§ Mr. WrayTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with representatives from the UN Serious Crimes Unit regarding the progress of the East Timor humanitarian crimes trials in Jakarta; what steps the UN is taking to 713W monitor proceedings; whether a UN review of the proceedings is being considered; and if he will make a statement. [132997]
§ Mr. Mike O'BrienI have not had discussions with the UN Serious Crimes Unit (SCU) or any other UN officials about the Jakarta Ad Hoc Tribunal on Human Rights Abuses in East Timor. The UN office in Jakarta, rather than the SCU is responsible for monitoring the Ad Hoc Tribunal, but neither they nor the Secretariat in New York have made public any of their reports on the Tribunal. We believe that the UN is considering whether to do a formal review of the Ad Hoc Tribunal but no decision has been taken on this yet. Our officials at the UN remain in regular contact with UN officials about issues affecting East Timor. In August 2003 the EU issued a statement criticising the deficiencies of the Ad Hoc Tribunal.