[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 118 (Monday, September 13, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10777-S10778]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      THE SITUATION IN EAST TIMOR

  Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, like many of my colleagues, I was 
pleased yesterday when President B.J. Habibie of Indonesia agreed to 
work with the United Nations to allow international peacekeepers to 
restore peace and stability to East Timor. The reprehensible wave of 
violence that engulfed East Timor in the week following the 
announcement of the August 30 referendum was inexcusable, and demands 
the harshest condemnation by the international community.
  But, more importantly, the international community must now work to 
bring an immediate end to the violence in East Timor, protect refugees, 
safeguard humanitarian aid for displaced persons, and work with 
Indonesian troops already in East Timor to see to it that they fulfill 
their mission of protecting the East Timorese.
  On August 30, close to 98 percent of the eligible voters of East 
Timor went to the polls for the United Nations sponsored vote on East 
Timor's autonomy. This vote was in keeping with the May 5 agreements 
between Indonesia, Portugal, and the United Nations regarding the 
future of East Timor.
  On September 4, the Secretary General of the United Nations announced 
the outcome of the August 30 vote, and the results show that the people 
of East Timor have spoken with a clear voice: 78.5 percent rejected 
autonomy in favor of complete independence from Indonesia.
  Under the May 5 agreements, if East Timor opted for independence, the 
Government of Indonesia committed itself to a process of peaceful and 
constitutional change, in which the United Nations would oversee the 
transition to independence for East Timor.
  Unfortunately, following the Secretary General's announcement of the 
clear, overwhelming, and freely-expressed choice of the East Timor 
people, anti-independence militias, backed by the Indonesian military 
and police, began a systematic and organized campaign of terror, 
violence and intimidation in an effort to overturn the will of the 
people of East Timor.
  The criminal action undertaken by the militias and their backers in 
the Indonesian military are reprehensible: mass looting, arson, 
systematic destruction of infrastructure, and most disturbing of all, 
murder.
  According to the United Nations, hundreds, and possibly thousands, 
have been killed and more than 200,000 people have been forced to flee 
their homes. There are also reports of mass killings and a systematic 
campaign of political assassination.
  The May 5 Agreements between the Governments of Indonesia and 
Portugal and the United Nations mandated the popular vote on the offer 
of autonomy and clearly delegated responsibility for peace and security 
before, during and after the ballot process to the Government of 
Indonesia. And the Government of Indonesia freely agreed to take on 
that responsibility.
  Yet, in the face of widespread violence, the Indonesian army and 
police forces have stood aside and, worse, assisted the anti-
independence militias. I, like many of my colleagues, was startled by 
the Government of Indonesia's unwillingness or inability to control its 
own military forces and police in East Timor.
  Now that the Government of Indonesia has agreed to work with the 
United Nations to restore peace to East Timor, there is much work to be 
done.
  First, I am heartened by the willingness of the Australian government 
to lead peacekeeping efforts to restore peace in security to East 
Timor, by the willingness of the states of ASEAN to participate in this 
peacekeeping mission, and by the efforts of the United Nations Security 
Council to engage the Government of Indonesia to address these issues. 
The United States, along with our partners in the United Nations and 
the international community, must be responsive to these efforts and 
provide appropriate assistance.
  Second, I believe that it is essential that the international 
community condemns the acts of violence that have occurred in East 
Timor in the past week--as it has in Bosnia, Kosovo, Rwanda, and 
elsewhere--and urge a complete investigation into any criminal acts 
with those responsible being brought to justice.
  Third, now that the Government of Indonesia has agreed to allow 
international peacekeepers into East Timor, I am hopeful that it will 
continue to work with the United Nations to implement the August 30th 
vote and safeguard East Timor's transition to independence. The United 
States and the international community must remain engaged and involved 
with this transition, and strongly encourage the Government of 
Indonesia to make those changes that the people of East Timor in the 
August 30 referendum overwhelmingly supported.
  Lastly, I believe that President Clinton's decision to review U.S. 
international financial and military assistance to Indonesia in the 
context of the violence in East Timor was wholly appropriate, and that 
Jakarta must understand that as much as we value our relations with the 
people of Indonesia, future U.S. assistance will depend on

[[Page S10778]]

their continued cooperation with the international community in 
resolving this deplorable situation.
  Mr. President, the people of East Timor have made their feelings 
clear. They want a peaceful transition to independence. The Government 
of Indonesia has made a commitment that they would grant the people of 
East Timor independence and oversee a peaceful transition. As the 
Government of Indonesia has belatedly recognized, it must live up to 
its commitments. The international community can play a crucial role in 
providing support and helping guarantee the security of the people of 
East Timor in this transition to independence. We must not let them 
down.

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