(CPJ/IFEX) – Allan Nairn, the American journalist detained by Indonesian authorities on 14 September 1999, was deported from Indonesia to Singapore on 20 September. He flew out from Bali, having been flown from West Timor to Bali on Sunday 19 September. Nairn told Associated Press and Agence France Presse reporters in Singapore that he believed […]
(CPJ/IFEX) – Allan Nairn, the American journalist detained by Indonesian
authorities on 14 September 1999, was deported from Indonesia to Singapore
on 20 September. He flew out from Bali, having been flown from West Timor to
Bali on Sunday 19 September.
Nairn told Associated Press and Agence France Presse reporters in Singapore
that he believed Indonesian armed forces chief General Wiranto was
responsible for the militia killings in East Timor. Nairn added that he had
witnessed Aitarak militiamen living and working at an Indonesian immigration
facility in Kupang, West Timor, where he was detained for entering Indonesia
without the correct visa.
Nairn is a freelance journalist who filed regular reports from East Timor
for the American news organization “The Nation”, a weekly political
magazine, and Pacifica Radio’s current affairs program “Democracy Now!” He
was detained by Indonesian military officers in Dili, the capital of East
Timor, at around 5:30 a.m. local time on 14 September. He was then
interrogated by police and military officers, including Maj. Gen. Kiki
Syahnakri, head of the Indonesian military operation in East Timor.
On Friday 17 September, Indonesian officials threatened to prosecute Nairn
on two charges of violating immigration laws. Each charge carried a maximum
penalty of five years imprisonment.
