Features

September 11, 2009

Timor-Leste: Marking the 1999 Violence

Ten years after Timor-Leste's 1999 vote for independence and the accompanying violence, ICTJ organized a trio of commemorative events in Dili together with local civil society groups and the Post-CAVR Technical Secretariat (established to disseminate the report by the country's Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation, or CAVR).

Workshop on developing an illustrated version of the CAVR report for school-age children

A page from a comic book about the CAVR report.

On Aug. 25, ICTJ and the Post-CAVR Technical Secretariat organized a workshop with high school students, teachers, Ministry of Education officials, educators and civil society to consult on a series of five comic books meant to make the 2,000-page CAVR report accessible for young people. INSIST, an Indonesia-based organization specializing on popular education, has also been collaborating on the books, which  are scheduled to be released at the end of 2009.

Seminar on the progress of justice since 1999

Ian Martin and Agustino do Vasconcelhos, opening the seminar.

On Sep. 1, ICTJ and the Post-CAVR Technical Secretariat held a seminar to reflect on the progress of justice since 1999. Speakers included Agustinho Vasconselos, Director of the Post-CAVR Technical Secretariat; Ian Martin, former head of the UN mission that implemented the independence vote in 1999 (as well as former vice president of ICTJ); Fernanda Borges, parliament member and president of the parliamentary committee for on justice, governance and constitutional matters; Ms. Zumrotin, former Deputy Chair of Indonesia's National Human Rights Commission and member of the Indonesian commission of inquiry (KPPHAM) on the 1999 violence in East Timor; and Patrick Burgess, ICTJ's Asia Director.

The seminar highlighted the achievements and challenges in accounting for past crimes in Timor-Leste, including through the serious crimes process, the CAVR and the joint Timorese-Indonesian Commission for Truth and Friendship. The seminar was held at the former Balide prison, an infamous detention and torture center used under the Indonesian occupation, which has now been converted by the CAVR into a center for reconciliation and houses a permanent exhibition on the CAVR report.

Timor-Leste Victims' Congress

Victims' congress participants at the memorial exhibition for the dead and disappeared.

Timor Leste's first Victim's Congress was help on Sep. 2-4, organized by ICTJ and other civil society groups including HAK, Fokupers, the East Timorese NGO Network, and the Committee on 12th November. The congress was the culmination of a process that began in 2008 with a nation-wide consultation to understand victims' current situation, priorities and views on justice and reparations. Follow-up workshops were held in early 2009 to respond to victims' desire for a strong network.

The Sep. 2-4 congress provided a space for victims to take stock of their situation, identify a common agenda, and build a sense of camaraderie and togetherness. Two victims from Indonesia, the mother of a student killed in the 1998 demonstrations and the wife of a disappeared poet and activist, participated in the events, sharing their experiences of struggling for justice in their own country.