A Land of Hope and Challenges

Mary MacKillop East Timor
http://www.mmiets.org.au/
Timor Leste, July 2006 – A Land of Hope and Challenges

James DunnMy role in East Timor’s revival has, for now, come to an end. I left Dili in a mood ofcautious optimism. The new government is in place, and its leader has been movingenergetically to move this nation forward from a setback that, at one point,threatened to tear it apart. The situation is already calmer; the street traffic has goneback to its former bustle, and there have been few reports of violent incidents.

However there is treacherous ground around, for the main issues behind this crisishave yet to be resolved. Indeed the leading actors have yet to concede and return totheir corners.

The defence force issue remains unsettled, with two of the rebel majors still in themountains, although one of them, Major Alfredo Reinado, has just been arrested bythe Australian forces, evidently for still being in possession of weapons. These rebelsoperated behind the screen of their pledges of loyalty to President Xanana, but theirresponse to the new government has been ambiguous. They appear placated by PrimeMinister Horta’s appointment, but have attacked some of the other ministers. My preference was for rebel, or disobedient officers, to be persuaded or ordered to returnto the army barracks, and there to be placed under some kind of restraint until thelegal issues have been cleared up. In their mountain locations they seem to havebehaved like warlords. Certainly, some form of discipline needs to be considered.

These officers did not just ignore orders; they are said to be responsible for at leasttwo deaths. There are also dark suggestions that their actions were anything butspontaneous. East Timor’s democracy cannot afford for such rebellious actions to betreated lightly. As for the return of weapons, some 1,000 have now been handed in,many of them by the police, but hundreds are probably still held in the mountains.

The new government is keen for the 150,000 refugees, the internally displacedpersons, to return to their homes, and of course to their jobs, for their retreat has leftgovernment departments weakened at a time when the new government is trying toget under way the reforms necessary to end the violence and stabilize the country.

Despite the promise of change for the better, fear still pervades the refugee camps. Iwas made well aware of just before leaving, when I agreed to speak to one of thelargest camps, one near the airport which is run by IOM. It was apparent that thereprevailed a universal desire for the conflict and violence to end. The inmates want toreturn home, but are still afraid of those hidden forces out there in the street, viciousgangs of youths that strike in the night. These attacks may now be rare but they stilloccur, and the big challenge to the Horta Government, the UN, the peacekeepers andpolice is not just to restore peace to the city streets but to ensure that it is a reality and that it endures. The refugees need a secure environment – repaired housing, securityof the streets, food security. As some 670 houses were destroyed, replacing them willtake time.

One remaining problem that could still incite conflict is the political scene. The newgovernment has been welcomed but the beginning of the legal case against MariAlkatiri and unrest in Fretilin, which controls 55 of the 88 seats in the NationalAssembly, is a cause of unrest. While Prime Minister Horta enjoys the support ofmost of the Fretilin party, many believe that Alkatiri was the victim of a coup,involving the presidency, certain political leaders, as well as sections of the military.

Hopefully the truth of the matter will emerge from the special UN commission’sfindings, which should come out in about four months. The Four Cornerscontribution was, I’m afraid, a rather lop-sided and superficial account.

What the Horta Government must do to placate the concerns that have both divided the East Timorese and caused a massive crisis of confidence and trust, is to actquickly in relation to both security and the economy, and fulfill its promises. Alreadythe budget of some $US315 million has been modified to meet the challenge. It isquite a challenge for the new prime minister, who has moved quickly andenergetically to meet it. With less than nine months before the next elections theHorta government needs both domestic and international support in order to achieveits goals.

What I did discover at my meetings with the refugees was a strong desire for an endto the east-west differences behind the violence. I suggested a nation-wide campaignagainst violence and discrimination, and was delighted when a group of young metand offered to open a dialogue towards unity and against violence. It would be greatif this move took off, for in reality the east-west division has little to do with EastTimor’s ethnic make-up. It is a largely a legacy of the Indonesian military’s divisivetactics, with an overlay of regional discontent heightened by sharp differences ineconomic differences between these regions. These ghosts from the past must bemoved on.

I found that many Timorese are still dismayed at the failure of their government andthe UN system to address their past ordeal at the hands of the Indonesian military. In the circumstances, it is important that the proposal to establish an internationaltribunal to investigate past atrocities – which is still before the UN Security Council– should remain on the international agenda. It should not be ignored in order toappease pressures from Indonesia’s military, or in deference to the country’stransition towards democracy. Today many Timorese are affected not just by their terrible experiences at the hands of those TNI occupiers, but by the refusal of theirleaders and the international community to take the traumatic impact of those ordealsseriously. It would greatly help the healing process if that issue were to be given the attention it deserves by the international community. Such an outcome would bewelcomed by many Indonesians, who themselves have suffered at the hands of theTNI under Suharto, and who remain convinced that a fully functioning democraticsystem will remain elusive, until the powerful TNI has been comprehensivelyreformed. It is less a matter of prosecutorial processes, than of finding a way to bring out into the open just how cruelly the people of East Timor suffered from the brutalculture of Suharto’s military forces. With a new regime in power in Jakarta, such anexposure would enhance, rather than risk, Timor Leste’s long term security.

James Dunn25.07.06