[Links and Endnotes added by BACK DOOR]
Forum
Nacional ONG Timor Lorosa'e
The
East Timor National NGO Forum
Kaikoli Street, Dili-East
Timor telephone 322772/ etngocentre@hotmail.com
ET NGO paper for Donors’ Conference June 2001
INDEX
The
East Timor Delegation
Acknowledgement
and Introduction
Foreword
by Antero Benedito Da Silva “NITO”, Chair of NGO Forum Board
Justice
and Human rights
Constitution
Women
(REDE Statement)
Children
and Youth
Education
Capacity
building
Health
Agriculture
Environment
Water
and Sanitation
Refugees
PAPERS RELEVANT TO AGENDA SESSIONS
POLTICAL TRANSITION
Gender
Justice and Human Rights
Constitution
Capacity Building
Refugees
ADMINISTRATIVE TRANSITION
Capacity building
Gender
FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
All papers
ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
Education
Agriculture
Health
Children and Youth
Environment
Gender
Water and Sanitation
Capacity Building
CANBERRA JUNE 2001
Aderito
Soares - Board Member NGO Forum (
File: Advocacy )
Adelziza
Magno - Representative and member for REDE (Womens’
NGO groups )
Arsenio
Bano - Executive Director NGO
Forum
Andrea
da Costa - External Liaison Officer NGO Forum
Keryn
Clark - Country
Director for East Timor, Oxfam Australia
PROFILES:
Aderito Soares Member, East Timor NGO Delegation to the Donors’ Conference June 2001
Aderito is a 31 year old Lawyer from Maliana in East Timor. He speaks Kemak, the language from Maliana, Tetum, Indonesian, English and some Portuguese.
Aderito completed an undergraduate Bachelor of Law in Central Java at the University of Satya Wacana Salatiga. He focussed on International Law and Indigenous Peoples.
Besides being a board member of the NGO Forum, Aderito is the Coordinator of the NGO SAHE Institute for Liberation, the Coordinator for the East Timorese Jurist Association, a board member of the NGO La’o Hamutuk as well as a lecturer at the East Timorese National University in human rights and legal subjects for the Social and Political Science faculty.
Aderito was active in the underground students’ movement in Indonesia attending various international workshops and seminars on Human Rights and legal issues. In November 2000 he was invited to Puerto Rico for a four-day International Peoples Tribunal on “The Presence of the US in Puerto Rico” held by NGOs and CSOs in Puerto Rico, where he acted as a judge together with seven other judges from around the world.
Leading up to 1999 Aderito was active in preparing for the referendum by training the pro-Independence campaigners as well as working as a facilitator for CNRT.
His area of focus is on international law and indigenous peoples, eg. issues connected to the plight of the indigenous peoples of West Papua as well as labour issues in East Kalimantan. Throughout the past years he has been working closely with the Pro Democratic Movement in Jakarta. He also was the NGO representative and gave a talk on behalf of Indonesia and East Timor about the human rights situation in East Timor at the “Vienna Plus 5” conference (on women and environment) in Ottawa/Canada where he met with Jose Ramos Horta.
From Aug-Oct 1998 he did an internship
in Geneva with OMCT (Organization Against Torture).
Adelziza Magno Member, East Timor NGO Delegation to the Donors’ Conference June 2001
Adelziza is a 26 year old woman from Bagia, district Baucau. She speaks Tetun, Bahasa Indonesia and English and understands Portuguese, Makasai and Naoti.
Adelziza returned to Solo, Central Java at the Yayasan Universitas Sebelas Merdeka STIE Atma Bakti to finish her studies after the Referendum. She had already finished the thesis before, but needed still to take her exams. She completed her degree in Economics in September 2000, and focussed on management marketing.
Right after the referendum, before returning to complete her degree, Adelziza worked with FOKUPERS and Yayasan HAK, as well as the Radio Talk Show RTK, Radio Timor Kmanek. She also organized and did advocacy for UNTAET talk shows on womens’ isuues.
Adelziza attended high school in Dili and was treasurer of PMKRI, a Catholic Student Group and a member of Renetil. Later she became an activist and served as the secretary and treasurer of IMPETU, an organization for East Timorese students in Indonesia, as well as a board member of FORELSAW, a womens’ student group for peace.
Currently Adelziza works for SAHE Institute for Liberation as co-ordinator for advocacy and campaigning for womens’ issues, labour and cultural issues, as well as human rights in the social and economic arena. She was instrumental in establishing REDE, the East Timorese Womens’ Network, which encompasses 15 East Timorese womens’ NGOs. She continues to assist them with advocacy and statements as well as other support.
In June 2000 Adelziza helped coordinate
and organize the First East Timorese Congress of Women. In October and
November of 2000, Adelziza was on a six week speaking tour in the United
States of America invited by the East Timor Action
Network (ETAN) where she spoke and gave presentations in 32 places
on women, labour and indigenous issues in the then current East Timor.
Arsenio Bano Member, East Timor NGO Delegation to the Donors’ Conference June 2001
Arsenio is a 27 yr old young man from Oecusse, East Timor. He speaks Baikeno, the language from Oecusse, Tetum, Indonesian, Portuguese and English.
Arsenio is half way through a Degree in Social Science majoring in Politics which he commenced in 1998, 1999 at Westminster University, England. The desecration and devastation of his people after the Referendum in August 1999 called him away from his studies and back home to his people.
Once home Arsenio founded the Oecusse NGO named FFSO and the Oecusse newspaper Tolas which has bi-weekly editions. Arsenio is a strong advocate for the Enclave of Oecusse and its’ resultant special needs.
Currently, Arsenio is the Executive Director of the East Timor NGO Forum which has grown from a small fledgeling office to a large and budding institution under his direction. He has been instrumental in setting up the networking groups for Civic Education and the Constitution.
Arsenio is also the general Director of FFSO, the NGO in Oecusse which deals with Human Rights, Women, Children and Income Generation: and the Board Director of Tolas, the newspaper in Oecusse.
Early last year Arsenio worked for UNDP as a Training Officer dealing with NGO Capacity Building.
Whilst in England Arsenio was a member of the British Coalition for East Timor (BCET) working on campaigning and advocacy for East Timor and building links with NGOs and other agencies, political groups and CSOs.
As a student in East Timor and Indonesia Arsenio was an active member and coordinator of Renetil, a Student group from the activist times.
Arsenio has been advocating for the legitimate
birth of a strong Civil Society in East Timor so as to allow for and enhance
the development of a strong, transparent Democracy in a new East Timor
forever free.
Andrea da Costa Member, East Timor NGO Delegation to the Donors’ Conference June 2001
Andrea is the External Liaison Officer for the NGO Forum in East Timor. Andrea speaks English, Dutch, German and understands some Portuguese and Tetum.
She is the widow of an East Timorese expat Atanasio Conceicao da Costa, founder and first President of the East Timorese Association of WA, Australia, of the East Timorese Amateur Soccer Club of WA, Australia and of the East Timorese Radio Station in Perth, Australia.
Andrea was an active volunteer for the Timorese refugees of 1975 working in the areas of social integration for housing, education and legal affairs since that time. She and her husband were members of CNRT and organised many demonstrations and seminars for the plight of East Timor in the past 2 decades.
Andrea has a Degree in Education for Early Childhood and in Education majoring in Anthropology from the University of Edith Cowan in Western Australia.
As the External Liaison Officer Andrea promotes cooperation, transparency, effective dialogue and partnership between NGOs, INGOs, other international bodies, UN agencies, UNTAET, ETTA, the banks (ADB, WB) and the private sector. Andrea is working to establish mechanisms to ensure that there is effective two-way contact and communication between NGOs, INGOs, donors and other stakeholders. Additionally Andrea hopes to be able to secure funding for the NGO Forum for its activities in networking with NGOs, disseminating information and advocating for NGOs and the communities at grass root level.
In the past Andrea as the founder of her own NGO, (JAC-B) brought supplies to East Timor during the emergency period in the form of food, medeciness, clothing and tents. This was distributed in Dili and Maubisse. She also organised food programmes for mal-nourished children in several suburbs of Dili, Saibada and Maubisse.
Andrea now lives with her husbands’ family
in a tent amongst the ruins of their bombed house, on a hilltop in the
outskirts of Dili.
