14 April 1999: Message from Canadian aid worker Jess Agustin in East Timor

NGO pressure was backed by reports from Canadians working in East Timor. One e-mail from Jess Agustin of the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace noted “a very terrified population” as militia took blood oaths and planned to launch a “pemberihan total” (total cleansing). “It is clear that the military is orchestrating this campaign of terror,” Agustin reported.