East Timor Witness Project - http://www.maxpages.com/TimorWitness Almost all new initiatives in the modern world come first from NGOs, not from governments, and certainly not from the media. So listen up!... 12 midday, Friday, in your city, Rally for East Timor. (Melbourne at GPO) --- Fowarded Message --- URGENT MEMO ON HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN WEST TIMOR Pat Walsh, Australian Council for Overseas Aid (ACFOA), Melbourne Wednesday, 8 September 1999 The extreme violence and chaos in East Timor is creating refugee movements and humanitarian problems reminiscent of 1975, and has spilled over into Muslim West Timor. Urgent initiatives are needed to provide for the displaced and to protect human rights. 1. Current situation It is very difficult to establish the facts. Following are some aspects: * Kompas (today) reported 46,600 refugees in West Timor. Few aid agencies are believed to have been able to visit camps. The numbers are expected to continue increasing. * ACFOA contacts in Kupang put refugee numbers at Noelbaki (about 29 km from Kupang) at 11,000. Militias control this camp. Local NGOs cannot visit and yesterday Kompas reported that three aid workers (said to be Australian and Dutch) were badly beaten and their car burned when trying to deliver rice for UNHCR at Noelbaki camp. * Media report a 'milk run' of 'thousands' of refugees arriving by truck, ship and plane from East Timor. * The mood in West Timor is very hostile to Westerners and journalists who are being advised locally to stay indoors. Tourists are leaving. * Militias have accompanied the refugees, have compiled lists of names and are active in Kupang. Pro-independence East Timorese feel unsafe and are trying to leave. Pro and anti-integration supporters are being thrown together, heightening the possibilities of intimidation and violence. A refugee who arrived in Kupang today by boat reports 4 pro-independence supporters being executed en route from Dili and tossed overboard. * There are also reports of a large area east of Atambua being cleared of inhabitants leading to speculation that concentration camps are being established. 2. Agencies on the ground � AusAID made a recent assessment visit to West Timor before the ballot and will presumably report on this visit at this Friday's briefing for Australian agencies in Canberra. � ICRC has a delegate currently in West Timor organising the distribution of aid. � The UNHCR representative for Asia-Pacific was in West Timor yesterday surveying the situation. � World Vision Australia has launched an appeal and relief activities are being launched in the border areas of West Timor. World Vision has relief supplies in Kupang and 1400MT of rice en route from Jakarta. Suppliers in Darwin have also been contacted with a view to procurement. � Austcare will mount an aid appeal this week for Caritas assistance to the internally displaced. � Oxfam Australia (CAA) is monitoring the situation and providing assistance through Kupang. The Oxfam representative in Atambua puts Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) estimates at 30,000 there. � Local agencies in West Timor include the following - BK3S (Umbrella body, Kupang) - Yayasan Alpha Omega (Kupang) - Yayasan Pikul (Kupang. Tel 62 380 826 712) - Posko Kupang (also working in Atambua. Tel 62 380 827 817) - Pusat Informasi Rakyat (PIR, Kupang) - Tananua (Kupang) - Yayasan Masyarakat Sejahtera (Yasmara, Kupang) - Geomeno (Kefa, near Atambua) - Yayasan Timor Membangun (Kefa) - Catholic Church Delsos - Protestant Church agencies Because of the threats and hostility to 'white' personnel, it may be necessary to try to monitor and deliver assistance through these local NGOs and networks. 