Keryn Clark Member, East Timor NGO Delegation to the Donors’ Conference June 2001
Keryn is from New Zealand with extensive experience in humanitarian emergency and community development work. Keryn has a Degree in Economics from the University of New South Wales. Keryn is currently the Country Programme Manager for Oxfam Australia [Community Aid Abroad] in East Timor and worked in East Timor prior to the Referendum as the Programme Manager for Oxfam Great Britain. In 1998, Keryn worked with a team of East Timorese researchers from the University of East Timor to design a programme to addresses Human Resource Development needs in East Timor at the level of civil society. This research involved extensive participatory activities with a number of community groups and other key stakeholders throughout East Timor.
Since March 2000, Keryn has been responsible for the management of the Oxfam Australia programme which involves supporting civil society organisations in a number of areas. This includes advocacy work with a particular focus on gender issues and human rights, support for organisations involved in community development including health promotion and water supply.
Keryn has worked extensively in Africa with a focus on community based health programmes. Prior to coming to East Timor in 1998, Keryn worked in Angola for four years working with national organisations and the Angolan government on strengthening local capacity in water supply and health promotion.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
AND INTRODUCTION
This briefing paper has been
produced as a result of non-government organizations in East Timor, both
national and international, working in partnership.
Together, we have shared
much information and experience.
Many people have generously
given valuable time and effort towards this process.
We wish to acknowledge and
thank you for your contribution.
We hope that the result is
of assistance to donors who wish to participate in the development and
reconstruction of East Timor.
The Secretariat
NGO
Forum
FORWARD
BY THE CHAIR NGO FORUM
NGOs Building Partnership
With Government
Timor LoroSae is at a very critical period of transition under United Nations Administration towards having a sovereign state. To contribute to the change, the consolidation of civil society in the NGO sector becomes a very important step taken in the past one and a half-year in Timor LoroSae.
Since than, NGO Forum members and associate –local and international- have contributed much in various sectors providing linkages to the grass root communities, participating in community development, in the political process, policy development, liaison with UN structures/agencies, the East Timorese Transitional Authority and its National Planning and Development Agency and other stakeholders in East Timor; as well as providing information and analysis and raising awareness of development issues.
And yet, there are still overwhelming issues in front of us such as setting up constitutional government, International tribunal for crimes against humanity, long term economic development, promoting cooperation in the culture of pluralism, and promoting strong human resource development covering rural people.
Timor LoroSae NGOs needs to develop its character in relationship with the government in addressing those crucial questions aforementioned; character of cooperation and or partnership where it seems in need of an agreement between government and NGOs both local and international partners that are operating in Timor LoroSae. Such agreement may be important to be encouraged also among the countries in the Asia Pacific region where NGOs are crucially needed for changes in the region. NGOs must be seen crucial to democratic governments in playing check and balance and reaching out to the untouchable segments of society.
After all, developing NGOs are not only the responsibility of civil society but also the responsibility of international community. We are proud of all contributions made in the past, and are looking forward to appreciate sympathies and supports to NGOs participation in building a sustainable society in the new future of Timor LoroSae. We build for those of Tomorrow.
Dili, 06 June 2001
Antero Benedito Da Silva
“NITO”
Chair of NGO
Forum Board
BRIEFING PAPER TO DONORS
MEETING
CANBERRA June 2001
SUMMARY
Although there are many issues facing East
Timor in relation to justice and human rights, the purpose of this briefing
paper is to highlight some of the some of the most pressing needs that
relate to the following areas:
* Reconciliation
* Administrative transition
Independent reports have consistently concluded that the violence of 1999 was planned, systematic and of a serious nature, involving the highest levels of Indonesian military and civilian command structure*, and yet to date, one and a half years later, only lower ranking militia men are now being prosecuted before the courts in East Timor.
However, there are serious concerns about the capacity of the new justice system in East Timor, particularly as it attempts to address the ongoing impact of the human rights violations that have taken place. Inadequate training and resources are hampering the administration of justice. Without a properly functioning justice system that has the trust of the community, true reconciliation based on respect for the rule of law and human rights cannot be achieved.
This is coupled with alarm on the part of the NGOs of East Timor, and the Timorese community in general, over the lack of progress in Indonesia. This concern has led to increasing calls for an international criminal tribunal for East Timor.
To this end, the NGO Forum recommends that
donors direct funding toward:
* A conference in Dili to examine the
possibility of an International Criminal Tribunal for East Timor;
* Immediately increasing capacity building
efforts in the administration of the justice system.
1. Recent developments in East Timor
UNTAET Regulation 2000/15 of 25 July 2000 established Special Panels of the Dili District Court to hear Serious Criminal Offences, which are defined as genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and torture. The Special Panels also have jurisdiction over cases of murder and sexual offences committed in East Timor between 1 January 1999 and 25 October 1999.
Each panel is composed of one Timorese and two International judges. While there are three international judges who can rotate to form different panels, there is only one East Timorese judge who must sit on every case.
From January 2001 when the first trial was heard to the end of May 2001, the Special Panel for Serious Crimes has handed down 8 judgments including against 6 militia members and one against a former Falintil member. Except for two cases that have been dismissed on procedural grounds, all the cases that have proceeded to final judgment have resulted in guilty verdicts and the imposition of substantial prison sentences. In total over 25 indictments have been filed against over 40 individuals.
The vast majority of the serious crimes cases involve East Timorese militia members. Most of the accused have claimed that they committed crimes whilst under the command of superiors. Two cases involve East Timorese former TNI members. No Indonesian troops are in custody, and so far only 2 Indonesian officers have been indicted. They have, however, failed to appear at the preliminary hearings and it is therefore unlikely that they will face trial in East Timor in the foreseeable future.
It is clear that the fair and effective
prosecution of these cases is extremely important for East Timorese reconciliation
as well to the development of the justice system as a whole. However,
there are serious obstacles to the achievement of these goals. The
Special Panel faces significant problems in terms of:
* Lack of court administration and resources.
* Lack of cooperation by Indonesia regarding
the memorandum of understanding
1.1 Lack of court administration and basic resources
An efficient court administration is the backbone of a functioning court system. The present official approach appears to be that a judicial system simply requires judges, without specialised judicial administration. Judges and lawyers are not necessarily equipped for this role. Many of the following problems could best be addressed by the provision of key staff with experience in court administration. To date, the Transitional Administration has failed to meaningfully build East Timorese capacity to run a justice system.
Courtroom facilities
Despite the seriousness of matters that come before the Special Panel, there are no means for the recording of trials such as tape recording or detailed minute taking. The Court clerk, who is not always present in Court, takes some notes but this is no substitute for professional transcription. The judges are therefore deprived of having an accurate record of the evidence presented during the trial when it comes to preparing a judgment. This seriously comprises the ability of either party to conduct an adequate appeal. The judges are forced to rely on their own notes taken on a laptop computer in court. In a recent judgment the Court made specific reference to the fact that they were forced to rely on their own notes as the authoritative record of the trial.
Court registry
Generally speaking, the registry of the court is unable to perform its basic functions, including publicising court hearings and maintaining court files. The listing of cases happens in an ad hoc manner, with no centralised and easily accessible source for obtaining information about cases. Until recently, there was generally not even a list of the cases scheduled for the same day posted outside the court. However, even the prosecution and defense have little notice of forthcoming cases, with the public receiving no information at all. In cases of significant public interest, where family members and local communities often travel long distances to come to court, this is clearly inadequate.
Similarly, access to public court records, an important aspect of the human right to a fair trial, is virtually impossible, The registry does not even have a photocopier, and the nearby police office will only make copies if the registry brings its own paper. Lack of confidence in the court registry is illustrated by the facts that judges and prosecutors are hesitant to relinquish original documents to the registry, fearing that they will be inappropriately filed or otherwise misplaced.
Strong management and basic training in the importance and operation of court administration is desperately needed
1.2 Translation and language issues
There are 4 working languages in the Special Panel for Serious Crimes of the Dili District Court: English, Portuguese, Bahasa Indonesia and Tetum. However, in practice the working languages of the Court are English and Bahasa Indonesia. The international prosecutors, the international mentors for the defenders and the two international judges use English. The East Timorese defenders and the East Timorese judge use Bahasa Indonesia, or Tetum when addressing a defendant or witness who only speaks Tetum.
