Eurico Guterres

Eurico Barros Gomes Guterres ( b. 1971 in Leca / Portuguese Timor ) was a leader of the pro-Indonesian militia Aitarak in East Timor. In the fight against the independence of East Timor, he is blamed for several massacres and the destruction of the East Timorese capital Dili. Guterres is married to the niece of Basílio do Nascimento, the Bishop of Baucau, and has three children.

Life

Guterres (now Uato -Lari, Viqueque district ) born in Leca in the then Portuguese Timor. His parents were killed by Indonesian soldiers in 1976 because they were regarded as FRETILIN supporters. Later Guterres accused the FRETILIN to be responsible for the death of his parents.

The boy was taken by Eurico Indonesian civilians, until he was sent to the Catholic school of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ in Becora ( Cristo Rei). He left the upper secondary school and was involved in criminal activities, including a protected by the government Arcade ( Bola Guling ) in Tasitolu.

1988 Guterres was accused by the Indonesian military to have been involved in plans for the assassination of President Suharto, the Dili should visit in October. At this time joined Guterres of the pro-independence for per - page and Indonesia was the Kopassus spy and double agent against the independence movement until he was expelled in 1990.

The former deputy of Kopassus, Prabowo Subianto ( specialist in the fight against insurgents ), was interested in Guterres skills and recruited him in 1994 for the Gardapaksi, an organization that awarded cheap loans for the creation of small businesses, but their members as informants and a paramilitary militia used. Soares, the Governor of Timor Timur, as the province was called at that time, supported very strongly Gardapaksi, human rights violations have been accused.

1997 began Guterres to visit the Institute of Economics in Dili. For this he had allegedly received from the military a high school degree. Sekolah Tinggi Ekonomi Although the ilmu ( STIE ) was led by pro- integrationist Filomeno Hornay Guterres, the school has only attended three semesters.

He was appointed commander of the Gardapaksi, which was renamed in Aitarak 1999. With the unrest before and after the referendum on the future of East Timor the Aitarak was one of the most active militia who participated in the massacre in Dili. Guterres has planned the campaign to destabilize the referendum process in collaboration with the Indonesian army and police. At the church massacre Liquiçá of 6 April 1999 and the attack on the house of independence leader Manuel Carrascalão on April 17, Guterres said to have been involved, as in the attack on the residence of Bishop Belo on September 6, whither 5,000 civilians had fled, and the church massacre in Suai. Even with the expulsions of East Timorese Guterres was active.

Although the Human Rights Court in Jakarta on 27 November 2002 Guterres officially sentenced to ten years in prison, he was not initially imprisoned by Indonesia. An appeals court upheld the verdict against him in 2004, but reduced the fine imposed Guterres prison sentence of ten down to five years. Up to a further appeal hearing before the Supreme Court Eurico Guterres remained at large.

In August 2003, he founded in the Indonesian province of Papua Merah Putih Laskar ( Red and White Warrior). The head of ELSHAM, a leading human rights organization in Papua, Aloysius Renwarin reported that Guterres had already recruited 200 members in December 2003, mostly Indonesians from Timor, Sulawesi and the Moluccas. Guterres had asked the local administration in Timika / Papua confidential support to his group. This, and the appointment of Brigadier General Timbul Silaen ( Former Chief of Police of East Timor) police chief of Papua, the population was concerned that the Laskar Merah Putih Guterres and a free hand in the action against the independence aspirations of the Papuan population would get.

In 2005 he founded in West Timor, the pro- integration fighters, mostly from former members of his militia in East Timor. Reported The International Crisis Group ( Brussels ), this group consists of up to 10,000 people in Indonesia, 8,000 alone in West Timor.

On 13 March 2006 the Supreme Court in Jakarta confirmed the ten -year sentence for crimes against humanity for Guterres. Four of the five judges considered it proven that he had not kept his followers in April 1999 to attack the house filled with refugees from Manuel Carrascalão. From his home in Kupang said Guterres, who now has the Indonesian nationality, by telephone to the newspaper The Jakarta Post: "I'm innocent. The problems of East Timor were not unique and my own. I will ask the court to reconsider this decision again. " It was the second conviction of a civilian because of the violent events of 1999, after the former governor José Osório Soares Abílio was sentenced to four years in prison by the same court in April 2004.

In May 2006, Eurico Guterres finally took his ten -year sentence. He was adopted by more than 1,000 supporters in Kupang with a Catholic mass. It accused Guterres Indonesia, to make him the scapegoat for the violence in East Timor. The government is treating him unfairly because they bore him into prison, senior military and police officers, the greater responsibility, but let them come without penalty. As a warrior he was, however, ready for " red and white" ( the colors of the Indonesian flag ) to go to jail. Guterres will serve his sentence in Jakarta's high-security prison Cipinang. Ironically was kept here previously captured Xanana Gusmão, a former freedom fighter and current Prime Minister of East Timor.

On April 5, 2008, the verdict against Guterres was lifted by the Supreme Court based on new witness statements. Since there was no clear command structure in the militia, one can not be held responsible for all their deeds Guterres. The judge acquitted him of all charges. Guterres was released from prison on April 8.

Eurico Guterres since 2010 Chairman of UNTAS.

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