Women abducted by East Timor militia Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit EAST TIMOR HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE 124 Napier St Fitzroy 3065 Australia PO BOX 1413 Collingwood 3066 Australia Tel: +61 3 9415 8225 Fax: +61 3 9415 8218 E-mail: ethrc@minihub.org Interim Director: Ms Kathleen Maltzahn Chair: Bishop Hilton Deakin _______________________________________________________________ URGENT ACTION 8 June 1999 NAMES: Marta Fatima Ivonia Ribeiro Virgina Sarmento Ermelinda da Conceicao Genobeva (no surname) Agusta (no surname) Justina Santa Etelvina Ribeiro Gracilda Varela Teresa Varela Anita Lemos Elvira (no surname) VIOLATIONS: Ill-Treatment/Sexual Abuse/Arbitrary Detention LOCATIONS: Ulmera Village, Bazartete Sub-District, Liquica, East Timor Ref: UA 7/99 ______________________________________________________________________________ The East Timor Human Rights Centre (ETHRC) is gravely concerned for the lives and well-being of the above-mentioned East Timorese women. Marta Fatima, Ivonia Ribeiro, Virgina Sarmento, Ermelinda da Conceicao, Genobeva (no surname), Agusta (no surname), Justina Santa, Etelvina Ribeiro, Gracilda Varela, and Teresa Varela were arrested between 17 and 18 May because their husbands were accused of joining the East Timorese resistance movement after the 5 April 1999 Liquica Massacre (see ETHRC UN 2/99). Anita Lemos and Elvira (no surname) were arrested on 31 May 1999 at Ulmera village. It is believed that the head of the village of Ulmera, Paustino (no surname) gave orders to arrest the women. According to reliable ETHRC sources, the twelve women have been detained and subject to continued forced labour from the Indonesian Armed Forces backed militia group entitled Besi Merah Putih (BMP). Amnesty International has also been informed that the women have apparently been subject to sexual abuse. All twelve women are held hostage at the houses of two teachers, Geraldo Ribeiro and Manuel Soares, who are brothers. The BMP has stated that the women must present their husbands to the BMP by 4 June 1999, or the women will be killed. The ETHRC has been unable to verify their current condition. The ETHRC has received unconfirmed reports of the women's children also being held hostage. The ETHRC has confirmed that the women have a total of 24 children, however, their whereabouts is undetermined. The possibility of the children being detained is currently under investigation by the ETHRC. These twelve women are subjects of a continued wave of numerous separate attacks throughout East Timor. The BMP and other groups sponsored by the Indonesian Armed Forces have relentlessly pursued supporters of East Timorese independence. These supporters and their families are repeatedly subject to arbitrary detention, physical abuse, and extrajudicial execution. RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send faxes/telegrams/express/airmail letters in English, Bahasa Indonesia or your own language: * Expressing concern that the above 12 women have been arbitrarily detained and subject to physical and sexual abuse, and calling for their immediate unconditional release; * Expressing particular concern at the recent human rights violations perpetrated by members of the Besi Merah Putih, in the village of Ulmera; * Calling for immediate and unrestricted access to be allowed to all areas of East Timor for UN human rights monitors, international and local human rights organisations, in order to provide ongoing human rights monitoring, and in particularly to conduct a full and impartial investigation of the recent violations committed by military backed armed militia; and * Calling on the government of Indonesia to take steps to immediately disarm all civilian militia groups in East Timor and to prosecute those responsible for human rights violations to the fullest extent of the law. SEND APPEALS TO: 1. PRESIDENT YUSUF HABIBIE President of the Republic of Indonesia Istana Negara Gedung Binagraha Jl. Veteran Jakarta Pusat INDONESIA Faxes: +62 21 345 7782 Telegrams: President Habibie, Jakarta, Indonesia E-mail: habibie@ristek.go.id 2. MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS Ali Alatas S.H Menteri Luar Negeri Jl. Medan Taman Pejambon No. 6 Jakarta INDONESIA Faxes: +62 21 360 541 / 360 517 / 380 5511 / 345 7782 / 724 5354 3. MINISTER FOR DEFENCE FORCES General Wiranto Menteri Pertahanan Keamanan RI Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat No 13-14 Jakarta 10110 INDONESIA Telephone: +62 21 366 184 Fax: +62 21 3845 178 4. RESORT MILITARY COMMAND (KOREM) Colonel Tono Suratman Markas KOREM 164/Wiradharma Dili East Timor Faxes: +62 390 21 624 Telegrams: Colonel Suratman, East Timor (Indonesia) 5. MILITARY COMMANDER REGION IX/UDAYANA (includes East Timor) Major General Adam Damiri Pangdam IX/Udayana Markas Besar KODAM IX/Udayana Denpasar, Bali INDONESIA Telephone: +62 361 228 095 Telegrams: Pangdam IX/Udayana, Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia Please also send appeals to: * Diplomatic representatives of Indonesia in your country * Parliamentarians and the Foreign Ministry in your country PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY Check with the East Timor Human Rights Centre if sending appeals after July 20, 1999 * Received from Joyo Indonesian News: June 5, 1999 Women abducted by East Timor militia, says rights group By MARK DODD DILI, FRIDAY Fears are held for the safety of 12 East Timorese women detained on the orders of a pro-Indonesia militia group based near Dili, a human rights official said today. The Foundation for Legal and Human Rights (Yayasan-Hak) said it regarded as accurate information received from one woman who escaped from custody by the Besi Merah Putih (Red and White Iron) group at Liquica, 30 kilometres west of Dili. The woman said the remaining 12 hostages had been raped by militiamen. The foundation provided The Age with the names of the 12 women taken from their homes on 17 May after their husbands fled. ``The husbands escaped to avoid forced enlistment in the militia. The women were taken hostage and given over to four families in Maubara,'' the foundation official said. He asked not to be identified, citing threats against the group. He said the lives of the 12 women had been threatened if their husbands failed to return. The human rights group said it had reported the incident to the United Nations and Ms Ana Gomes, the senior Portuguese diplomat in Indonesia based in Jakarta. In other incidents, six men from the coffee-growing district of Ermera sought protection at UN headquarters here today after two of their colleagues were allegedly robbed and beaten yesterday by Indonesian soldiers based at Railako, 35 kilometres south-west of Dili. This reporter saw one of the victims, named Lorenzo, lying outside the UN office nursing his head. The 32-year-old man said he had been tied and beaten and then robbed of 2 million rupiah ($A38,000), proceeds from the sale of coffee beans. Yayasan-Hak said it was receiving numerous reports of harassment of local villagers in Ermera district by militia and Army Battalion 143. The rights group said soldiers and militiamen were forcing villagers to sell coffee beans at a low price and then taking the product to Dili for resale. Coffee is East Timor's biggest commodity earner and this year's crop is one of the biggest since the early 1980s. END etanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetan John M. Miller Internet: etan-outreach@igc.apc.org Media & Outreach Coordinator, East Timor Action Network PO Box 150753, Brooklyn, NY 11215-0753 USA Phone: (718)596-7668 Fax: (718)222-4097 Web site: http://www.etan.org etanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetanetan ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytfem-06.11.99-02:37:07-14178