The lack of qualified interpreters is an ongoing problem. Due to a lack of English/ Tetum translators (there is only one), at times a Bahasa Indonesia-Tetum translator has been used for the defendants, or an awkward combination of the judges speaking in English, that being translated by an interpreter from English to Indonesian and then by a second translator from Indonesian to Tetum. In addition to double translations, it is not uncommon for the East Timorese judge to act as a translator when there is no other option, or for an international judge to ask a question first in English and then in Portuguese.
The obvious problems of understanding legal terminology in court proceedings faced by defendants with little or no formal education are compounded by these language difficulties. Defendants in several cases have had obvious problems in understanding the judges’ questions. The greatest difficulties appear to be whether the defendants have had access to pre-trial rights and whether they understand the indictments against them.
It is understood that USAID has provided simultaneous translation equipment for the courts, however no one appears to have been trained by the courts to use this technology and to date it has not been installed. We are unaware whether the translators required to use this equipment are being hired. In any case, the Dili District Court has an intermittent electricity supply and is not equipped with the generator required to ensure the functioning of the system. The Court of Appeal is presently being equipped with the latest audio visual technology, but again, we are unaware of any training on the usage of this equipment.
1.3 Research facilities
No provision has been made for the research
facilities necessary for the judges and defenders to fulfil their functions.
In the present environment, as there is no functioning court library, internet
access is a minimum requirement for research. Judges and lawyers need internet
access to consult the comparative and international jurisprudence relevant
to their decisions. Yet neither the judges nor the public defenders have
internet access. In order to research international jurisprudence, such
as that from the International Criminal Tribunals for the Former Yugoslavia
and Rwanda, they are reduced to using UN Internet cafes.
1.4 Capacity building of East Timorese lawyers
It is widely known that East Timor lacks enough lawyers for the required roles. There has been some training and a mentor system in operation at the court, however, international consultants have been rotating out and the public defenders are so busy that often they have difficulties finding the time for training.
Currently there are only 3 assisting international public defenders, some of whom have never practised in criminal law and procedure, and none of whom speak Indonesian or Tetum. The 9 East Timorese defenders who have been formally appointed to cover the whole country have little if any previous practical legal experience and have not received sufficient training, including in areas such as international human rights law. Those lawyers working privately and in other local legal organizations face even greater difficulties.
On the other hand, the Serious Crimes prosecutors are mainly international staff with extensive experience.
The problems outlined above have serious implications for the rights of defendants to a fair trial, and by extension to developing public confidence in the new justice system. Areas of concern include.
* Equality before the law without discrimination
* Access to effective legal representation;
* The right to a trial within a reasonable
time;
* The right to understand the nature of
the charges against you and the conduct of the proceedings;
* Proper right of appeal given that there
is no transcript of proceedings.
Vulnerable groups within the community, including women, illiterate people and youth are at particular risk. It is therefore essential that far greater priority be given to resourcing and capacity building in the administration of the Special Panel to properly prosecute those defendants that are within the jurisdiction.
1.5 Lack of monitoring and accountability within the justice system
At the moment the only independent reporting
of what is occurring at the Special Panel comes from the Judicial System
Monitoring Programme, an as yet unfunded project implemented by the East
Timorese Jurists’ Association (ANMEFTIL) and the East Timorese Institute
for Reconstruction Monitoring and Analysis (La’o Hamutuk.). Several organisations
have called for independent monitoring of the judicial system, including
Amnesty International and the International Commission of Jurists. Monitoring
and reporting is absolutely necessary to promote the observance of international
human rights standards, and is required to identify where ongoing reform
is needed.
2. Recent developments in Indonesia
An Ad Hoc Human Rights Court with the jurisdiction to try human rights violations has after long delays been established. However, it is only empowered to investigate cases of serious human rights violations that occurred in East Timor after the popular consultation on 30 August 1999. Unless the jurisdiction of the Court is widened, it will be unable to hear cases relating to the numerous incidents that occurred as part of the campaign of intimidation that preceded the ballot, as well as the many allegations of human rights violations since 1975.
Even if the jurisdiction is expanded, there are numerous procedural issues in the Indonesian human rights court legislation that may prejudice the right to a fair trial.
The outcomes of the trials of militia leader Eurico Guterres (home detention for unlawful possession of weapons) and the 6 men involved with the UNHCR killings in Atambua (sentences of 10-20 months), do not provide the international and East Timorese communities with confidence that justice will be forthcoming.
Lack of cooperation between Indonesia and UNTAET
Even if the Special Panel were able to effectively determine the serious crimes cases currently pending before it, there remains the problem that much of the necessary evidence and perpetrators of such crimes remains in Indonesia.
The Memorandum of Understanding between the Attorney General of the Republic of Indonesia and the Transitional Authority, signed by the Attorney General of the Republic of Indonesia and Sergio Vieira de Mello on 5 April 2000, states that both parties undertake to “transfer to each other all persons whom the competent authorities of the requesting Party are prosecuting for a criminal offence or whom these parties want for the purposes of serving a sentence” (section 9).
If the Memorandum of Understanding is adhered to all persons indicted for trial by the UNTAET Prosecutor for serious crimes could face trial before the Special Panel of the Dili District Court, unless their case had previously been tried in Indonesia.
So far, UNTAET has provided much material to the Indonesian authorities, but it appears that the Indonesian government has been reluctant to hand over evidence, witnesses or suspects to UNTAET, notwithstanding its undertaking to cooperate.
There are at present a number of cases
pending before the Special Panel for Serious Crimes in East Timor. The
vast majority of these stem from indictments of individuals presently in
East Timor. Unless the MOU is adhered to the judges of the Special Panel
may have no further cases to hear in a few months time.
Given Indonesia’s failure so far to prosecute those responsible for organising the violence and their reluctance to comply with the Memorandum of Understanding, calls are growing amongst the NGO community for the establishment of an International Tribunal to fulfil this role.
At the same time, it seems, international attention and commitment is declining, and the Security Council has as yet taken no action.
The people of East Timor are increasingly
troubled and angered by the lack of action against those responsible for
the most serious crimes. Families are waiting to have some finality to
their grief. Over the past eighteen months, evidence has been misplaced,
witnesses move, the perpetrators remain free to dispose of the evidence,
and victims have had to tell and retell their stories to each new police
officer or investigator.
4. The Reception, Truth and Reconciliation Commission
The draft regulation to establish a Reception, Truth and Reconciliation Commission is presently under review by a Standing Committee within the National Council.
It is intended that the Commission operate for 2 years and deal with “criminal or non-criminal acts committed within the context of the political conflicts in East Timor between 25 April 1974 and 25 October 1999” (Part IV, Section 22.1). “Serious crimes” will continue to be dealt with in the courts. All other crimes will be addressed through community based mediated agreements with any perpetrators who voluntarily come forward to the Commission.
In part, we understand that the proposed Commission arises from an assessment by the UN that the formal justice system in East Timor will not be able to cope with the number of criminal matters that occurred during ‘Indonesian time” and post ballot violence, such as every instance of looting or property damage.
Yet the NGO Forum has often been told by members of the East Timorese community that without justice, there can be no reconciliation.
The new Commission should not be seen as
a substitute for bringing those responsible for the violence to justice.
5. CONCLUSION
The NGO Forum is concerned about the slow progress of prosecutions in relation to internationally recognised crimes committed in East Timor, particularly the fact that none of the high level militia leaders or TNI officers have yet been tried
The Special Panel of the Dili District Court, as the domestic mechanism created to try serious crimes, is lacking the necessary resources and the administration and planning required to effectively deal with matters in a timely and procedurally fair manner.
It is clear that the government of Indonesia
does not have the political will to:
* prosecute those responsible for the
human rights violations in East Timor who are presently within their
jurisdiction, nor to
* cooperate in any meaningful way with
the Transitional Administration pursuant to the Memorandum of Understanding
so that the Serious Crimes Unit may prosecute these people.
The political will and structures necessary in Indonesia are lacking, both in regards to their own jurisdiction and the necessary cooperation with UNTAET. The only remaining option for the prosecution of those responsible for human rights violations in East Timor currently residing Indonesia is to establish an International Ad Hoc Criminal Tribunal.
The tribunal should be established on recommendations from, and according to terms negotiated by the East Timorese people. We recognise that this issue is a complex one and that to date there has not been sufficiently informed debate on the topic. The conference should analyse the need for a tribunal and evaluate different models preferable for East Timor. Issues covered should include gender issues, jurisdiction of the tribunal, location, resources available, the role of the national justice system, participation of East Timorese judges in the trial chambers and the possible community impacts within both Indonesia and East Timor.
