Former militia leader Martenus Bere is staying at the Indonesian Embassy in Dili awaiting his impending deportation back to Indonesia.

Today I spoke to Victor Sambuaga, an embassy official, and he confirmed that Bere will almost certainly be on his way home soon.

"We would like to transfer him as soon as possible, but we are waiting for the process of deportation," he said

Bere was released on Sunday morning, hours before thousands gathered in Dili to celebrate a decade since the people of Timor-Leste voted 78.5% in favour of independence, ending a vicious 24-year occupation by the Indonesian military, Sambuaga confirmed.

It remains unclear how long it will be before Bere is deported, said Sambuaga, adding that it is the embassy's obligation to protect an Indonesian citizen.

Bere was one of 14 people indicted in 2003 by the Special Panel for Serious Crimes for "crimes against humanity of murder extermination, enforced disappearance, torture, inhumane acts, rape, deportation and persecution", according to the original indictment document.

He stands accused of co-leading the Laksaur militia group in an attack on a church in Suai, Covalima district, on September 6, 1999, when up to 200 people were killed and many more were injured.

The former militia commander was last month apprehended in Timor-Leste while visiting family near the border with Indonesian West Timor.

He was transferred to a watchhouse in Dili and then moved to Becora prison before the Indonesian government through its embassy in Dili approached the government of Timor-Leste to request his release, said Sambuaga.

Sambuaga dismissed reports Bere had been mistreated in Becora prison and said he was physically and mentally fine.

Zacarias da Costa, Timor-Leste's foreign minister, told Radio Australia, "If we have a citizen in the same situation in Indonesia, I will immediately react and try to follow the situation and see how best we can support have him back to Timor Leste and be subjected to our own laws."

The United Nations earlier this week condemned Bere's release. "The UN's firm position is that there can be no amnesty or impunity for serious crimes such as war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide," said Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's spokeswoman Marie Okabe in a statement.

There's now a Facebook group called Dont Let Maternus Bere Escape Justice.

It looks very unlikely that anything can or will be done to keep Bere in Timor-Leste. I was told on Sunday that the order to release Bere was given orally from Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao and Minister of Justice Lucia Lobato, the only people who would have been able to green-light such a thing.

I also heard that some members of parliament yesterday tried to shift the blame to President Jose Ramos-Horta.

It looks as if the government of Timor-Leste has buckled under pressure from the Indonesian government to release Bere, while the United Nations and the international community have been vocal about the need for justice in Timor-Leste.