Former East Timor governor jailed for three years

In the first of a series of war crimes trials, Abilio Soares, Indonesia's last governor of East Timor, was sentenced yesterday to three years in prison for doing nothing to stop atrocities when the territory voted for independence in 1999.

After the verdict, Soares punched his fist in the air, saying: "I've been made a scapegoat. How can I, one person, disband a militia armed with spears, axes and guns?" He said he would appeal, while prosecutors said they would launch a legal challenge to what they described as a lenient sentence.

Human rights groups called the verdict a whitewash. Others, including the Nobel peace prize laureate Jose Ramos-Horta, expressed sympathy for Soares. The human rights court is trying 18 former officials, army officers and police commanders charged with crimes against humanity.