Therefore, the NGO Forum proposes that:
1 - International donors financially support an international conference on an International Ad Hoc Tribunal to be held in Dili as soon as is practical
- That the conference be organised by the
NGO Forum
- That international speakers be invited
to share their experiences of the Ad Hoc International Criminal Tribunals
for the Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, some of whom are already working
in East Timor
- That the conference seek to reach a
common position regarding the need or otherwise for an international tribunal
2 - That the creation of a functioning court administration be a priority for the international donor community, which requires:
- The funding and appointment of experienced
administrative court staff who understand the role of court administration
in a functioning judicial system;
- The appointment of at least seven additional
interpreters able to speak the working languages used by the Special Panel
(English, Bahasa Indonesia and Tetum);
- That bilateral donors second experienced
public criminal defenders, preferably with Bahasa Indonesia skills, to
the Public Defenders office to support the existing mentoring program;
- The funding of the basic facilities
necessary for the administration of justice, such as generators, photocopiers,
tape recorders, filing facilities, internet access etc
3 - The NGO Forum proposes that international donors fund an independent Judicial System Monitoring Programme and other such initiatives, involving Timorese participation, to monitor judicial proceedings in East Timor, in the Special Panel and other district court matters.
Acknowledgements
*Executive Summary
Report on the Investigation of human Rights Violations In East Timor, January
31, 2000
Report to the International Commission
of Inquiry on East Timor To Secretary General, January 2000
Crimes
Against Humanity in East Timor, January to October 1999, James Dunn
UNTAET slow to investigate crimes against
humanity, TAPOL Bulletin No.161 March/April
2001
** Judicial System Monitoring programme Project Proposal Dili April 2000 http://www.jsmp.minihub.org, info@jsmp.minihub.org
See also:
Judicial
System Monitoring Programme (JSMP) Added June 9 2001
JMPS is a new human rights project set
up by the East Timorese Jurists’ Association and the Timorese/international
organisation La'o Hamutuk. JSMP aims to assist the United Nations Transitional
Administration in East Timor, the East Timorese public and the international
community by making recommendations for ongoing reform of the fledgling
judicial system of East Timor.
The main objective of the programme
is to improve the quality of justice provided by the newly established
judicial system, and to promote human rights and the rule of law in a meaningful
and transparent manner for the people of East Timor through:
BD: Calls for International War Crimes Tribunal - A collection of recent reports, articles and news
THE
CONSTITUTIONAL PROCESS IN EAST TIMOR
BRIEFING PAPER TO INTERNATIONAL
DONORS CONFERENCE
CANBERRA June 2001
The process of constitution making requires fundamental choices to be made about the type of country an independent East Timor will be. It is essential that this process is truly participatory to ensure that it reflects the aspirations and views of all East Timorese people.
The NGO Forum has already expressed our views about the constitution making process. In our letter of 17 March to the UN Security Council, the NGO Forum requested the following;
1 a Constitutional Commission must be established as a formal and effective mechanism for consultation throughout East Timor on the Constitution
2 the Commission should be adequately resourced to carry out these functions, and
3 the timeframe provided for consultation with the East Timorese people must be at least 9 months with a further 3 months for reporting.
Based on these views, the NGO Forum believes that the establishment of Constitutional Commissions (UNTAET Directive 2001/2, 31 March 2001) for East Timor will appear as a legitimate process, while being seriously insufficient both in terms of substance and process.
In particular, the NGO Forum has 3 main concerns;
1 The period of operation of the Constitutional Commissions is too short to allow for sufficient participation of a broad spectrum of East Timorese society. It will not be possible to have an effective information dissemination process and meaningful consultation within this short timeframe. The reports from the commissioners to the Constituent Assembly will not be representative of the East Timorese people's aspirations and should not be seen as such. It is the view of the NGO Forum that the mandate of the Constituent Commission needs to extend beyond elections for a Constituent Assembly.
2 The process for nominations, training and guidance for the Commissioners will be inadequate in such a short time frame. Nominations for commissioners will not be broad based if they are received through Advisory Councils only. It is unclear what training and guidance will be provided to the Commissioners so that they can carry out their functions effectively.
3 The objective of the Commission is unclear, in particular how it intends to influence the work of the Constituent Assembly.
The NGO Forum is very disappointed that our concerns, expressed on several occasions, have not been taken into account.
Accordingly, the NGO Forum is currently engaged in its own process of public information dissemination and consultation on the Constitution, including workshops in each of the districts.
However, we have no illusions that this process either will be sufficiently representative, within such a short timeframe.
Therefore we recommend that there should be a greater effort to resource the consultation process for the constitution, and the consultation needs to be extended beyond the elections for the Constituent Assembly.
Without significant change in the timetable, the new Constitution should only be viewed as an interim Constitution, allowing more time for broad based input and consultation.
See also:
May
14 LH: NGO Forum declines to join UNTAET Constitutional Process
Letter added May 16
"The NGO
Forum has chosen to coordinate with, but remain independent of, the
UNTAET Constitution building process because of strong concerns that UNTAET’s
process is rushed and highly inadequate." Lao
Hamutuk, East Timor Institute for Reconstruction Monitoring and Analysis
Mar
28 BBC: Gusmao resigns as East Timor leader News
"I feel, as president of the National
Council, that any attempt to overcome the deadlock is in vain due to the
lack of willingness [of Council] members, ... As I refuse to be part of
a politically irresponsible process, I hereby tender my resignation,” East
Timor independence leader Jose “Xanana” Gusmao
Mar
28 LH: Sexton: Update on ET NGO Forum: Rushed Constitutional Process
Letter & News
"As you have likely already seen, things
are moving very quickly on this issue, and not in the direction we had
hoped. ... With the news of the defeat in yesterday’s NC vote, the working
group is trying to think strategically about where we can go from here.
Unfortunately, there seems to be little room to argue alternatives." Pamela
Sexton, La'o Hamutuk: The East Timor Institute
for Reconstruction Monitoring and Analysis
Mar
22 LH: ET NGO Forum: Rushed constitutional process Request
& Letter
"The [East Timorese] NGOs
are demanding the establishment of a mechanism for thorough consultation
throughout East Timor on the constitution, and for adequate time and resources
to be allotted for this critical process. Clearly, this process is a crucial
step in East Timor's struggle for self-determination. We ask for your immediate
assistance in lobbying the UN Security Council through your national governments
and in passing this letter to others." Pamela Sexton, La'o
Hamutuk: The East Timor Institute for Reconstruction Monitoring and Analysis
BRIEFING PAPER TO DONORS
MEETING
CANBERRA June 2001
Produced by REDE
Feto Timor Lorosa’e (Timorese Women’s Network)
REDE is a network of East Timorese women which will for the second time represent women at this Donors Conference in order to present the situation facing women in our country. Since the successful Referendum on the 30th August 1999 the gender issue has been one of the issues which has attracted a lot of interest in many circles. This is because the struggle for gender issues will be very different from the struggle during the period of Indonesian military occupation.
During the transition period women’s issues have received considerable attention in spite of the failure of several women’s recommendations in the affirmative action campaign, such as the recommendation for a minimum quota of 30% women in the Constituent Assembly. However the women’s group has not ceased to press for a commitment from the congress as agreed upon and taken up by REDE.
What has happened in East Timor is the same as what has occurred in other developing countries; as has been shown by many investigations, gender inequality is the primary cause of the problems of poverty all over the world. Factors such as unequal access to education and wealth, and having little influence over decision-making lead to women and girls being amongst the poorest people in the world. The Human Development Report of 1995 reported that of the thousand million poor people in the world, 70% were women.
The first Congress of East Timorese Women in June 2000 produced a Platform for Action for Timor Lorosa’e which included the key points from the Beijing Platform for Action (1995) and international agreements about development targets. These points, and indicators to measure progress, must be used to include women’s issues in the planning process of all aid programs for Timor Lorosa’e.
REDE observes that everything is proceeding very slowly at present. There has been no meaningful change in the two years of the transition period. The problems faced by women have not yet experienced much change, health standards remain low, education and other sectors are still bad, because of the poor level of participation of women in decision making.
The sectors given priority as women’s issues to be immediately acted on and included in each planning sector in all aid for East Timor are:
Law :
- In the process of making the constitution
there must be a guarantee that women are involved and consulted within
each process and in the substance of it so that the problems, hopes and
concerns of women can be guaranteed in the constitution of East Timor.