3. Recommendations In general, all emergency humanitarian and human rights agencies who have been operating in East Timor should be encouraged to provide emergency assistance to IDPs in West Timor. This might involve re-deployment of expatriate staff who have been forced to leave East Timor and are now in Darwin or elsewhere. � Agencies attending the AusAID consultation in Canberra on Friday to ask AusAID to provide assistance and, if necessary and possible, to make another assessment visit. � An international NGO delegation of aid and human rights organisations be put together at the INFID Conference (Bali, next week) to make an assessment visit to West Timor following the conference. � UNHCR to be encouraged to establish an urgent program in West Timor. UNHCR acted as lead agency on humanitarian affairs in East Timor and has a large office in Jakarta. � Possible redeployment to West Timor of ICRC staff forcibly removed from East Timor and now in Darwin. � Encourage human rights organisations to be encouraged to monitor and report on human rights in West Timor. � Support local NGOs and Churches in West Timor to provide aid. It is generally recommended that human rights experts should be permitted to enter East Timor with the international peacekeeping force, if and when that happens. The sacking of East Timor and vandalising of its people should be comprehensively and independently documented as in Kosovo when NATO troops entered after the cessation of the bombing campaign. Pat Walsh 8 September tat.wtimor.doc --- Received: from spoke.minihub.org (spoke.minihub.org [203.43.84.21]) X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Pro Version 3.0.3 (32) Date: Thu, 09 Sep 1999 17:21:41 +1000 To: ACFOA Members From: Sharmini <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: NGO activity on East Timor Dear AETWG and AIWG members, Attached please find a statement released yesterday by Indonesian NGOs concerning East Timor, an ACFOA press release concerning the statement, and an updated list of NGOs running appeals for East Timor. Regards, Carson for Pat Walsh Attachment Converted: C:\DEV\INTERNET\ATTACHME.NTS\NGOAPPEA.doc Attachment Converted: C:\DEV\INTERNET\ATTACHME.NTS\NGOJoint.doc Attachment Converted: C:\DEV\INTERNET\ATTACHME.NTS\INFIDSTA.doc --- text of INFIDSTA.doc --- NEWS FAX 9 September 1999 35/99 INDONESIAN GROUPS CALL FOR PEACEKEEPERS FOR EAST TIMOR The Australian Council for Overseas Aid is concerned at mounting anti-Indonesian sentiment in Australia as a result of the situation in East Timor. We have just received a press statement issued by a coalition of Indonesia's leading non-government organisations. The signatories represent a range of sectors and religions, led by the International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development (INFID), a peak body coordinating national and international NGO activity in Indonesia. These organisations urge the Indonesian Government to accept the outcome of the popular consultation on East Timor, and call on the UN Security Council to urgently decide to send peacekeeping troops to East Timor. They also call for a lifting of martial law in East Timor and for the Government of Indonesia to stop the violence and arrest armed militias. Janet Hunt, Executive Director of the Australian Council for Overseas Aid, welcomed the statement and said, " A statement like this highlights the fact that many ordinary Indonesians do not accept this military action in East Timor, and abhor the increasing reassertion of military power in Jakarta. The democratisation of Indonesia is very fragile at this time." "Simplistic anti-Indonesian sentiments are misguided. Let us be clear that it is military power in Indonesia which is the problem, not the people of that country." "Many Indonesians showed support for the Timorese people by acting as civilian ballot observers." Two page statement attached Contact: Janet Hunt : (02) 6285 1816 (w); (02) 6281 0252; 0411 868 174 (mob) --- text of NGOJoint.doc --- NGO Joint Statement on East Timor INFID, ELSAM, KALYANAMITRA, YLBHI, LERAI, KPI-KD, SPRIM, Crisis Centre PGI, Ikatan Jurnalis Televisi Indonesia, PWI Reformasi, JKLPK, FORTILOS, TRUK, P3M, Aliansi Jurnalis Indonesia The Secretary General of the United Nations has announced the result of the East Timor Popular Consultation on September 4, 1999, which clearly shows that the majority of East Timorese (79%) opted for independence. The result of the direct ballot demonstrates that 344,580 people or 79% of East Timorese opted for independence, and the remaining 21% or 94,388 East Timorese wanted special autonomy. The people of Indonesia and the Government of Indonesia should respect the result of the popular consultation. The Government of Indonesia should take necessary steps to comply with the New York Agreement, signed on May 5, 1999, which is legally binding. Article 