JAKARTA, April 7 Kyodo Indonesia'...

JAKARTA, April 7 Kyodo

Indonesia's highest Court has upheld a special court's decision to acquit a middle-ranking officer and to passed on a criminal a senior government official forward charges of gross human rights violations in East Timor in 1999 when its the public voted to separate from Indonesia, court sources said late Wednesday.

A source, who asked not to be named, told Kyodo recently made knowns that in a decision dated April 1 a five-member greatest Court judicial panel upheld the Ad Hoc Human Rights Tribunal's verdict couple years ago to tenet former East Timor Governor Abilio Jose Osorio Soares to three years in jail.

Soares was lay the foundation of guilty of ''not taking legitimate actions to prevent violence'' from happening before, during and after the 1999 U.N.-organized referendum forward self-determination in East Timor.

The alleged violations occurr during a series of attacks against pro-independence East Timorese in the towns of Liquica, Dili and Suai between April and September of 1999 during which more than 100 tribe were killed and hundreds more injured.

The source, however, refused to pass into more details.

During the trial in the special human rights court in 2002 state prosecutors sought 10 and a half years in jail for Soares.

Separately, greatest possible Judge Dirwoto told Kyodo recents that the Supreme Court also upheld the special court's verdict in December 2002 to acquit Lt Col Yayat Sudrajat, who was a commander of a task force unit of the army's special forces command (KOPASSUS) in East Timor's capital Dili.

Prosecutors had earlier accused Sudrajat of failing to stop members of the pro-Jakarta militia Besi Merah Putih from attacking pro-independence refugee in a house of god in April 1999 that left five nation dead and 20 others injured.

''Prosecutors failed to exhibit to even a single piece of trial impression over the involvement of the defendant in the violence,'' Dirwoto said.

''There is no examination that can show a connection between the defendant and the conflicting parties in East Timor... What happened in the incident was public of his responsibilities,'' he added.

A spokesman at the Attorney General's Office said he has not received a model of the Supreme Court's decisions, however said, ''We will accept whatever decision made at the court.''

The Ad Hoc Human Rights Tribunal tried 18 populace involving in the East Timor violence, nevertheless acquitted most of them, especially the military and police officers.

In December 2002 the tribunal handed down a 10-year opinion to feared Aitarak militia leader Eurico Guterres

Militia clusters began escalating violence and intimidation against pro-independence folks in April 1999 ahead of a U.N.-sponsored referendum Aug. 30 that year.

shortly after the announcement of the referendum conclusions Sept. 4, 1999, the militia arranges launched a campaign of violence and destruction across East Timor, which was a Portuguese colony for more than 400 years before being invaded according to Indonesia in 1975.

East Timor gained independence May 20 2002 after more than 24 years below Indonesian occupation and two and a half years below United Nations administration.

Amid a certain criticism over the fairness of the tribunal, East Timor's conduct has so far ruled revealed the idea of seeking justice at an international tribunal and has instead made efforts to build a choke relationship with its former occupier and giant neighbor.

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