- An International
Court is the most pressing demand in the interests of justice. Of all
the victims of Indonesian military violence the greatest suffering was
borne by women, which up to this time has not yet met with the justice
that victims hope for.
- In the year that has passed since separation
from Indonesia, cases of domestic violence have
been common, one half of cases of violence heard by the courts have been
of domestic violence.
Health and family planning:
- In problems of clean water and sanitation
it is women who directly experience the effects of poor clean water supply
and sanitation.
- Poor access to health services and poor
facilities for pregnant mothers lead to inadequate knowledge about care
during pregnancy and failure to protect women’s reproductive health.
- Family planning problems and inadequate
knowledge of reproductive health result in health problems for mothers
and babies due to birth spacing and inadequate nutrition due to economic
factors and too many family responsibilities.
- Problems of sexual health and STDs (Sexually
Transmitted Diseases) including the discovery of 6 East Timorese
infected with HIV/AIDS (reported by the Bairo Pite Clinic in Dili) may
become a major problem in East Timor if not dealt with as soon as possible.
- Mental health problems are a major issue.
It has become evident that many people are still traumatized, especially
women and children who still need to be supported against all forms of
mental pressures from the period of violence to the present, and against
the trauma of domestic violence.
Education :
- There must be increased efforts to eradicate
illiteracy, (64% of women are illiterate), and educational facilities in
isolated villages must be improved. Up to the present time access to schools,
especially primary schools, is not guaranteed in the rural areas (examples
are Suai and Oe-cusse) and many schools do not have tables and chairs.
- There must be guaranteed access to schooling
for girls.
- There must be strong support from the
government for illiteracy eradication programs run by women’s groups and
non-government organisations.
Economy :
- The opportunity to obtain a place for
trading in the new markets needs to be guaranteed to the many widows who
do not have any source of income other than trading.
- Adequate public transport needs to be
available to people in rural areas in order to support their economic activities.
Up to the present time there is not yet sufficient well-organized public
transport to meet the needs of the village economy.
- There needs to be training in marketing
for small-scale farmers so that their produce can reach the market and
be sold successfully.
- Coffee farmers must be given appropriate
protection because coffee is one of the crops East Timor is dependent on,
and farmers are presently suffering serious losses because foreign coffee
traders are paying very low prices for the premium organic Timor product.
Environment:
- There must be good management of urban
cleanliness because of the great impact this has on women, particularly
pregnant women and children who are vulnerable to disease.
- The environment in several parts of
town, especially Dili and several regional towns, is very dirty leaving
unpleasant foul smells and predisposing to diseases such as dysentery,
malaria, cholera, typhus, diarrhea, worms and dengue which can affect
the community, especially children. There must be urgent attention to these
problems.
- One of the consequences of the destruction
after independence and recent violence in several districts is the concentration
of the population in the bigger cities such as Dili and Baucau. There needs
to be a guarantee of sufficient funds for district administration so that
people can be persuaded to return to the district and sub-district towns
and start rebuilding the villages.
Politics :
- There must be a guarantee that East
Timor women are actively involved in the political process, especially
after the rejection of the minimum 30% quota system. This particularly
applies to the process of preparation for the first General Election for
the Constituent Assembly in East Timor.
- There should be improvement of the capacity
of women to take part in political processes, such as the training for
political candidates, which has been already carried out by the Gender
Unit.
- Support for women’s political activities
needs to be increased for instance by providing the infrastructure for
women’s activities to develop their capacity to take part in each process.
- Recruitment of women to occupy positions
within the government must be increased to meet the minimum standard of
30% in each sector.
- The Timorisation of administration as
announced by UNTAET has not yet been carried out in the Gender Unit. Even
as the General Election approaches the majority of staff in the Gender
Unit are International staff.
- Women urge the prompt realization of
a Gender Unit within ETTA (East Timor Transitional Administration) both
now and after independence, and both in Dili and in the Districts administration.
This is an urgent requirement so that women can be involved in dialogue
so as to ensure that they are not disadvantaged by administration policies.
All of the requests listed above are problems which REDE considers very urgent and must be incorporated in the planning of aid for East Timor. All policy making must be done on the basis of gender mainstreaming.
The government must ensure that there is a mechanism which guarantees the rights of women and gender justice in operational funds. This must be done in parallel in the allocation of programs which strengthen civil society and organisations within it which promote women’s issues so as to ensure the effectiveness of advocacy and measures to progressively bring about changes in the lives of women.
REDE: Feto Timor Lorosae Timorese Women's Network Added Feb 8
See also:
BD:
East Timorese Women's Issues - A collection of recent information, petitions,
articles and news
BD:
Sexual
& Other Violence as a weapon of war - A collection
of recent articles and news
BRIEFING PAPER TO DONORS
MEETING
CANBERRA June 2001
.
There is much work to do in relation to children and young people in East Timor.
One of the questions being asked at the moment is “How will the work continue in this time of independence and transition when many of the international organizations will either leave or reduce their presence”.
Direct programming assistance to children has been left off the formal agendas since the initiation of UNTAET. ETTA departments of health and education have been so overwhelmed by the enormity of setting up a new system that they have had little time to concentrate on the daily experience of school and health for children.
As a result, they have not been able to
assist many NGOs to interact with the departments in providing additional
services. Therefore, initiatives for children have been localised and small.
The net result is that there is very little service provision for children
now.
YOUNG PEOPLE IN DETENTION
As at 8th May there were 10 children in Becora prison. This prison houses both adults and children in contravention of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
The young people range in age from 12-17 years old. They have been held there awaiting trial for 3-6 months. A young person held in detention since September last year has only recently been released.
When approaches have been made to the Public Defenders, we have been informed that they are facing difficulties with a heavy caseload and matters which are viewed as having more priority.
One young person recently tried to commit suicide by cutting his wrist with a razor blade. There is much concern for other young people there who are unwell with ill-defined illnesses with symptoms of paralysis.
The young people are visited by PRADET (Programme for Psychosocial Recovery and Development in East Timor), a mental health service offering support to the young people. Workers from Forum Comunicacao also visit and organise play activities for them. Other local and church organizations also visit the young people. However, on occasion, the young people are not allowed visitors if there are problems at the prison.
There is no legal person or organization that has taken responsibility to ensure that these young people are not detained unnecessarily. There are only 9 public defenders in the whole country. There appears to be no public defender whose role it is to look after these matters and therefore young people fall to the bottom of the priority list.
In terms of more general youth advocacy, there are individual local organizations who speak about the rights of children. There is also a Childrens’ Rights Working Group consisting of 9 national and international organisations, however this group is poorly resourced and so has difficulties being an effective public voice for children. For example the group does not have the resources to access and comment upon new laws and regulations as they are developed, and so these are developed without adequate consideration of children’s rights issues.
We therefore recommend:
* that public defenders be given specific
training in representing children.
* that a system be adopted whereby one
or a number of public defenders are responsible to ensure that young people
do not remain in prison unnecessarily
* that an adequate number of public defenders
are available and/or an adequate amount of funding directed to the legal
assistance office for this purpose
* that international donors financially
support an independent children’s and youth advocacy centre, employing
lawyers, social workers, community educators and trainers to advocate for
children and young people in the court system and in the public arena.
* that the children receive education
whilst imprisoned (either school or vocational education).
SEPARATED AND ORPHANED CHILDREN
Separated and orphaned children in this country are in very serious need of immediate support in terms of food, clothing, clean water, health care, education and other basic services.
In this transitional period, many international and national organizations have paid attention to this need, whilst not yet effectively coordinating their efforts. Of the 38 centres in East Timor, most cannot currently provide the minimum necessary standard or quality of care for the children staying there.
This means that they may not be able to access or provide material goods such as clothing, beds, mosquito nets and blankets, as well as electricity, water and food (basic food distribution was formerly undertaken by WFP but they are now finishing this program.)
It also means that many centre staff, due to lack of resources and training, and high workload are unable to answer the emotional and developmental needs of the children including need for individual attention, supervised play and if possible intensive time with parents or other family members (some children are placed in these centres as their impoverished families or communities are not able to provide for them)
Immediate attention is needed to these problems.
The transitional government does not appear have a clear program to address these specific concerns.
Recommendations:
1. That donors continue to support programs
through local NGOs to create suitable places in each district, as well
as at the sub-district level, to assist orphaned children.
