In a letter dated 31 March 1997 to the chief of police of Jakarta, the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation, the YLBHI, has asked whether the Jakarta police are holding the 33 East Timorese who were arrested in Jakarta on 27 March. The Foundation states that they were arrested on 27 March after they had entered the Austrian embassy in Jakarta on 25 March and asked to meet the special UN envoy for East Timor. The students left the embassy at 5 am on 27 March and were immediately arrested.

The Foundation asked the chief of police to confirm that the 33 Timorese were now in the hands of the Jakarta police.

In its letter the Foundation drew attention to the criminal procedural code and basic human rights and asked the police to respect their rights.

The letter is signed by Munir of the Foundation's operation division.

[Note: the Indonesian authorities gave assurances to the Austrian embassy that they men would come to no harm if they left the embassy.]