TIMOR-LESTE: PROPOSED AMNESTY STIRS CONTROVERSY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 DILI 000201

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MTS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 8/12/2018
TAGS: PHUM PGOV KJUS TT
SUBJECT: TIMOR-LESTE: PROPOSED AMNESTY STIRS CONTROVERSY

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CLASSIFIED BY: Henry M. Rector, Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S.
Embassy Dili, Department of State.
REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)



SUMMARY

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1. (C) Begin Summary. Following his commutation in May of the
sentences of 94 criminals including former Interior Minister
Rogerio Lobato, Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta proposed
on June 30 a law that would extend amnesty to figures implicated
by the UN's Commission of Inquiry (COI) in acts of violence
committed during the political crisis of 2006. The draft law
seeks to "foster national reconciliation" by granting those
persons the right to submit voluntarily to "public audiences of
reconciliation" to express remorse for their crimes, and
contains provisions for reparations to victims. Potential
beneficiaries include former Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri and
Defense Chief Brigadier General Taur Matan Ruak. The draft law
has been criticized by government figures, the Catholic Church,
and NGOs. They argue that it undermines efforts to strengthen
Timor's fragile justice sector, and has damaged President
Ramos-Horta's public standing. President Ramos-Horta reaffirmed
his commitment to the proposed amnesty during a meeting on
August 4 with the U.S. and Australian ambassadors. However, the
controversial draft law still needs a parliamentary sponsor, and
may not go forward in its present form. End summary.

Content and Breadth of the Law

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2. (U) On June 30, Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta
proposed to political parties draft legislation that would
extend an amnesty to persons implicated by the UN Commission of
Inquiry and others in acts of violence perpetrated during the
2006 political crisis. The period covered under the law is
April 28 through December 31, 2006. Beneficiaries of the
amnesty would be subject to a "special community reconciliation
process." The amnesty covers criminal offenses against the
State, public order, public authority, life, physical integrity,
general security of the people or goods, and property. It also
covers offenses relating to the use, carriage and possession of
weapons. The proposed law would create public fora where the
accused and victims can be heard; pay respect and compensation
to the victims; and promote a "national dialogue and
reconciliation." It also asserts that the courts are unable to
handle these types of crimes; that victims are afraid and have
not participated in the legal processes; that the crisis was a
result of an "exceptional period;" and that "society is divided,
requiring solutions in which all (victims and the perpetrators)
win." The law further asserts that "formal justice does not
resolve social conflicts and justice is not solely defined as
criminal sanctions." Reparations for victims would vary
according to the crime, and may include payments by the State to
victims of up to $10,000 and scholarships to children of the
victims. Beneficiaries of the amnesty law might also be
required to perform community service.


3. (C) For the draft to become law, a party caucus or group of
parliamentarians first must sponsor the measure to open debate
in the National Parliament. The measure must then be passed by
a majority in Parliament, be promulgated by the President, and
survive constitutional challenges. (Note: a similar effort to
pass an amnesty measure in 2007 was struck down on a
technicality by the Court of Appeals, Timor's highest court.
End note.) PM Gusmao told the Ambassador on August 4 that he
does not expect Parliament to approve an amnesty bill if limited
only to acts committed during the 2006 period. Most parties are
reluctant to associate themselves with the law and the measure
might not survive a vote in its current form.


4. (C)During an interview with Poloff, the President's legal
advisor Mario Spencer said the proposed law and the May 2008
pardons are intended to "erase the past; it never happened; why
should the Timorese pay for crimes when Indonesians go free for
the same crimes?" The May pardons included former Interior
Minister Rogerio Lobato, convicted in 2007 of weapons
distribution during the 2006 crisis, and Johnny Marques, a

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pro-integration militia member convicted of murdering a caravan
of priests and nuns in Los Palos in 1999. These pardons were
widely criticized by NGOs, the Catholic Church, and
parliamentarians.


5. (SBU) United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste
(UNMIT) Human Rights Officer Luis Gomez Orodea emphasized to us
that UNMIT's mandate includes implementation of the 2006 COI
report recommendations, including further investigation into
criminal acts committed during the crisis. The UN therefore
opposes the proposed measure. He added that UNMIT may
"acquiesce without condemning the law if they remove arson,
murder, and other crimes as subject to a special reconciliation
process," but that approval of the law as written would generate
condemnation by the UN.

