Indonesia: Information on the Maubere Council of National Resistance

Published information on the Maubere Council of National Resistance is scarce and incomplete. According to a September 1994 Amnesty International report, the Council of National Resistance of the Maubere or CNRM is a united front that was formed in the late 1980s by the Revolutionary Front for the Independence of East Timor (Fretilin), the Timorese Democratic Union (UDT) and other pro-independence groups (30). In his book entitled Timor-Est le génocide oublié; Droit d'un peuple et raisons d'Etats, Defert indicates that the Revolutionary Council of National Resistance (Conseil Révolutionaire de la Résistance Nationale) became the CNRM in 1987 following the pro-independence groups' efforts to establish a united front against the Indonesian army (1992, 142).

In a 17 February 1995 telephone interview, a representative of the NGO Commission for the Rights of the Maubere People (Commissao Para Os Direitos Do Povo Maubere or CDPM), in Lisbon, Portugal, stated that the CNRM is an umbrella organization grouping various East Timorese movements favouring the independence of East Timor. Before 1987, the CNRM was known as the Council of Revolutionary Resistance of the Maubere (CRRM) (17 Feb. 1995). According to this source, the CNRM advocates the holding of a referendum on self-determination for East Timorese in East Timor to be conducted under the auspices of the United Nations (ibid.). This source indicated that the CNRM is led by Xanana Gusmao, who is now serving a 20-year sentence, Ramos Horta, who is in charge of international relations and now representing the CNRM at the United Nations, Konis Santana, who is the the military commander and, Sabalai, the leader of the "underground movement" (ibid.).

With regard to CNRM membership, the representative of the CDPM in Lisbon stated that the CNRM regroups "all kinds of people," although its "main driven force is the youth" (17 Feb. 1995).

In a 17 February 1995 telephone interview, the editor of Indonesia Publications in Lanham-Seabrook, Maryland, stated that the CNRM was founded in either 1989 or 1990 and is the de facto armed wing of Fretilin, an East Timorese underground resistance organization that advocates the independence of East Timor (ibid.).

According to the editor of Indonesia Publications, the CNRM advocates armed resistance to the Indonesian occupation and, unlike the other factions within Fretilin, refuses to engage in any political negotiation with the Indonesian government (17 Feb. 1995). This source described the CNRM as a small and informal group (ibid.). Its hard-core members are composed of secondary students and its sympathizers can be found among university students and, to some extent, members of the church (ibid.). The CNRM also has five or six designated representatives around the world (ibid.).

The editor added that, to his knowledge, anyone who supports the CNRM openly or who engages in its activities, would be in obvious danger of arrest and severe interrogation by the government upon his or her return to Indonesia (ibid.). This information was corroborated by the representative of the CDPM in Lisbon.

Further information on the CNRM could not be found among the sources consulted by the DIRB. However, for additional information on Xanana Gusmao, including his arrest in November 1992, on the Fretilin, and on the treatment of Timorese separatists by the government, please refer to the attachements. Also attached please find press reports that may be of useful regarding current negotiations between Jakarta and Timorese pro-independence groups.

This response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.

References

Amnesty International. September 1994. Power and Impunity: Human Rights under the New Order. (AI Index: ASA 21/17/94). New York: Amnesty International.

Commissao Para Os Direitos Do Povo Maubere (CDPM), Lisbon, Portugal. 17 February 1995. Telephone interview with representative.

Defert, Gabriel. 1992. Timor-Est: Le génocide oublié; Droit d'un peuple et raisons d'Etats. Paris: Editions L'Harmattan.

Editor of Indonesia Publications, Lanham-Seabrook, Md. 17 February 1995. Telephone interview.

Attachments

Agence France Presse (AFP). 29 November 1992. "East Timorese Burn Indonesian Flag in Embassy Protest." (NEXIS)

Amnesty International. September 1994. Power and Impunity: Human Rights under the New Order. (AI Index: ASA 21/17/94). New York: Amnesty International, pp. 29-31, 34-35.

Defert, Gabriel. 1992. Timor-Est: Le génocide oublié; Droit d'un peuple et raisons d'Etats. Paris: Editions L'Harmattan, p. 142.

The Economist [London]. 19 June 1993. "Badge of Trouble,", p. 35.

_____. 28 November 1992. "East Timor: Lost Leader," p. 38.

The Europa World Year Book 1994. 1994. Vol. 1. London: Europa Publications, p. 1476.

Far Eastern Economic Review (FEER) [Hong Kong]. 20 October 1994. Ted Morello. "Flirting With The Enemy: Foreign minister Meets East Timor Separatists," p. 21.

_____. 6 October 1994. John McBeth. "Indonesia: Change in the Wind: Jakarta May Be Rethinking Its Timor Policy," pp. 26-28.

_____. 29 April 1993. Margot Cohen. "Indonesia: Velvet Fist: Jakarta Opts for Subtlety in Its Efforts to Subdue Timor," p. 24, 26.

La Lettre hebdomadaire de la FIDH [Paris]. 28 December 1992. "Timor oriental: Arrestation du chef de la résistance Xanana Gusmao et poursuites des exactions et complicité internationale," p. 3.

Political Parties of Asia and the Pacific. 1985. Edited by Haruhiro Fukui. Wesport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, pp. 389-90.

Revolutionary and Dissidents Movements: An International Guide. 1991. 3rd Edition. London: Longman UK Group, pp. 145-46.