E/CN.4/2000/4/Add.2 page 4 6. The delegation further held numerous consultations with government authorities. In Jakarta, it met with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Defence and Chief of the Armed Forces, the Minister of Justice, the Minister of the Interior, the Deputy Attorney General, the Chief of the Indonesian Police, the Deputy Chief Justice and other judges of the Supreme Court, and judges of the Jakarta High Court, the Secretary-General of the National Commission on Human Rights (KOMNAS HAM), and members of the Law Reform Group of the University of Indonesia. It further consulted with the representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Indonesia. 7. In Denpasar (Bali), the delegation met with the Governor of Bali, the Deputy Commander of the Uduayama Regional Military Command, as well as with judges of the Badung First Court. In East Timor, it met with the Governor of the province, the Chief of the District Military Command, the Chief of the East Timor Police, and the East Timor representative of KOMNAS HAM. Regrettably, the Group was unable to meet with Mgr. Carlos Ximenes Belo, Bishop of Dili, as no reply to a request for an interview had been received by the end of the Group’s visit. The Working Group regrets that a meeting with the Secretary-General of Churches in Dili could not take place. 8. The Group attached considerable importance to discussion and consultations with representatives of non-governmental organizations and with lawyers, both from Jakarta and from other Indonesian provinces. In Jakarta, it met with representatives of the Legal Aid Foundation of Indonesia (YLBHI), the National Commission on Violence against Women, the Action Committee for the Release of Political Prisoners, the Commission for Disappearances and Victims of Violence (KONTRAS), the Institute for Social Advocacy (ELSAM), the Indonesian Human Rights and Legal Aid Association (PBHI) and the Institute for the Defence of Human Rights. It met separately with the lawyers of Xanana Gusmao, as well as with human rights lawyers and NGO representatives from Aceh and Irian Jaya provinces, and representatives of the Protestant Church in Irian Jaya. 9. In Dili (East Timor), the Working Group delegation held discussions with the director of the Foundation for Law, Justice and Human Rights (YAYASAN HAK), the director of the Diocesan Justice and Peace Commission (Commissao Iustitia et Pax), and the chairman of the East Timor Action for Development and Progress Foundation (ETADEP). In Baucau, it met with local representatives of the Diocesan Justice and Peace Commission. 10. The media coverage throughout the Working Group’s mission demonstrates the extent of the progress made in Indonesia with respect to freedom of the press and protection of the right to freedom of expression and opinion. I. RECENT POLITICAL CHANGES IN INDONESIA AND THEIR IMPACT ON HUMAN RIGHTS ISSUES 11. Indonesia witnessed major political changes in 1998. Under the pressure of the deepening economic crisis and growing popular unrest, President Soeharto resigned on 21 May 1998 and J.B. Habibie was sworn in as the new President. The country has since witnessed a period of political transition during which wide-ranging political, institutional and legal