CHILDREN CURRENTLY IN WEST TIMOR / REFUGEE AND DISPLACED CHILDREN
During the conflicts of 1999, many children became the victims of violence, as they were forcefully separated from their families and taken to West Timor or other parts of Indonesia. Up until today their parents don’t know their whereabouts or how they are faring in the camps or in other placements.
There are currently more than 400 children in this situation. While IRC and JRS have been working on tracing these children and reuniting them with their families, they are at risk of dwindling funding in the future, requiring that other NGOs and church groups take up the role of working with these families.
Recommendations:
That the donor communities:
1. request and assist the transitional
government to pay special attention to the plight of these children, in
order that those still in West Timor or other parts of Indonesia may be
returned to East Timor and reunited with their families.
2. request that the Indonesian
government locate and identify the whereabouts and well-being of these
children, and return them home
3. financially support a tracing
programme to reunite these children with their families.
STREET-CHILDREN
In a walk around the streets of Dili or other parts of the country one will see street children and children roaming around unattended. Some of these street children are the products of rape, concubines and forced-wives of Indonesian Military Soldiers.
The problem of street children in Dili
is increasing due to the attraction of the financial opportunities that
the large international presence provides.
Some work has begun with these children
by church groups and NGOs, mostly volunteers. However, there is a need
for substantive projects to help these children back to school and into
their communities.
Some groups have been working towards a centre in Dili to develop training, school opportunities and activities for these children, but have been delayed by lack of resources and a place to locate the centre.
Currently the transitional government has
not prioritised this problem,
However, it is clear that this group of
children are particularly vulnerable to exploitation and are seriously
at risk.
Recommendations:
We call upon the donor community
to:
1. financially support locally driven
programmes which aim to provide support for this group of children, including
youth centres, employment and training schemes.
EDUCATION
In addition to the lack of schools and resources for children, there is also the difficulty that many children are unwilling or unable to go to school.
Following the violence and displacement of families that occurred in 1999, many families and children are still suffering from trauma. This makes it almost impossible for children to concentrate at school.
Local NGOs who visit these children report that many of these children just want to stay at home, do not want to engage in any activities.
It is to be expected that for many children, fitting back into the routine of school will be very difficult without some particular support in this area.
Additionally, some families are very poor and require their children to assist at home or go out to work to support the family. Without economic improvement for these families, this problem will continue.
We call upon the international donor community
to support alternate education initiatives for those children who are unable
to access the mainstream schooling system.
HEALTH
There are still significant health problems faced by children, related to poverty, lack of food and clean water in many areas.
Additionally, children are dealing with the after effects of the violence that they and their families have witnessed. Additionally, many children suffer emotional abuse and neglect as a result of their parents difficulties in coping with the after effects of the violence that has occurred in this country. Domestic violence and child abuse is a major problem here.
There is no service as yet to counsel and assist the many children in this situation, apart from PRADET, who have seen about 60 children and young people aged between 3-20 years of age since their work began in September last year.
However, the future of this service in unclear and we do not know how the counselling needs of children will be addressed.
Therefore, we call upon the donor communities
to fund locally driven and managed counselling and support services for
children and young people.
CHILDREN WITH DISABILITY
The primary responsibility for care of these children remains with the family, who receive little or no assistance. For example for children who are unable to walk unaided, there is little or no equipment, eg walking sticks or wheelchairs.
There is one school presently operating, which teaches children with a wide range of different disabilities, but with little specialised resources or equipment.
In addition to more schools for children
with special needs, there is also a need to ensure that mainstream schools
are accessible to children who may be able to attend them with support.
YOUTH AND UNEMPLOYMENT
The needs of young people are currently being left out of the equation. Unemployment, violence and susceptibility to sexual exploitation are major problems.
There is an urgent need for vocational training, apprenticeships and the development of opportunities for young people. Attention thus far has focussed on universities, but the majority of young people will not attend university and need viable alternatives to become productive adults.
Training in agriculture, mechanics, carpentry, tourism, sewing, tailoring, fishing, handicrafts, small income generating projects etc, are all sorely needed, focussing specifically on the needs and vulnerabilities of youth.
We call upon the donor communities to financially
support locally driven and managed initiatives in this area.
IN SUMMARY
One of the main concerns for NGOs has been the potential crisis that may occur when the international NGOs pull out. Some of this has started to occur already.
We are concerned that the government does not appear to have made adequate provision either in terms of planning or budgets for the large scale central government social care that will be required.
See
also:
BD:
'Refugees' & Missing Persons - A collection
of recent information, reports, articles and news
BRIEFING PAPER TO DONORS
MEETING ON EAST TIMOR
CANBERRA June 2001
Considerable progress has been made since September 1999. We know that UNTAET and ETTA staff at national and district level have worked tirelessly to establish a new school system in the ashes of the old. In the primary sector, for example, the increase in primary school enrolment at the start of the school year was a significant achievement. Steady progress has been made towards re-establishing basic primary classroom facilities. However, much remains to be done. We know that the strong enrolment figures mask a number of negative factors affecting children’s learning in primary school. Limited class time is one problem: most children are only in class 2-4 hours a day. Poor attendance is another important issue. Some children stay away from school because they have to work in order to help support the family. Others stay at home when the exercise books and pencils provided by the Administration are used up, since their parents cannot afford to buy more. The language transition in primary schools is also proving a significant barrier to learning at the present time. We believe that it is vital for ETTA and donors to listen to civil society views about the situation in education at the point of delivery, so that appropriate strategies can be devised.
The major mechanism for development in
the education sector has been the TFET funded Emergency School Readiness
Project that focuses on primary and secondary education. This has
been complemented by bilateral funding programs and some international
NGO funding. We believe that the potential for national and international
NGOs to contribute human and financial resources to the education sector
has yet to be fully realized. This is particularly true with the
non-formal sector where civil society organizations have a special contribution
to make.
Article 28 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) declares that all children have a right to education. It is the state’s responsibility to provide primary education free to all, drawing on international assistance where necessary to ensure this right. Furthermore, article 2 establishes that all rights apply to all children without discrimination on grounds of gender, disability, ethnicity, religion or citizenship.
International targets to achieve the right to education were set at the World Conference on Education for All (Jomtien, 1990). At the World Summit on Social Development (1995) a commitment was made by governments to eliminate gender disparities in education by 2005. The targets set in 1990 were reviewed and revised in 2000 at the World Education Forum (Dakar) when an undertaking was given by governments that ‘no countries seriously committed to education for all will be thwarted in their achievement of this goal by a lack of resources.’ At Dakar governments also agreed:
‘to develop or strengthen existing national plans of action by 2002 at the latest… developed through more transparent and democratic processes, involving stakeholders, especially people’s representatives, community leaders, parents, learners, NGOs and civil society. The plans will address problems associated with the chronic under-financing of basic education by establishing budget priorities that reflect a commitment to achieving Education For All goals and targets at the earliest possible date, and no later than 2015.’
The Magna Carta adopted at the East Timorese National Convention in the Diaspora (1998), declared acceptance of the Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (1979) and proclaimed that an independent East Timor would promote ‘The right to a democratic education’. Furthermore, it proclaimed that ‘the children and youth shall represent our hope in the future, and the protection and promotion of their rights shall always be a priority’.
At the CNRT National Congress, 2000, commission
III recommended the creation of ‘mechanisms for the protection of the rights
of women, children, the elderly and those with physical and mental disabilities’.
It also recommended that equal opportunities should be ensured ‘to both
genders taking into account specific needs of women where priority must
be given'.
At present, the priorities of ETTA are not widely understood. Such a framework for education should be developed by the future government via a process of broad consultation with civil society. This would enable decisions to be understood and owned by the people of East Timor. A sense of ownership is required if society is to be mobilized in the cause of education. At present, the involvement of parents, for example, in the running of schools is limited.
There should be donor coordination with civil society to ensure that programs developed via the various channels (CFET, TFET, bilateral etc.) are incorporated within the agreed framework.
Education should be seen as the key to
East Timor’s future. However, UNTAET and ETTA have not given education
the prominence it deserves in their communication with the people. (At
present, teachers in the districts report that they do not receive information
from the district education office.) Once the national vision is
agreed there should be a massive social communication campaign to promote
it.
We argue that all significant data of public
interest collected by the Education Division- for example, gender disaggregated
enrolment data- should be routinely distributed to civil society organizations
in translated form so that they can participate in decision-making.
