[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 292 Introduced in House (IH)]
106th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. RES. 292
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the
referendum in East Timor, calling on the Government of Indonesia to
assist in the termination of the current civil unrest and violence in
East Timor, and supporting a United Nations Security Council-endorsed
multinational force for East Timor.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
September 14, 1999
Mr. Bereuter (for himself, Mr. Gilman, Mr. Lantos, Mr. Gejdenson, Mr.
Hastings of Florida, Mr. Capuano, Mr. Goss, Mr. Faleomavaega, Mr.
Greenwood, Ms. DeLauro, Mr. Crowley, Mr. Pombo, Mr. Underwood, Mr.
Moran of Virginia, Mr. Bilbray, Mr. Hall of Ohio, Mr. Ackerman, Mr.
Smith of New Jersey, and Mr. Brown of Ohio) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International
Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives regarding the
referendum in East Timor, calling on the Government of Indonesia to
assist in the termination of the current civil unrest and violence in
East Timor, and supporting a United Nations Security Council-endorsed
multinational force for East Timor.
Whereas on May 5, 1999, the Governments of Portugal and Indonesia and the United
Nations concluded an historic agreement intended to resolve the status
of East Timor through a popular consultation based upon a universal,
direct, and secret ballot;
Whereas the agreement gave the people of East Timor an opportunity to accept a
proposed special autonomy for East Timor within the unitary Republic of
Indonesia or reject the special autonomy and opt for independence;
Whereas on August 30, 1999, 98.5 percent of registered voters participated in a
vote on the future of East Timor, and by a vote of 344,580 to 94,388
chose the course of independence;
Whereas after the voting was concluded, violence intensified significantly in
East Timor;
Whereas the declaration by the Government of Indonesia of martial law in East
Timor has failed to quell the violence;
Whereas it has been reported that hundreds of people have been killed and
injured since the violence began in East Timor;
Whereas it has been reported that as many as 200,000 of East Timor's 780,000
residents have been forced to flee East Timor;
Whereas it has been reported that East Timor militias are controlling the
refugee camps in West Timor, intimidating the refugees and denying
access to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, relief
agencies, and other humanitarian nongovernmental organizations;
Whereas it has been reported that a systematic campaign of political
assassinations that has targeted religious, student, and political
leaders, aid workers, and others has taken place;
Whereas the compound of the United Nations Mission in East Timor (UNAMET) was
besieged and fired upon, access to food, water, and electricity was
intentionally cut off, and UNAMET personnel have been killed, forcing
the closure of UNAMET in East Timor;
Whereas Catholic leaders and lay people have been targeted to be killed and
churches burned in East Timor;
Whereas the international community has called upon the Government of Indonesia
to either take immediate and concrete steps to end the violence in East
Timor or allow a United Nations Security Council-endorsed multinational
force to enter East Timor and restore order;
Whereas on September 9, 1999, the United States suspended all military relations
with Indonesia as a result of the failure to quell the violence in East
Timor; and
Whereas on September 12, 1999, Indonesian President B.J. Habibie announced that
Indonesia would allow a United Nations Security Council-endorsed
multinational force into East Timor: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) congratulates the people of East Timor on their
exemplary participation in the August 30, 1999, popular
consultation;
(2) commends the professionalism, determination, and
courage of the United Nations Mission in East Timor (UNAMET)
personnel in support of the August 30, 1999, vote on the future
of East Timor;
(3) recognizes the overwhelming expression of the people of
East Timor in favor of independence from Indonesia;
(4) condemns the violent efforts of East Timor militias and
elements of the Indonesian military to overturn the results of
the August 30, 1999, vote;
(5) notes with grave alarm the failure of the Government of
Indonesia, despite repeated assurances to the contrary, to
guarantee the security of the people of East Timor and further
notes that it is the responsibility of the Government of
Indonesia to restrain elements of the Indonesian military and
paramilitary forces and restore order in East Timor;
(6) calls upon the Government of Indonesia to recognize its
responsibilities as a member of the United Nations and a
signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to
cooperate with appropriate United Nations authorities in the
restoration of order in East Timor;
(7) urges the Government of Indonesia to allow unrestricted
access to refugees and displaced persons in West Timor and to
guarantee their safety;
(8) calls upon the Government of Indonesia to hold
accountable those responsible for the violence and human rights
abuses and atrocities in East Timor;
(9) notes with approval the decision of the United States
to suspend military relations with, and the sale of any
military weapons or equipment to, the Government of Indonesia
until order is effectively restored;
(10) expresses approval of Indonesia's belated decision to
allow a United Nations Security Council-endorsed multinational
force into East Timor and strongly urges Indonesia to accept
the rapid deployment of this force and to cooperate fully
without preconditions on the composition and deployment of this
force;
(11) expresses support for a rapid and effective deployment
throughout East Timor of the United Nations Security Council-
endorsed multinational force;
(12) urges that the United States consider additional
measures to end the current civil unrest and violence in East
Timor, including the suspension of bilateral and international
financial assistance (except for humanitarian assistance and
assistance designed to promote the development of democratic
institutions) to the Government of Indonesia until such time as
it has demonstrated cooperation with respect to the deployment
of a multinational force in East Timor and such force is fully
deployed, UNAMET is fully operational in East Timor, refugees
and displaced persons are able to return to East Timor safely,
and order and respect for human rights are restored in East
Timor;
(13) expresses approval of United States logistical and
other technical support for deployment of a multinational force
for East Timor;
(14) commends Australia for its readiness to lead the
multinational force for East Timor and welcomes the
participation of other nations in this force;
(15) urges the Indonesian People's Consultative Assembly to
expeditiously ratify the vote of August 30, 1999, in East Timor
and to otherwise speed the transition to full independence for
East Timor; and
(16) recognizes that an effective United States foreign
policy for this region requires both an effective near-term
response to the ongoing violence in, and progress toward
independence for, East Timor and a long-term strategy for
supporting stability, security, and democracy in Indonesia and
East Timor.
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