Manuel de Oliveira, Mateus Goncalves, Renato dos Santos, Antonio (no surname), Manuel Alves , Berta (no surname)

The East Timor Human Rights Centre has received a report about intensive military operations which took place in December 1996 in the village of Leo Rema, located on the border between the districts of Ermera and Liquica.

The report states that on 10 December, 1996, ten Indonesian soldiers from the "Linud 700" battalion, wearing civilian clothes, and six INTEL agents (four of them women), travelled by minibus from Ermera to the hamlets of Fatuneri, Urluli, Ergoa and Hatubolu in the village of Leo Rema. It is reported that they intimidated villagers in the area and that seven unidentified villagers were beaten until they bled from their noses and mouths.

On the following day, an assault took place on the chapel of Leo Rema. It is alleged that two East Timorese women working for the Indonesian military opened fire, injuring many people. Many villagers are believed to have disappeared following the assault and others, fearing for their safety, are believed to have abandoned their homes.

Manuel de Oliveira, Mateus Goncalves, Renato dos Santos, Manuel Alves, Antonio (no surname) and Berta (no surname), all from the hamlet of Urluli, were arrested and tortured. It is not known where the six were taken or if they are still in detention. The East Timor Human Rights Centre believes that the six people may have been arbitrarily arrested by Indonesian authorities and may be at risk of further torture and ill-treatment if still in detention.