Donor mission reports- perhaps in summarized form- should also be distributed.
Lack of information causes mistrust and diminishes voluntary efforts. The
NGO Forum Education working group (‘the Education Forum’) can provide one
channel for the flow of information. The policy formulation process
should involve civil society participation at the district level as well
as the national. Over time trust should be built between all the
actors involved in nation-building. Democratic participation can
reduce the risk of short-term unsustainable practices.
Access to appropriate education should be provided for excluded groups. Poverty continues to exclude many children and adults from education- especially in rural and remote areas. (Although UNTAET/ETTA should be applauded for pro-poor policies such as removing the requirement for school uniforms and examination fees.) Both boys and girls are excluded from school because they are required to work to contribute to the family income.
We also believe strongly that equal access
to education should be provided for people with disabilities and other
special needs; this includes both children and adults traumatized by the
events of recent years. There is a need to support alternative education
initiatives for those children who are unable to access the mainstream
schooling system while also ensuring that mainstream schools are accessible
to children who may be unable to attend them without support
.
Educational opportunities for youth must
not be restricted to those able to go to university. Youth centres
providing a range of activities including skills training should be set
up, with access guaranteed to both men and women.
We believe that education in East Timor
should express the egalitarian and humanistic values described in the landmark
documents referred to in section 2 above. If the diversity of learning
needs is to be met, then NGOs and other civil society organizations- who
have the required local knowledge- must take the lead.
Teachers report that the student-teacher ratio still remains at a level that makes effective learning difficult. Although teacher salaries have increased on the levels prior to September 1999, teachers indicate that the dramatic increase in the cost of living has eroded the value of their salaries. Both these issues need to be addressed over the long-term through a process of dialogue and consultation between the future government and the teachers’ union.
The recruitment and placement of female teachers is a key issue. The overall percentage of women teachers in East Timor is low in all sectors and affirmative action should be taken to redress this imbalance. As it is, women with many years of experience are being excluded from employment due to the selection process. In a number of sub-districts, there are no female primary school teachers. This has a negative impact on the educational opportunities open to girls at school. Special measures should be piloted in order to place female teachers in the sub-districts affected.
Teachers report that furniture provision
remains generally poor and has a very negative impact on learning.
This is despite the fact that some progress has been made in the distribution
of furniture. Similarly, there are serious gaps remaining in the
provision of text-books and other learning resources. Strategies
such as resource centres need to be devised in order to meet these needs.
BRIEFING PAPER TO DONORS
MEETING
CANBERRA June 2001
Capacity building has been widely acknowledged as an issue of paramount importance to every sector of national development in East Timor during the next six month period. Indeed it will be an ongoing priority for many years to come.
Much has already been said about the urgent need to build human resource capacity for men and women working within the transitional East Timorese Administration in order that the principles of good governance can be implemented in the long term.
There is in East Timor an overwhelming sense that until now the process used to determine national development and funding priorities has been very donor driven. In this next period of the transition, NGOs and INGOs alike believe that the priorities for national development, the timeframes for their implementation, the language used in decision making processes, and the approach taken to consultation should be driven by the East Timorese stakeholders themselves.
Ultimately the challenge to donors now
lies in finding ways to assist the East Timorese to lead their country
into full independence and manage the demands that will bring. The
East Timorese do not want a culture of dependence to develop with donors.
Instead they want donors to work together with leadership within both the
government and non government sectors to build the national human capacity
across the country and across all sectors.
There are ways in which donors can assist to improve and deepen the process of capacity building in the next phase.
1. At the national level, participatory and consultative approaches to policy formulation and drafting of legislation are central to the development of a strong civil society and a democratic government. In addition to this, meaningful, participatory and consultative processes at the level of district and local development initiatives generate experience, ownership, skill and pride in the population, and trust in the government.
A strong civil society is essential to the development of responsible government. Participatory and consultative approaches, however, are acquired under conditions which foster the building of trust over time between all the actors involved in nation building. These actors also include local forms of traditional and other governance, local non government and community organisations, educational and research institutions and training bodies, women’s organisations, religious and interest based groups, and other service providers and intermediaries outside the government structures.
Donors should continue to demonstrate their ongoing trust and funding support for civil society as an essential component of a democratic and self sustaining nation.
In addition, donors should support strategies for building appreciation of and understanding of the role of NGOs and other civil society actors within staff of the transitional administration. They should support projects which foster partnerships between all stakeholders including government, NGOs and CSOs, local heirarchies, women’s groups and vulnerable groups.
2. Capacity building is a process which involves more than skills transfer, training, and human resource management plans in government. These elements are extremely important and should take place within a coordinated framework for national development. However, the development of a national capacity building plan needs to go much further than the transitional government. Such a national development plan needs to simultaneously address governance and policy related skills, community strengthening, network building, and organisational development. In short civil society must be strengthened in order for people to enjoy the fruits of independence.
The highly reactive funding and political environment in which East Timorese NGOs and other civil society actors are currently working makes sustained long term planning extremely difficult. So much needs to be done and it will all take time. Priorities need to be established, experiences need to be documented, lessons learned need to be shared and civil society needs to advance towards it’s goals in an informed way and at an achievable pace.
Training and capacity building needs within civil society must be determined, particularly for community leaders such as government extension workers, community leaders, women’s groups and other civil society actors. Capacity building at all levels needs to be carried out in a co ordinated way, and a national plan developed.
Donors should favour proposals that focus on the development of co ordinated, well researched and developed capacity building approaches rather than ad hoc training and capacity building responses which have not demonstrably improved capacity in past experience.
3. Capacity building in East Timor will be a long term process. “Some suggest that no organisation can absorb any more than 30% change at any one time. East Timorese organsiational structures even when setup are seeming to undergo 100% change most of the time. The pace of change is expected to continue after independence……… “ (Capacity Development for Governance and Public Sector Management strategic Management Framework- NPDA P15). East Timorese communities, families, local structures, NGOs, and civil society in general are absorbing a large volume of rapid social, political and economic change. This can lead to a sense of urgency about every priority.
However, the reality is that building capacity for genuine community based self determination in the East Timorese context will require the building of trust over time between long term stakeholders.
It has been suggested that there is a absence in ETTA and UNTAET of coherent policy framework for capacity development and that training is not yet linked to the performance expectations of the position. Job performance and human resources development plans have not been developed within UNTAET/ETTA and there has as yet been no review of it’s performance with regard to capacity building. In the absence of any broad strategy or vision, donor driven, rather than East Timorese driven capacity building has been taking place.
In order to promote strategies that work, NGOs believe that all international staff in particular working in East Timor should work to performance objectives related to skills transfer and capacity building which are monitored and assessed.
Donors should be prepared to commit to longer timeframes, and to develop realistic and achievable measures of successful capacity building for donor reporting requirements. These may include a description of respectful mentoring processes used by organisations and qualitative differences that will be measured and monitored in the performance of East Timorese staff. They should also include a description of how international staff performance in the area of capacity building has been measured and monitored throughout the life of a project.
Organisations employing international staff
in East Timor should be obliged by donors to develop performance indicators
relating to skills transfer and training and demonstrate that staff performance
is monitored according to these as a pre requisite to receiving donor funding.
Such organisations should also be required to show a staff development
plan for East Timorese staff.
6. NGOs believe that international staff working within the transitional administration and also within other organisations funded through the donors should be recruited according to qualities relating to their experience in, and demonstrated abilities to deliver skills transfer, mentoring, support and capacity development to identified East Timorese counterparts. These skills should be considered essential to any work in the country.
In addition, NGOs in East Timor believe strongly that international staff recruited to skilled and senior positions in the administration or in projects should work in a mentoring role to an East Timorese counterpart. The East Timorese counterpart should officially hold the title of the senior post, whilst the international staff member should hold a title of advisor or assistant to the position.
Donors should insist that international staff recruitment practices favour the employment of staff skilled in capacity building. They should also insist that wherever possible position descriptions should have East Timorese posts bearing the senior title and international staff posts bearing the title of advisor or assistant to the position.
7. In an environment where NGOs are working hard to build continuity and capacity of their organisations at salaries that cannot compete with those of UN agencies, ethics need to be developed and adhered to around such UN agencies making offers to East Timorese staff working for partner NGOs. In addition, UN agencies should not then pressure “headhunted” staff to leave their NGO at extremely short notice. These practices work directly against the development of a long term and co ordinated approach to capacity building of NGOs.