Implications for 2006 Commission of Inquiry Cases

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6. (C) There is increasing concern among political and civil
society leaders that a culture of impunity is taking root in
Timor-Leste. Sources interviewed argue that the country's three
main leaders - Ramos-Horta, Prime Minister Gusmao, and
opposition leader Mari Alkatiri - have a shared interest in
absolving themselves of responsibility for violent incidents
arising from their thirty-year struggle for power. United
Nations Development Assistance Program (UNDP) International
Prosecutor Luis Lamdin, assigned since March 2008 to the office
assigned to the office of the Prosecutor General with the task
of preparing the COI cases for prosecution, observed that the
draft law is designed to grant impunity for the leaders, and
that "people are afraid to testify against powerful people like
Alkatiri or Taur Matan Ruak." According to Lamdin, the Timorese
authorities "never understood that justice is essential for
national stability." He highlighted that passage of the law
remains uncertain, but warned that if successful it would
"erase" his work. Expressing some frustration, he pointed to a
desk with 10 piles of cases and complained that Monteiro is
keeping him "busy with other non-COI cases."

Parties Reluctant to Sponsor Law

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7. (C) FRETILIN Members of Parliament Jose Teixeira and David
Ximenes criticized the law, but warned that some in their party
or in the Prime Minister's National Congress for Timorese
Reconstruction (CNRT) party may consider sponsoring it because
it may benefit some of their members. FRETILIN Secretary
General Alkatiri told the Ambassador in July that Ramos-Horta's
draft has many "technical problems" and considerable time would
be needed to develop a consensus in support. He acknowledged
the risks an amnesty would pose to the rule of law, but noted
that reconciliation may be as worthy a goal as justice.


8. (C) Opposition National Unity Party (PUN) President Fernanda
Borges echoed those criticisms, and observed that she is no
longer amazed at Ramos-Horta's "messianic approach to
forgiveness." Ms. Borges was the only MP to publicly question
Ramos-Horta's credentials for the job of UN High Commissioner
for Human Rights based on his "spotty record" in defending
victim's rights. Reaction from within the ranks of the ruling
Parliamentary Majority Alliance (AMP) coalition has been more
muted, although Social Democratic Party (PSD) chairman Mario
Carrascalao has publicly criticized the measure.

Catholic Church to Speak Out Against Impunity

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9. (C) Father Filomeno Jacob, assistant to the Bishop of Dili,
said that Ramos-Horta, Gusmao, and Alkatiri are "all one and the
same, leading us towards a dictatorship through impunity at the
expense of democracy; the leaders forgive one another because
they have dark chapters in their past - we are hostages to
them!" He harshly criticized the President's speeches as
"cloaked in religiosity lecturing the Timorese people on the
need to learn how to forgive." Father Jacob took issue with
Ramos-Horta's description of Rogerio Lobato as "a man with a
heart of gold," and Brigadier Taur Matan Ruak as "a national
hero." This was at the heart of Timor's climate of impunity, he

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said: "national heroes earn special dispensations while the
people receive none, and victims of crimes such as rape and
murders of relatives are told to forget offenses." He said that
the Catholic Church will soon be speaking out more openly
against a growing climate of impunity, and explained that "up
until now we have been reluctant to do so in order not to be
accused of meddling in politics."

International Partners Concerned

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10. (C) On August 4 the U.S. and Australian Ambassadors raised
their concerns on the amnesty law to the President and Prime
Minister. Ramos-Horta summed up his views on the law by saying,
"I will not be part of a process that sends a national hero such
as Taur Matan Ruak to jail." Responding to our concerns about
the law's potential to further undermine Timor-Leste's justice
sector, Ramos-Horta countered that "justice in Timor-Leste does
not operate like in Norway, New Zealand or Iceland." He sought
to associate his approach with those pursued in other
post-conflict nations such as South Africa and Mozambique. Prime
Minister Gusmao suggested the nation may want to consider an
omnibus amnesty to include the entire period from 1974 to the
present day. While acknowledging the dangers impunity might
pose, Gusmao mulled that an amnesty could be useful to "end the
past," overcome Timor's sense of victimhood and contribute to
building the Timorese nation. Both the President and Prime
Minister stated they appreciated our concerns and welcomed
comments on the draft law.


11. (C) During a meeting with Poloff on August 4, the
Portuguese deputy chief of mission explained that while her
government was concerned about the draft amnesty law, its role
as the historic colonial power constrains it from unilaterally
delivering a tough message. She noted that President
Ramos-Horta has a tendency to overstep his constitutional
boundaries and ignore the independence of the judiciary.

Jury Still Out on Amnesty

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12. (C) Two local human rights and justice NGOs explained
Ramos-Horta's eagerness to extend amnesties and pardons as
reflective of "the mindset of the older generation that justice
undermines their integrity," and warned that this threatens
efforts by international donors currently to strengthen
assisting Timor-Leste's justice sector. Jose Luis Oliveira from
the HAK human rights NGO summarized: "It is not acceptable to
say that because we are Timorese our implementation of justice
should be different than that in developed nations; the amnesty
law demonstrates the leadership's failure to understand the
people's right to justice." While the leadership seems
determined to push for the law's success in the National
Parliament, it remains to be seen whether the measure will
survive a vote due to its deep unpopularity with the public.
KLEMM