U.S. Catholic Bishops on Military Aid to Indonesia
United States Conference of
Catholic Bishops
Department of Social Development and World Peace
3211 FOURTH STREET NE • WASHINGTON DC 20017-1194 • FAX
202-541-3339 WEBSITE: WWW.USCCB.ORG/SDWP
September 20, 2005
Honorable Jim Kolbe
Chairman, Subcommittee on Appropriations House Foreign Operations
Committee
United States Congress
FAX: 202-225-0378
Dear Representative Kolbe,
As you may know, for well over a decade the United States
Conference of Catholic Bishops has been outspoken in defense of the
Church and people of East Timor. As a consequence of this, we
supported efforts by our government to press Indonesia first to
cease its brutal repression of the East Timorese people and, now
that East Timor is a free and independent nation, to press for
appropriate accountability for crimes against humanity committed by
the Indonesian military (TNI) and their Timorese militias.
Although the Catholic bishops of East Timor have spoken in favor
of an international tribunal to examine and seek a measure of
justice for these crimes, this Conference has taken no position on
that matter. What we do favor, however, is sending a clear message
to the Government of Indonesia that the crimes of the past cannot
simply be ignored today. While good bilateral relations with
Indonesia are important in the global war against terrorism, we
should not cease in pressing that government to make good on its
promises to reform its military and make a full account of past
crimes and inadequate military reform.
May I respectfully ask you to consider placing appropriate human
rights conditions on the military assistance to Indonesia, as
reflected in the Senate version of the foreign operations language
this year and as was done by both houses of the Congress in the
Conference Report of last year.
With appreciation for your consideration of this request, I am
Sincerely yours,
Most Reverend John H. Ricard, S.S.J.
Bishop of Pensacola-Tallahassee
Chairman, Committee on International Policy
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