On November 27, the death sentence was formally abolished...

On November 27, the death sentence was formally abolished in East Timor by UN transitional administrator Sergio Vieira de Mello. Witnessed by East Timorese leader Xanana Gusmao, de Mello signed the first regulation of the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET). The regulation abolishes capital punishment and a string of laws that kept East Timor in a state of emergency during Indonesia's occupation from 1975 until October this year. Indonesian laws on anti-subversion, social organizations and national security were among those scrapped by the UN. De Mello was applauded by Falintil commanders and East Timorese leaders as he signed the document.