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Indonesian war crimes during the invasion of Dili
The Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation in East Timor (CAVR) documented in its final report Chega!, among other things, the Indonesian war crimes during the invasion of Dili, when on 7 December 1975, Indonesian troops began Operation Lotus openly attacked and occupied the Dili, East Timor capital. This article reports the documented incidents in the first days of the invasion. BackgroundIn the end phase of Portuguese colonial rule, Indonesian influence led to chaotic conditions. A civil war broke out. Indonesia began to occupy the border regions with Operation Flamboyan and disguised its soldiers as East Timorese militias, who fought against FRETILIN, which emerged victorious from the civil war. When FRETILIN unilaterally declared independence on 28 November 1975, Indonesia responded by announcing, the leaders of the other East Timorese parties signed the so-called Balibo Declaration on 30 November, calling for East Timor to be annexed to Indonesia. Nine days later, the attack on Dili began. In addition to arbitrary executions of civilians, a series of mass murders were committed by Indonesian soldiers in the first days of the invasion. Members of the Chinese community of Dili were targeted by the soldiers.[1][2] There were no disciplinary consequences for the Indonesian soldiers due to the massive violations of human rights. This also corresponded to incidents in the following years of the occupation.[3] Murders of Chinese in Colmera At the Toko Lay commercial building, the body of a paratrooper with his umbrella had become caught on the building. There were more than 100 people in the building, all civilians of Chinese origin. On the morning of 7 December, at 10 a.m., the Indonesians began shooting at the house. Tsam Yi Tin, a native of Same, came out of the outbuilding to surrender and was shot. His son survived because he played dead after being hit. The Indonesians stormed the Toko Lay and sent all residents out. They were taken to the beach near the clubhouse of the Sporting Clube de Timor and had to sit in a row on the sand.[2][4] As the people cried out in fear, they were led 50 meters further to the harbour, where they were told to line up in order of height facing the sea. The soldiers loaded their guns and pretended to shoot the prisoners. Then they were driven to the port gate and the guns were loaded again. After that, women and children were sent to the Chinese school, the men had to dig graves for the victims of the invasion or throw the bodies into the sea. 16 Chinese dug graves for 20 fallen Indonesian soldiers in the Jardim 5 de Maio.[5][6] After they had done their job, 20 men were lined up again facing the sea and then executed with a shot to the head. Other groups followed and were also killed.[2] A total of 59 Chinese and Timorese were executed. The population was asked to count. The executions were justified by the Indonesians as retaliation for the death of the Indonesian paratrooper at Toko Lay.[7] The victims were weighted down with stones by prisoners and thrown into the water. Chong Kui Yan was one of the workers who had to dispose of the bodies and was allowed to leave afterwards. Among the victims of the shootings known by name are eleven people with the name Lay, aged between 16 and 60.[2][6] In other parts of the Colmera district, residents were also sent out onto the streets so that soldiers could search their houses for weapons. They discovered nine Chinese people in a ditch behind the house of Li Nheu Ki in Rua Sebastião da Costa (today Rua de Loriko at the Tais market). They were murdered, along with at least five other people of Chinese origin in Colmera.[4] Executions in Mata DoroSeveral civilians were executed in the Assistência building murdered (Edifício da Assistência Pública Social), near the FRETILIN base in Mata Doro (Vila Verde). The building, which dates back to the early 1970s, is located on the southeast corner of Avenida Mouzinho de Albuquerque (today Avenida Mártires da Pátria) and Rua de Caicoli. Today it houses the library of the National University of East Timor. This is where families were housed whose houses in Vila Verde had been burned down during the civil war in August. When Indonesian soldiers arrived at Assistência on the afternoon of 7 December, they discovered a paratrooper, who had become entangled in a power line and had been shot. The Indonesians took the dead man down and brought him to a flagpole next to the Assistência, on which the FRETILIN flag flew. They took down the flag and ordered all residents of the building to come out and gather in a field. 80 men were separated from the women and children. They first had to clear out the neighboring building of the Portuguese 15th Infantry Company (Companhia 15). Then they should line up in three rows. After the soldiers had discussed the matter for about 15 minutes, three of them pointed their weapons at the East Timorese, who then fled. The soldiers opened fire. According to witnesses, the number of victims varies from 23 to 70 people. It was not until December 9 that East Timorese civilians were ordered to burn the decomposing corpses behind Companhia 15.[8] There were also executions in the Mata Doro slaughterhouse, but there are conflicting witness accounts. Eight victims are known by name.[9] Executions at the Port of Dili On 8 December, several executions took place at the Dili's shipyard. The circumstances suggest that FRETILIN members were deliberately singled out among the civilians and executed. It is assumed that there was a blacklist. Among the victims there were the women's rights activist Rosa Bonaparte, her brother Bernardino Bonaparte Soares (who, like his sister, was a CCF member), Isabel Barreto Lobato (wife of Prime Minister Nicolau dos Reis Lobato), but also Roger East, the last foreign reporter in Dili. Witnesses speak of dozens of corpses.[1][10][11][12][13] East had been captured in his hotel that morning. FALINTIL leader Fernando do Carmo, who had driven to the Hotel Turismo in a jeep to rescue East, was killed in an Indonesian ambush.[14][15] The body of Francisco Borja da Costa, the lyricist of East Timor's national anthem "Pátria" and a member of the CCF, was later found on the beach. His name was also on a death list.[12][16] He was last seen alive at the harbor, as well as the members of the FRETILIN youth organization UNETIM Bimba da Solva and Silvinia Epifana M. da Silva, who disappeared forever after 8 December.[11] Witnesses report further mass executions at the port on the afternoon of 8 December. The victims were forced to line up in groups of 20 people and were shot. The dead fell into the water, then the next group followed. Witnesses speak of at least four groups. It is no longer possible to determine who exactly these victims were.[5] The total number of people executed in the shipyard is estimated at 150.[17] Other murders Several civilians were executed on 7 December at the Maloa River in the suco of Bairro Pite, partly to avenge the death of an Indonesian soldier.[18] Another execution with at least 17 dead followed at Maloa River in Ailoklaran on 8 December. Many of these victims came from Ainaro and were actually supporters of KOTA, which was officially allied with the Indonesians.[19] About 50 people were captured at the military police headquarters in Caicoli, lined up and shot.[20] The Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation in East Timor (CAVR) collected reports from during the invasion of Dili civilians killed in the number of 203 to 272 people. In addition, there are reports of missing persons.[21] It is estimated that around 2,000 Dili residents died in the first days of the invasion, which would mean eight percent of the population. About 700 of them were ethnic Chinese.[17] As a result, further arrests, torture and disappearances of people occurred in Dili by the Indonesian military. The victims were suspected of having connections to the resistance in the mountains.[22] See also
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