An Indonesian general was sentenced today to five years in jail for crimes against humanity during East Timor's bloody breakaway from Jakarta in 1999.
A human rights court convicted Brigadier Gen Noer Muis, a former military chief in East Timor, of failing to prevent massacres of independence supporters and others. He remains free pending an appeal.
Mr Muis is only the third police or army officer to be convicted over the savage army-backed militia bloodshed before and after East Timor voted in August 1999 for independence.
Ten other security force members were earlier acquitted by the rights court in widely criticised verdicts.
"I reject the verdict and since I have the right, I will appeal," a calm-looking Brigadier Gen Muis told the judges, complaining that the verdict was not in line with witness testimony.
He was convicted of failing to prevent attacks on the diocese in Dili on September 5th, 1999, and on the Dili bishop's residence the following day. The two attacks left 13 people dead.
Brigadier Gen Muis was also found guilty of failing to prevent an attack on a church in Suai on September 6th in which 26 people were killed.
Prosecutors had asked that he be jailed for 10 years. Chief judge Andriani Nurdin acknowledged that the minimum sentence under human rights law should have been 10 years.
AFP