6 of the New York Agreement states: "If the Secretary General determines, on the basis of the result of the popular consultation and in accordance with this Agreement, that the proposed constitutional framework for special autonomy is not acceptable to the East Timorese People, the Government of Indonesia shall take the constitutional steps necessary to terminate its links with East Timor, thus restoring under Indonesian law the status of East Timor held prior to 17 July 1976, and the Governments of Indonesia and Portugal and the Secretary-General shall agree on arrangements for a peaceful and orderly transfer of authority in East Timor to the United Nations. The Secretary - General shall, subject to the appropriate legislative mandate, initiate the procedure enabling East Timor to begin a process of transition towards independence." However, after the result of the ballot was announced, violence in East Timor escalated. More than one hundred people were killed, many were wounded and thousands have left East Timor and many more are still fleeing in fear of the violence. The violence was as such that volunteers and journalists who were monitoring the popular consultation had to also leave East Timor. On September 7, 1999, The Chief Commander of the Armed Forces, General Wiranto, declares martial law in East Timor. The escalation of violence and declaration of martial law clearly show the inability of the Indonesian Government and the Indonesian Armed Forces to restore peace and order in East Timor. Based on these facts, we call that: 1. The Secretary General of the United Nations immediately hold a Security Council meeting to decide on the sending of Peace Keeping Forces to East Timor; 2. The Government of Indonesia should take concrete steps to stop the violence in East Timor and shows its sincerity and neutrality to act as a facilitator in this transition period in East Timor. This should be done by complying with the New York Agreement and be materialised in concrete actions by arresting armed militias who created and provoked the violence in East Timor. 3. The Indonesian Armed Forces and the Government of Indonesia should immediately lift the martial law in East Timor. We would like to remind the Indonesian Government that East Timor has been stated as non-self-governing territory ever since Popular Consultation to determine the future of East Timor was announced on April 21, 1999, which would be carried out under the supervision of the United Nations Peace Commission. Therefore, the declaration of martial law in East Timor is a violation. Signed and released in Jakarta, September 8, 1999 by: INFID, ELSAM, KALYANAMITRA, YLBHI, LERAI, KPI-KD, SPRIM, Crisis Centre PGI, Ikatan Jurnalis Televisi Indonesia, PWI Reformasi, JKLPK, FORTILOS, TRUK, P3M, Aliansi Jurnalis Indonesia Translation of ACRONYMS/NAMES (added by ACFOA) The International NGO Forum on Indonesian Development (INFID), Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (ELSAM), Kalyanamitra, Women's Advocacy Forum, The Legal Aid Foundation of Indonesia (YLBHI) The Institute for Ethnic Conflict Resolution (LERAI) East Timor Support Group (KPI-KD), the Protestant Church Crisis Centre (Crisis Centre PGI) Reformed Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI Reformasi), Christian Workers Support Network(JKLPK) The East Timor Solidarity Forum (Fortilos) The Volunteers Team for Humanity (TRUK) The Moslem Schools Development Association (P3M) The Independent Journalists Alliance. --- text of NGOAPPEA.doc --- NGO APPEALS FOR EAST TIMOR Updated 9/9/99 (16:16 AEST) Tax deductible cash donations are being accepted by many NGOs including: v ADRA Australia 1800 242 372 v Apheda (Union Aid Abroad) 1300 362 223 (9am-5pm) v AFAP/Timor Aid 1800 007 308 v Austcare 1800 244 450 v Australian Baptist World Aid (02) 94511199 v Australian Red Cross 1800 811 700 v Australian Volunteers International (03) 9279 1788 v CARE Australia 1800 020 046 v Community Aid Abroad-Oxfam in Australia 1800 034 034 v Caritas Australia 1800 024 413 v National Council of Churches in Australia 1800 025 101 v World Vision 13 32 40 ______________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED] MSN Messenger Service lets you stay in touch instantly with your family & friends - Visit http://messenger.msn.com
