Jakarta – The East Timor government on Monday sought to distance itself from indictments issued against a former Indonesian armed forces chief over violence that ravaged the tiny territory in 1999.
On a brief visit to Indonesia, East Timor Foreign Minister Jose Ramos-Horta said he had come to Jakarta to make clear that the territory's ties with its giant neighbour were too important to be undermined by issues such as the indictments.
Prosecutors from East Timor's Serious Crimes Unit last week charged scores of people, including Indonesia's then military chief General Wiranto, with crimes against humanity over the terrority's bloody 1999 vote to break from Jakarta's rule.
Indonesian reaction to the indictments has been relatively muted, partly because the government has already ruled out sending any of its former officials to East Timor to stand trial.
East Timor President Xanana Gusmao criticised the indictments last week.
But Ramos-Horta told reporters after meeting his Indonesian counterpart, Hassan Wirajuda, the East Timor government would not interfere with the work of the Serious Crimes Unit.
But Ramos-Horta said the government would try to find ways to pursue justice over the carnage without creating misunderstandings with Indonesia. He did not elaborate.
"The relationship between East Timor and Indonesia is far too important for any issue that might arise to ... derail this relationship," Ramos-Horta said.
The United Nations created the serious crimes unit when it ran East Timor in the aftermath of the violence in which more than 1,000 people were killed, according to UN estimates. East Timor become formally independent in May last year.
Most of the violence in East Timor was blamed on pro-Jakarta militias acting with Indonesian military backing.
Indonesian human rights courts have been running their own trials over the violence, so far handing down verdicts in the cases of 15 out of 18 suspects.
Those courts have only convicted four people so far, drawing criticism from rights groups. Wiranto himself was not charged in that process. He denies any wrongdoing.