Jakarta – The former chief of East Timor's Battalion 745 in Los Palos, Major Jacob Joko Sarosa, confirmed yesterday his superior had told him to mobilize troops after the East Timor ballot on August 30 last year. He said barring an order from his superior, the troops would still remain in military barracks.
Sarosa made the confirmation while he was questioned by the Attorney General Office (AGO)'s joint investigative team for East Timor human rights abuses. His lawyer Herman Umar said the questions were about Sarosa's activities and working experiences during the post-ballot riots.
Herman said his client had also discussed the killing of Dutch journalist Anderson Thone. But he strongly refuted speculations that the journalist was killed by his troopss. Sarosa, as quoted by lawyer Umar, confessed that he told his troops to intimidate the press by damaging their cars and cameras.
On the killing of the Dutch journalist, he said as soon as he got the report he went to Los Palos to identifying the victim. He said he saw knife and spike wounds on the body. But after the body was flown to Australia, the UN Assessment Mission on East Timor (UNAMET) announced that there was a bullet lodged inside the body. "How could there be a bullet wound while the body was brought to Australia?" Sarosa told Umar.
Former Deputy of the Army Chief Lieutenant General Johnny Lumintang, meanwhile, denied allegations that he had sent a telegram to the local commander to wreak total destruction in East Timor after last year's ballot.
He made the statement to the press after being questioned by the AGO joint investigation team yesterday. Lumintang was accompanied by his lawyers Tommy Sihotang, Ruhut Sitompul and Hotma Sitompoel.
"My presence here is to clarify the telegram I had sent to the Udayana Military Commander. The telegram was about anticipating the worst in East Timor," he said. "At that time, there were two options. The second option, which is independence from Indonesia, means preparations for evacuation. The duties were handed over to the Udayana Military Chief in order to avoid a civil war," he said.
Sihotang said the telegram was sent to the military personnel and their families. "That had nothing to do with total destruction of East Timor," he said.
He strongly criticized the poor records of the Commission of Inquiry on East Timor Human Rights Abuses (KPP HAM). "The probe [into Lumintang] is the result of the non-professionalism of KPP HAM. The telegram was a message to TNI members that if there were chaos, TNI members told to leave East Timor. That had nothing to do with totally destructing East Timor," he said. Sihotang suggested that former Army Chief General Subagyo should also be summoned to clarify the matter.
East Timorese in Yogyakarta Meanwhile, a report says that hundreds of East Timorese who reside in Yogyakarta have no clear idea on whether they are Indonesians or East Timor citizens.
Speaking to the press after a meeting with Yogyakarta Governor Sultan Hamengku Buwono, East Timorese Octavio A.J.O Soares confirmed that there are at least 150 East Timorese who live in Yogyakarta. "Eighty of them are civil servants," he told detikcom.
Octavio said the East Timorese left for Yogyakarta after the ballot that resulted in the secession of East Timor from Indonesia, and currently hold no IDs. "Even so, they are prepared to become Indonesian citizens. The problem is that they have no proper documents to verify their status," he said.
Octavio said neither the East Timor nor the Indonesian government has thought about the future of the refugees. They lead a nomadic life in Java, moving from relatives to other relatives in the last eight months, he said.
During the meeting, the East Timorese vowed to become Indonesian citizens and called on the Yogyakarta administration office to pay attention to their fate.