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See source of commentary:
http://www.laohamutuk.org/
http://www.laohamutuk.org/Justice/Panic/06LHFDTL.html
Panic and Reality in Dili
From La'o Hamutuk, 6 May 2006
Dear east-timor list readers,
Few of the articles and opinions circulated on this list address the
context which has caused many people to flee Dili in this week. Some
people writing from far away seem almost eager to spread rumors and
gossip about what is happening here, while many of us here understand
that the exodus from Dili is more about post-traumatic stress and
rumors than about anything real. Other institutions, including several
national governments, issue statements for their own purposes, which
reflect reality to varying degrees.
In fact, there has been no violence here for the last seven days, and
many people travel freely around Dili with no problems. I drove
across the whole city at 9 pm Thursday night and several times since
then, and all was quiet. Electricity and water are functioning normally
(much better than during most of the past six years). Timor Telecom, on
the other hand, is not capable of handling peak phone and SMS loads and
has become dysfunctional several times, a problem which will hopefully
be addressed in coming weeks. But for last few days it has worked
OK.
Most people's fears are based on their past experiences -- not just
1999 but 24 years of Indonesian military atrocities -- rather than on
actual evidence or current realities. It's true that this fledgling
government should have handled things better, and that several years of
training by international advisors have failed to impart basic
principles about rumor control, community policing, military-community
relations, inappropriate display of big guns, prioritizing public
concerns, and using the media to maintain calm. Nothing has been done
to teach people in the wider population about post-traumatic stress.
But we should realize that panic does not mean there's a rational basis
for fear, especially among traumatized people with few psychological or
material reserves.
Many commentaries on the current situation refer to December 4, 2002 or
to 1999, two recent times when groups of violent men spread panic in
Dili. January 2, 2005 is equally relevant. On that day, a week
after the tsunami in Aceh, a few people spread rumors in Dili and
nearby coastal areas that a tsunami was about to strike and kill
everybody. After large numbers of people fled to the mountains
(disbelieving police assurances that there was no impending tsunami),
many houses were robbed.
Over the last few days, I've been interviewed by several foreign
journalists who asked what was happening here and who was behind the
violence. I said that I didn't know, that I have heard many rumors but
haven't been able to verify them. I also told them that anyone who
claimed to know and told them a juicy story probably couldn't verify
their story either, and that responsible reporters would not publish
unverified rumors. Of course that makes their jobs harder and may
mean they have nothing easy to write about. Long-standing social,
economic, psychological and governance problems are not as sexy as
conspiracies, riots and wars, even if they are more real (albeit much
harder to solve).
Propagation of sensationalist rumors, especially by international media
or people outside Timor-Leste, only adds to the panic. Many Timorese
here have received phone calls from friends and relatives overseas,
saying they heard about some massive or impending violent event on the
media or by email, and are calling to see if their families are
OK. The natural reaction of some Dili residents (although some
have the judgement to understand the reality) is "what do they know
that I don't?" or "if it's in the foreign media it must be true," which
only increases their terror. But if you ask people what they are afraid
of, who they are running from, or even where they are running to, they
don't know. In many cases, an hour of rational discussion has persuaded
families not to flee, keeping the option open to shelter in a nearby
church or school if violence begins. But in most families this
discussion never happens.
In the last few days, public officials and the local media have shown a
better understanding of people's perceptions and fears, and of what
should be done (in addition to leaders' televised appeals for calm) to
reduce the level of panic. This will hopefully continue in the
following week, assuming that recent initiatives are followed through.
In the mean time, life in Dili continues peacefully, while we wait for
clear facts -- and for our neighbors to return home.
East Timor list info: http://etan.org/resource/etlist.htm
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