East Timor begins search for reconciliation

Thousands were forced to flee East Timor during the 1999 violence

DILI, East Timor -- East Timor has formally inaugurated a truth and reconciliation commission in an effort to heal the emotional scars inflicted on its people after 25 years of often brutal occupation.

The Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation was installed on Monday at a ceremony in the capital, Dili, to address the issues of reconciliation and justice in East Timor.

Seven Timorese national commissioners, including a former political prisoner, a Catholic priest and a nurse, were sworn in to lead the body.

The Commission is tasked with inquiring into atrocities committed between the collapse of Portuguese colonial rule in April 1974, and the end of the Indonesian occupation in October 1999.

"We want to learn from the lessons of the past in order to prevent similar tragedies from occurring in the future," interim Foreign Minister and Nobel peace laureate Jose Ramos-Horta said

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"But at the same time, we wish to open the door of forgiveness and acceptance for those who were caught in the vicious cycle of violence."

The commission will have no judicial function but will have extensive powers to investigate crimes and to hand over evidence from any investigation to the courts in Dili.

It will deal with lesser crimes, including arson, harassment and minor destruction of property and livestock but will refer more serious crimes such as murder and rape to the courts.

The commission will also be in charge of reintegrating people who have committed minor criminal offenses through a community-based reconciliation process.

Although it will only be in force for two years, it is expected to uncover more detail about the depth of abuses committed to the people of East Timor.

The Commission will also study the events surrounding the bloody independence vote in 1999.

Following an overwhelming vote to break away from Indonesia during an UN-backed referendum, pro-Jakarta militias went on the rampage, killing hundreds, and destroying much of the territory's infrastructure.

Much of the territory was reduced to a charred ruin and almost a third of the 800,000-strong population was herded across the border into squalid refugee camps in Indonesian West Timor.

East Timor is currently under the control of a United Nations transitional administration with the territory expected to gain formal independence on May 20, about a month after presidential elections.