Massacre in the house of Manuel Carrascalão

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In the massacre at Manuel Carrascalão's house in Dili on April 17, 1999, at least 19 people were killed by pro- Indonesian militias ( Wanra ) and Indonesian security forces during the wave of violence surrounding the independence referendum in East Timor .

background

Indonesia had occupied East Timor since 1975. After the fall of the Suharto dictatorship, international pressure increased and Indonesia agreed to hold an independence referendum in East Timor , which the United Nations had prepared for August 30, 1999. However, in the run-up to the referendum, the Indonesian army, police and militias tried to intimidate the population and persecuted supporters of independence.

One of the independence activists was Manuel Carrascalão , spokesman for the Conselho Nacional de Resistência Timorense CNRT (National Council of Resistance of Timor) . Around 150 refugees from Liquiçá and Alas , who had fled their villages from the terror of the gangs, camped on the site of his home in Dili . Carrascalão's family has a fazenda in Liquiçá .

The massacre

Before the attack on Manuel Carrascalão's house, there was a rally of around 5,000 pro-Indonesian fighters. On this was called by Eurico Guterres , the leader of the Aitarak militia , to catch and kill those who are against the integration of East Timor in Indonesia. Officials present included Provincial Governor José Abílio Osório Soares and the District Administrator of Dili Domingos Soares .

Then began a march through the city, led by Eurico Guterres, in which several locations were attacked until Carrascalão's home was reached and surrounded. Manuel Carrascalão and his daughter Christina tried to obtain military protection for the property from Colonel Tono Suratman , the commander of the Indonesian armed forces in East Timor, but the latter refused to allow him. David Andrews , the Irish Foreign Secretary who was visiting the Colonel at the time, reported that Suratman had insisted that the army be neutral in the conflict. The following attack on the house and the refugees killed at least 19 people, including Carrascalão's 17-year-old son Manuel ( Manuelito or Manelito ). Many people were also seriously injured by machetes and other knives. In addition to Aitarak members, members of the Besi Merah Putih (BMP) militia and possibly members of the Indonesian army were also involved in the attack . Witnesses tell of Indonesian officers attending in plain clothes.

Some of the refugees were abducted. The bodies of the victims were brought to Maubara , to the headquarters of the BMP. They were buried there. In 2000 they were exhumed by the UNTAET Crime Scene Detachment .

Manuel Carrascalão and his daughter initially found refuge in the residence of Bishop Belo . Carrascalão fled first to Jakarta , then to Portugal, and only returned to East Timor in October 1999 after the referendum on independence.

Legal consequences

In March 2006, the Jakarta Supreme Court upheld a ten-year prison sentence against Eurico Guterres, the then leader of the Aitarak militia, for not preventing his people from the killings. On April 5, 2008, the verdict against Guterres was overturned by the Supreme Court based on new testimony. Since there was no clear command structure in the militia, Guterres could not be held responsible for all of their actions. The judge cleared him of all charges. Guterres was released from prison on April 8th.

supporting documents

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Daniel De Lucca: East Timor a Nation 039 s Bitter Dawn Second Edition ( Memento of the original from September 13, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed September 5, 2016. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / de.scribd.com
  2. ^ ABC News, April 5, 2008, Indonesia releases former East Timor militia leader
  3. ↑ BBC, April 8, 2008, E Timor militia leader released