Justice in East Timor (and more)

East Timor is a former Portuguese colony. After Portugal overthrew its 48-year long fascist dictatorship in 1974, Timor declared independence on Nov 28, 1975, but was invaded and occupied by Indonesia nine days later. What followed was one of the most devastating ethnic cleansing episodes of history: one third of the Mauber, the people of East Timor, were killed over several decades of Indonesian occupation. After international pressure and crisis in the Indonesian economy and regime, the 78.5% Timorese voted in favor of independence in the UN-backed 1999 referendum. After it became clear the independence had won overwhelmingly, Indonesian military (TNI)-backed militias wrought a wave of violence, killing over 1,500 people and destroying property. This crisis was overcome, and May 20th, 2002, East Timor's independence was officially recognised. Later that year, on Sept. 27th, it became the junior member of the UN, which now encompasses 191 nations.
East Timor, a small nation slightly larger than the Bahamas, has necessarily faced difficulties in its first few years as an independent nation. It lacks infrastructure, qualified personel, and economic resources. Its greatest hope for a viable economy is the extraction of oil, however Timor is engaged in negociations with Australia over how has extraction rights. Here is an explanation of the situation from the East Timor Action Network, a US solidarity organization:

In October 2002, East Timor enacted a Maritime Boundary Law, claiming a 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in all directions, based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). If this international principle were applied, many of the oil and gas fields Australia has exploited and intends to exploit would fall within East Timor's EEZ. Where their neighbors' claims overlap, countries need to negotiate a permanent maritime boundary, usually halfway between their coastlines. In March 2002, Australia gave formal notice that it was withdrawing from international legal mechanisms - the International Court of Justice and the International Tribunal for the Law of
the Sea - to resolve boundary issues that cannot be settled by negotiation. East Timor’s leaders called this withdrawal a hostile act. The withdrawal prevents the new nation from bringing Australia to those forums to contest its refusal to engage in timely and cooperative boundary negotiations.

The other powerful and rich country in its vicinity with which East Timor can have economic relations is naturally its former occupier, Indonesia. This economic need has forced East Timor to not make strong demands of justice and reparations from Indonesia. On Saturday, Aug 7th, a Jakarta appeals court dismissed all pending cases against Indonesians indicted for crimes against humanity committed in East Timor after the 1999 referendum, overturned the convictions of four high-ranking Indonesian military (TNI) and security officials, and reduced by half the ten-year sentence of a notorious TNI-backed militia that led the post-plebiscite violence. The US Congress is presently discussing whether to provide financial to the Indonesian military.
Give this heroic people a break. Give them justice, peace, and their own resources to make their living. Its time. Go to the ETAN website to see what you can do to express support.