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This is with reference to the interview of Senior Foreign Minister of East Timor Jose Ramos Horta (Human Rights Features, 31 March-6 April 2003). Mr Horta’s remarks reflected the views of the Government of East Timor as well as his own, but not those of civil society (of which Mr Horta himself was part, not too long ago). It is therefore imperative that the demands of civil society be placed on record - among them -

1. A final evaluation of the proceedings of the ad-hoc tribunal for East Timor in Jakarta;

2. Support for the work of the Serious Crime Unit and the Special Panel in East Timor, and the extension of its mandate beyond 2004 in order to finalise their work, and/or explore avenues for another international tribunal, in particular, to follow up on the indictment of top Indonesian military commanders who are alleged to have committed crimes against humanity and breached international humanitarian law.

3. Reject any ideas, at the international level, that propose an end to efforts to seek justice for the victims, and seek to jeopardise the work of the Serious Crimes Unit.

Rosentino Amado Hei

Perkumpulan HAK, Dili, East Timor

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I want to congratulate you on the paper. It is really a great tool. I am a one person NGO and it is the perfect way to help me "cover" the Commission!

Kirsten Young

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Thank you for informing me of the online newspaper you are producing on the UN Commission on Human Rights. This will be very helpful and I will secure access to it.

With best wishes,

Sincerely,

Justice Michael Kirby

Judge of the High Court of Australia