Judge Rapoza reflects on East Timor tribunal John M Miller

Nov 13, 2005 06:58 PST

http://www.southcoasttoday.com/daily/11-05/11-12-05/a01wn329.htm

Judge Rapoza reflects on East Timor tribunal

By JOAO FERREIRA, Standard-Times staff writer

NEW BEDFORD -- Sitting recently in a Portuguese restaurant in New Bedford, Judge Phillip Rapoza pointed to a familiar meat dish. [] The entree reminded him of similar Portuguese food served in restaurants in East Timor, where Judge Rapoza spent the past 19 months while heading a United Nations panel on war crimes.

"Saudades de Timor," the 55-year-old judge wailed in Portuguese --
"longing for Timor."

[] This hardly seems like the man who just two years ago hesitated to sign up for the important mission.

[]"I only saw the reasons not to go," the associate justice of the Massachusetts Appeals Court said. "I decided to take a chance, although I'm not really a risk taker."

[]Today, Judge Rapoza describes his 19-month experience as "tremendously rewarding," an "opportunity to do something meaningful to make a difference to others."

[]Judge Rapoza initially was appointed to serve as a member of the U.N.'s first war crimes tribunal in East Timor, the world's youngest nation, in November 2004.

[] In March 2004, he became the court's chief justice.

[]The U.N. established the panel in 2000 to conduct trials on war crimes, genocide, crimes against humanity, murder and torture committed against the population of East Timor during the country's struggle for ndependence
from Indonesia.

[]In 1999, almost 2,000 Timorese were killed, and about 300,000 civilians were driven from their homes, many of them forcibly deported to nearby Indonesia.

[] The war tribunal had until June to complete its trials. When it closed, the court tried 87 defendants.

[]But that was only a portion of the 300 arrest warrants issued. Many did not start due to problems extraditing defendants from Indonesia, electricity working only twice a week, tropical diseases and a ticking clock.

[]"I think that we left proud that we had accomplished so much with so little, but disappointed that we were not allowed to do more," said Judge Rapoza of Dartmouth. "In my own mind, that process should have continued.
Ironically, the special panels were at its peak when it closed."

[]The process should have continued so that cases similar to that of a woman the judge met in Maliana could be brought to justice, he said.

[]He said the woman often saw the two men who killed her husband when she went to the local market. What bothered her more, the judge said, was that one man wore her late husband's jacket.

[] "They knew that she knows that they will never be prosecuted," Judge Rapoza said.

[]Many high-ranking Indonesian officers who ordered some of the atrocities against the East Timorese are not likely to see justice, either, because extradition did not exist while the war court was in session.

[] Judge Rapoza said there was not enough political will within the U.N. to continue the trials.

[] Nevertheless, the job that was done was done well, he said.

[]A U.N. commission of experts later praised the tribunal's work, and singled out Judge Rapoza for producing "marked improvement" in the operation and management of special panels.

[]After his assignment in East Timor and a result of his work there, Judge Rapoza also participated in a criminal justice advisory committee in Haiti for about two months.

[]Judge Rapoza said that although the panels brought defendants to justice, in many cases the East Timorese were willing to forgive. He said defendants often were accepted back into the community with open arms after they repented.

[]"People were only expecting sorrow, remorse," he said. "There is social healing and peace within the community. The most important thing to them was they had the opportunity to have their day in court."

[]The war crimes tribunal included three panels of judges from all over the world. Attorneys also came from all over the world to try the cases. In total, Judge Rapoza oversaw 40 U.N. staffers.

[]Some of the challenges included the different civil and common-law judicial systems. The judges were from civil law countries -- except for Judge Rapoza.

[]But his experiences with the Commission for Justice Across the Atlantic, which has developed work between the United States and Portugal, helped him understand the civil-law system.

[] Judge Rapoza said the biggest challenge the court faced was obtaining credibility among the East Timorese.

[] "I think we definitely accomplished that challenge," he said.

[] Judge Rapoza said he had a chance to meet and befriend many of the residents.

[]"They're extremely proud of the fact that they have achieved independence ... despite the suffering," Judge Rapoza said. "Everyone is just so happy to be free."

[]Judge Rapoza described the East Timorese, who have been shaped by four centuries of Portuguese colonial rule, as highly religious and family oriented.

[]Now that he has returned to his native SouthCoast, Judge Rapoza, the highest-ranking judge of Portuguese-American origin in the state, said he was shaped by his time in East Timor.

[]"I think the biggest lesson that I learned is that when you have an opportunity to serve others, you should seize the moment," he said. "It's never too late to have the opportunity to something meaningful to make a difference to others."

[] And then there's "saudades."

[] "I look at the clock and add 13 hours to it, because Timor is 13 hours ahead of us," he said.

Contact Joao Ferreira at jferr-@s-t.com

This story appeared on Page A1 of The Standard-Times on November 12, 2005.