The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mrs Mary Robinson, has said the world "all but failed" the test of its preparedness to bridge the gap between aspiration and the protection of human rights in East Timor.
In a speech last night in London's Royal Festival Hall Mrs Robinson said the warning signs were there, but the horrors of East Timor still happened. "Action, when it came, was painfully slow; thousands paid for the slow response of the international community with their lives.
"The murders, maimings, rapes and countless other atrocities committed by the militias with the involvement of elements of the security forces were especially repugnant because they came in the aftermath of the freely expressed wishes of the East Timorese people about their political future," she said.
Peace-enforcing would be necessary in East Timor, as in other areas of conflict. However, the deployment of such forces was "an admission of earlier failures" and should only take place when authorised by the Security Council and with the aim to protect the civilian population on all sides.
When human rights aspirations were not matched by reality, the UN usually got the blame. Mrs Robinson acknowledged that the UN had many failings. It could be "cumbersome and slow-moving" and she admitted that the lack of credibility in the UN structures was "very worrying" and must be urgently addressed.
The question of accountability for gross human rights violations must also be addressed, she said. One need look no further than Northern Ireland for evidence of "unpalatable" decisions in the interests of lasting peace and reconciliation, but there were many ways of addressing the issue of impunity. To that end, she had called for the establishment of an international commission of inquiry into gross human rights violations in East Timor.
In Geneva, at a session of the UN Commission on Human Rights convened at the request of Portugal, the EU supported Mrs Robinson's call for an international inquiry.