§ Lord Avebury asked Her Majesty's Government:
§ What communication they have received from the Special Representative of the Secretary-General. United Nations Transitional Administration East Timor, on the question of whether the murders of Brian Peters and Malcolm Rennie at Balibo during the clandestine invasion of East Timor by Indonesian forces in October 1975 can be considered to be a war crime under international law. [HL1495]
§ Baroness Scotland of Asthal: When John Battle, Minister of State at the Foreign Office, met Sergio Vieira de Mello, head of the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), in London on 6 March, he asked him about the UN investigation into the deaths of the journalists at Balibo in 1975. Mr de Mello confirmed that the UN police report had been submitted to Mr Othman, the UN Prosecutor General, who has said that there are grounds to continue with the investigations but that the case is not yet ready for trial. The Prosecutor General is examining the applicable law surrounding this case. We will continue to monitor developments closely.