, East Timor
            Background
            On August 30, 1999, almost 80% of the population of East Timor 
voted
            overwhelmingly for independence from Indonesia in a referendum 
that
            resulted from over 23 years of struggle against a brutal 
Indonesian
            occupation. They voted in the face of threats that their country
            would be destroyed if they opted for freedom. Within hours of 
the
            announcement of the results on September 4, the Indonesian armed
            forces and their militias launched a systematic campaign of 
terror.
            Unknown numbers of East Timorese were murdered, raped, and 
tortured.
            Approximately three-quarters of the population was displaced. In 
a
            well-coordinated manner, the Indonesian military and its 
militias
            forced hundreds of thousands of East Timorese at gun-point to 
board
            trucks, boats, and even airplanes. They were taken either to
            Indonesian West Timor or off  Timor island to other parts of
            Indonesia. Some were taken out to sea and never seen again. By 
the
            end of September, over 250,000 East Timorese were in refugee 
camps
            in West Timor. By New Year's, U.N. agencies reported over 
125,000
            had returned to East Timor. However, more than 100,000 East 
Timorese
            remain unable to return home, nearly five months after the
            referendum and despite repeated pledges by the Indonesian 
government
            to remedy the situation. Thousands taken to other areas of 
Indonesia
            are unaccounted for.
            Conditions in the Refugee Camps in West Timor
            Continued military/militia presence and intimidation:
            Indonesian military-backed militias control most of the refugee
            camps using fear and intimidation. Human rights groups and 
others
            have reported many instances of murder, rape, and sexual 
enslavement
            of women. Families risk Indonesian military/militia reprisal if 
they
            express a desire to return to East Timor. Many repatriation 
efforts
            have been thwarted due to military/militia violence. Militia 
groups
            have attacked U.N.-organized convoys of refugees returning to 
East
            Timor and chased away U.N. personnel who are in the camps to 
educate
            the people there about conditions in East Timor. (The Indonesian
            military has been spreading a rumor that people in East Timor 
are
            subject to attack, rape, and torture at the hands of the
            international peacekeeping force there.)
            Inability of humanitarian aid organizations to access refugee 
camps:
            Months after people were brought to the camps, access by
            humanitarian aid organizations is blocked by military/militia
            intimidation. Aid workers have been threatened. The U.N. High
            Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) has complained repeatedly about
            militia intimidation, and has threatened to pull out of the 
camps on
            several occasions unless access improved. On November 30, a 
UNHCR
            spokesperson said, "While there has been some improvement in the
            security situation, access to the camps remains very limited. 
West
            Timor is the only place in the world where UNHCR workers are 
heavily
            escorted by police and army troops when they go to the camps."
            Conditions in refugee camps:
            Refugees lack adequate shelter, sanitation, and water. Nearly 
500
            East Timorese, including 310 children, have died from 
preventable
            illnesses due to inadequate sanitation and medical care in the
            refugee camps, according to West Timor officials. UNICEF 
reported in
            early January that as many as "one-fourth of the children [in 
camps
            in West Timor] are acutely malnourished." The World Health
            Organization says that cases of cholera, malaria, and 
tuberculosis
            outbreaks are likely to increase, especially now that the rainy
            season has begun.
            Disinformation campaign:
            The military/militia groups have conducted disinformation 
campaigns
            to deter East Timorese from returning home. The refugees are 
told
            lies that include:
                War and violence continue in East Timor.
                InterFET, the International Force for East Timor, is killing
                people and raping women in East Timor.
                Men, women and children are separated from each other upon
                returning to East Timor.
                East Timorese independence leader Xanana Gusmao has been
                retaliating against East Timorese returning from West Timor.
                 Those who return to East Timor must walk home completely 
naked,
                because Indonesia gave them everything, even the clothes on
                their backs.
            Refugees in Other Parts of Indonesia
            The number of East Timorese in Flores, West Papua, Sulawesi and
            other Indonesian islands is unknown, but given the lack of
            international awareness, the conditions of refugees thus 
displaced
            are potentially worse than those in West Timor. There are 
reports of
            between 2,000 and 5,000 East Timorese on the nearby island of 
Kisar
            alone.
            Important Dates in Repatriation Effort
                September 4 -12: The Indonesian military and its militia 
force
                over 250,000 East Timorese acrosss the border as they set 
out to
                systematically destroy the country.
                October 8: U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
                repatriation program begins. Very little progress occurs 
until
                November.
                October 15: Indonesian government signs an agreement with 
the
                UNHCR ensuring open access to refugees and honoring the 
UNHCR
                mandate for protection and repatriation.
                October 19: Indonesian parliament formally recognizes East
                Timors independence.
                November 12: Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid meets 
with
                President Clinton, and promises to speed up the return of 
the
                refugees.
                November 22: U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Richard Holbrooke
                visits West Timor, and is horrified by camp conditions and 
the
                continued military/militia presence. The multinational force
                InterFET and the Indonesian armed forces agree to better
                facilitate the safe return of refugees, disarm militia 
groups,
                and separate militias from refugees. Although this agreement
                results in a temporary increase in refugee returns, within 
one
                week of the signing, the rate of return is less than before
                Holbrooke's visit.
                December 12: Xanana Gusmao and others meet with militia 
leaders
                to begin reconciliation talks. East Timorese refugees are a
                central component of discussion. Joao da Silva Tavares, a
                militia leader, promises to disband militia organizations.
                January 7: East Timorese Nobel Laureate Bishop Belo 
criticizes
                UN efforts to repatriate the refugees.
                January 9: UNHCR says repatriation effort has passed half 
way
                mark. Militia leader Cancio Lopez de Carvalho tells local 
press
                he will destroy West Timors capital Kupang if repatriation 
of
                refugees continues.
            In mid-November, President Wahid stated, "I assure President 
Clinton
            . . . that in East Timor we will work very hard to ensure that 
the
            refugees from our side of Timor will go freely to their places."
            Indonesia has repeatedly failed to keep this and other promises.
            Words are not enough. People must be allowed to safely return 
home
            immediately.
            What Must Be Done:
                All East Timorese who wish to do so must be allowed to 
return
                home immediately and safely. Indonesia must keep its 
promises.
                Indonesian armed forces must cease all collusion with 
militia
                groups.
                Militia members must be separated from all civilian 
refugees,
                removed from the camps, and brought to justice. East 
Timorese
                must not be forced to choose whether they wish to remain in
                Indonesia or return to East Timor until they can do so 
without
                intimidation.
                All militia groups must be disarmed and disbanded.
                Humanitarian aid workers must have complete and open access 
to
                refugees in all camps, including those taken to areas off 
Timor
                island.
                An organized system must be put into place to track and 
locate
                East Timorese taken off-island.
            Contact: Karen Orenstein at the East Timor Action Networks
            Washington, DC office, 202-544-6911, karen@etan.org  or John M.
            Miller, ETANs Media and Outreach office, (718)-596-7668,
            john@etan.org.
            Back to ACTION ALERT
            Some Additional Background
            Refugee NewsNet
            Briefing Paper on East Timorese Refugees in West Timor (ETISC)
            Forced Expulsions to West Timor and the Refugee Crisis (Human 
Rights
            Watch)
            International Organization for Migration in Timor
            Refugees: The Other Side of the Crisis in East Timor  
(Grassroots
            International)
            The Refugee Crisis Continues (Amnesty International), plus other 
AI
            statements on the refugees



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