UN agencies should be required by Donors to sign a voluntary code of conduct regarding “headhunting” East Timorese staff from NGOs working in development.
8. Much has already been done in East Timor over the past 18 months in the name of Capacity Building. It is time to assess those activities that have been successful in actually building the capacity of East Timorese people within organisations, communities, and government departments. Without the benefit of learning from our experiences - good and bad- it will not be possible to develop a coherent future strategy based on good practice.
Donors should fund initiatives which document best (and worst) practice in the area of Capacity Building
9. The legal system in East Timor is under enormous pressure to deliver justice which can be believed and trusted by the people of East Timor. The problems relating to capacity building in the justice system are extremely alarming to the NGOs. Jurors and employees within the court system require rigorous training and extremely committed international legal mentors who are prepared and able to train and lead by example.
Donors should closely monitor the appropriateness of the current capacity building activities within the legal system. Donors should join with NGOs in insisting that only the most appropriate, culturally sensitive and experienced international staff are employed in this sector, and that they play a strong role in capacity building of counterparts to an internationally acceptable level.
10. Building the political skills and capacity of the population of East Timor is crucial to the development of an informed and active civil society. In particular, East Timorese women are seriously disadvantaged by the unrealistically short timeframes in the delivery of civic education, voter education and the consultation on the Constitution. If the constitution is to reflect the will of the diverse population of East Timor, then it needs to result from a consultation that allows for the full participation of women and marginalised groups in society.
Donors should seriously consider the long term negative impacts on women and marginalised groups of the short time frames for the election and the constitution. Donors should be prepared to financially support the development of political capacity within the East Timorese population through long term civic education and community consultations.
See also:
BRIEFING PAPER TO DONORS
MEETING
CANBERRA June 2001
NGOs have played a critical role in the
health sector in East Timor, in the pre ballot period, then as an immediate
response to the crisis and currently supporting the new East Timorese government
and communities in the transitional period. NGOs are committed to a sustainable
and integrated health system in East Timor. This is demonstrated through
a commitment to capacity building and collaboration with the Division of
Health Services (DHS) in the design and implementation of integrated district
based health systems. NGOs work in all 13 districts in East Timor. NGOs
have lent their expertise for the development of health policy at a national
level.
POLITICAL TRANSITION
As detailed above NGOs share the goal for a sustainable East Timorese health system for East Timor, however believe that critical factors need to be taken into account in order to achieve this goal. The dramatic upheaval in the health sector as a result of the post ballot violence has resulted in an almost total destruction of infrastructure, severely reduced human resource capacity particularly at management level and there is the continuation of poor health status . The pace of transition and the resources required for an effective transition from the post conflict situation to the development of a sustainable health system needs to realistic. NGOs are concerned that if pace is too rapid the process of strengthening of institutional and human resource capacity may be impeded and jeopardise what valuable mentoring and skills transfer has already taken place.
NGOs recommend that donors ensure that
the funding focus is to ensure implementation of a realistic and effective
transitional strategy from a post conflict to a viable health system.
ADMINISTRATIVE TRANSITION
The need for a comprehensive strategy for human resource development in East Timor is recognised by all as a priority. As detailed above, NGOs fear the time period allocated to develop a sufficient level of expertise in the health professionals in East Timor is unrealistic. The national recruitment process is expected to be ongoing for several more months. There is a risk that the handover of the management of the district health systems to the newly recruited staff could to be premature, thus undoing much of the benefits from the mentoring and training activities carried out to date.
NGOs have a focus on strengthening the capacity of East Timorese involved in the health sector – this includes both the national staff of the DHS but also other East Timorese involved in the health sector through civil society organisations. NGOs recognise that sufficient time is needed to consolidate and ensure the transfer of both management and technical skills to East Timorese both within the DHS employed staff and other civil society organisations.
NGOs recommend that human resource development
within a realistic time frame must a primary goal. Clear performance indicators
must be established to measure that both technical and management skills
are indeed being transferred.
FINANCIAL SUSTAINABILITY
The NGOs appreciate the need for a sector
wide approach to health services and the importance of all stakeholders
implementing activities within the one integrated strategy. However NGOs
are concern that the proposed model of single funding source may prove
to be problematic in the following ways:
- As funding moves from the emergency
(such as ECHO) to TFET (development) procedures had not been put in place
in time to enable key NGOs that are service providers to access funds in
a timely manner. This has already been an issue and could have led to a
gap in health care provision if the NGOs involved had not been in a position
to use their own resources. This has applied to both service providers
and NGOs involved in health promotion work.
- East Timor continues to have an uncertain
operating environment. The guidelines to access the trust funds do not
have the flexibility to cover costs that are required to meet unforeseen
events.
- Implementation of key activities for
the health sector such as the building of referral health facilities, have
been directly tendered out under the TFET guidelines. There have been significant
delays in this area which have had a negative impact in the provision of
health throughout East Timor. It is critical that not only can the Trust
Funds be accessed and disbursed on a timely basis, but that there is accountability
that commitments are carried out on a timely basis.
- The Trustees of TFET produce a monthly
report which provides an overview of the activities of the Trust Funds.
However in addition to this general information, NGOs are calling for a
closer dialogue and consultation between the trust fund managers and all
stakeholders involved in the health sector. In any health system there
are the different levels of information and perspectives regarding key
health priorities and information regarding implementation of projects.
The recent Joint Donor Health Assessment mission to East Timor briefed
NGOs on their objectives at the beginning of the visit and presented the
aide memoire at the completion of their visit, however did not organise
time to consult with NGOs either individually or as a group during the
mission.
- There is a risk that funding decisions
may be taken on the basis of a “blueprint” for a financially sustainable
health system without taking into account the reality of the situation
in East Timor. As detailed above, NGOs share the goal for a sustainable
health system. Critical issues such as the high rates of TBC, high rates
of maternal mortality and the need to establish a sustainable community
based health promotion system must be addressed in the short term.
To ensure a financially sustainable health system there needs to be considered
not only the short to medium term budgetary implications but a long term
strategy. This strategy must address not only financial sustainability,
but also provide for an integrated health system with the objective of
improving the health levels of the East Timorese people. This may require
increased resources in the short to medium term for longer term sustainability.
In addition it may require a move from traditional “blueprint” health systems,
with an innovative look at strategies to deal with all the challenges faced.
- NGOs have invested a significant amount
of their own resources into health activities in East Timor particularly
to ensure that district based health systems continue to operate when donor
resources have not been available, ensuring ongoing capacity building and
also health promotion projects at community level. NGOs strongly believe
that the East Timorese health professionals in conjunction with the East
Timorese people need to be actively participating in strategies for an
integrated health system in East Timor. Many of those health professionals
are currently working closely and in partnership with NGOs. However NGOs
themselves have had little input into developing the strategy of HSRDP
II, this is an unusual approach given that NGOs are currently a major stakeholder
in the sector.
- There is high degree of commitment by
NGOs working in the health sector, however in the current uncertain funding
environment it is not certain as to the role that NGOs will play in the
future and who will take responsibility for the activities that NGOs are
currently implementing. At the past two Donor Conferences, NGOs have expressed
concern at the uncertain funding environment. The result is a very uncertain
environment in which NGOs can adopt a strategic approach to improving the
health of East Timorese people.
NGOs recommend:
- that East Timorese health professionals and community representatives are actively involved in developing a strategic plan for a health system in East Timor. Key stakeholders in the health system including UN agencies, NGOs, and DHS international staff, can provide technical support to East Timorese working groups to develop an integrated strategy based on the realities facing East Timor. Budgetary constraints are recognised as a reality, however innovative strategies are needed to effective address the critical health issues while maintaining the goal of a financially sustainable health system. The result may require additional funding in the shorter period to ensure a longer term financial sustainability.
- although the TFET provides the main funding
source, alternative funding sources are required to ensure flexibility
to respond to health care needs in East Timor.
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC ISSUES
It is agreed by all stakeholders that there needs to be a sector wide approach to health, with a strategy to develop an integrated health system in East Timor. Given the realistic constraints of the East Timorese budget, resources are limited across all sectors. The result for the health sector has been reduced health care facilities and reduced staff. As a result, resources have been focused on curative health systems with reduced resources for health promotion activities . This is of great concern where major illnesses in East Timor are avoidable with improved health practices . It is recognised that if the DHS is unable to be resourced in to implement health promotion activities that other resources may need to be provided