(For related story see INDONESIA TIMOR/ or [ID:nJAK250185])

July 15 (Reuters) - Indonesia and East Timor expressed regret on Tuesday for violence surrounding Dili's 1999 independence vote after the release of a joint report by the Commission of Truth and Friendship (CTF).

Here is some background on the issues:

* Indonesia invaded East Timor in 1975, at the end of almost three centuries of Portuguese rule. Indonesia annexed the territory later that year as its 27th province, maintaining a heavy and sometimes harsh military presence.

* The United Nations never recognised Indonesia's claim to sovereignty. In 1999, East Timorese voted overwhelmingly to split from Indonesian rule in a U.N.-sponsored ballot. Some pro-Jakarta voters and officials argued the referendum was rigged by the U.N. Independent observers concluded it was largely fair. * The U.N. estimates about 1,000 East Timorese died during post-vote mayhem, blamed largely on pro-Jakarta militias backed by elements of the Indonesian army. Indonesian officials say only about 100 people were killed.

* Several Indonesian military officials were tried in Indonesian human rights courts following the 1999 violence, but none were convicted.

* After several years under U.N. administration, East Timor became fully independent in 2002. In the same year it set up a Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation (CAVR, in its Portuguese acronym) to look at abuses under Indonesian rule.

* A Feb. 2006 CAVR report alleged that Indonesia was responsible for as many as 180,000 deaths during the 1975-1999 occupation. Dili said later that it was not seeking punitive action against Indonesia.

* In 2005, the two nations set up the Commission of Truth and Friendship (CTF) to investigate the bloody events before, during and after the 1999 independence ballot.

* Modelled on South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, it has no power to prosecute. Rights groups however say they want retired Indonesian General Wiranto, security chief in 1999, to go on trial. He has denied any wrongdoing.

* Unresolved tensions with Indonesia or turmoil in the country of one million, one of the world's poorest, are unlikely to have a major impact on regional stability. But unrest could frustrate efforts to tap oil and gas reserves in the Timor Sea.

* The United Nations, and neighbours such as Australia and New Zealand, have also repeatedly sent peacekeeping missions, following requests from the fledgling democracy after outbreaks of violence and instability.

Source: Reuters

(Writing by Gillian Murdoch, Beijing Editorial Reference Unit, Editing by Ed Davies)

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