According to the Communion of Churches in Indonesia (PGI), the Rev. Francisco de Vasconcelos is alive. On 14 September, the World Council of Churches (WCC) reported that Rev. de Vasconcelos had been killed in an ambush as he was travelling from Dili to Baucau.
PGI general secretary Dr Joseph Pattiasina confirms that on 8 October he spoke with de Vasconcelos by telephone.
The WCC team on International Relations states that similar reports concerning the killing of several Roman Catholic priests have been widely circulated. According to the Geneva-based team's Ecumenical Advocacy Update on Indonesia released on 12 October, "news received here in the recent days from Catholic sources * [indicate] that some of those thought dead in fact have survived. Rev. de Vasconcelos and others who escaped killings continue, nonetheless, to work in the midst of a situation in parts of East Timor which continues to remain tense with fear and apprehension of possible outbreaks of violence. Their personal circumstances remain precarious. Around 70% of GKTT [Christian Church of East Timor] congregations are now in West Timor including around 27 pastors, leaving only 4 pastors in East Timor at the moment, according to our information."
For more information see the "Ecumenical Advocacy Update on Indonesia" dated 12 October.
WCC Media Relations