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See source of statement:
http://etan.org/
http://etan.org/news/2006/05dili.htm
See ETAN Menu: Current Crisis in
East Timor (2006): http://www.etan.org/et2006/may/crisis.htm
ETAN Statement on Recent Events in
Timor-Leste
Country Fragile, International Assistance, Justice
Still Needed
For Immediate Release
Contact: John M. Miller (718) 596-7668; (917) 690-4391 (cell)
May 9 [2006] - The East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) has
followed recent events in Dili with deep concern. The recent riot
regrettably resulted in injury and death, as well as property damage.
As longtime supporters of Timor-Leste's self-determination and
independence, we hope the peace that has prevailed on Dili since April
29 continues, and that those who fled in fear will soon return. While
property can be rebuilt and political problems resolved, the traumatic
experiences from several decades of repressive occupation and
Indonesia's destructive withdrawal in 1999 continue to have serious
impacts on the Timorese population.
Timor-Leste, a new nation borne of decades of military occupation, has
made remarkable progress since 1999. However, its democracy, as well as
public confidence in the leaderships’ ability to peacefully resolve
conflicts, is fragile. Trauma recovery, economic development, the
creation of a competent public administration and building physical and
governmental infrastructure are long-term processes. Patience is
required by the government, the population, and all others committed to
a democratic Timor-Leste.
The inadequacies of governmental leadership and the shortcomings of
international support for the transition to self-government have been
illustrated by recent events. There are many lessons to be learned. We
urge all parties to the recent disagreement within the military to seek
a peaceful and lasting solution. As long as Timor-Leste has a military,
structural and institutional weaknesses within that force must be
addressed. The spirit of national unity and public service, which
provided the foundation for the independence movement, must be
re-established among military and civilian public officials. The
government commission's investigation of the fired soldiers’
grievances, as well as any evaluation of the behavior of the police and
military during recent months, must be transparent with results made
public in a timely manner.
After so many traumatic experiences since 1975, Timor-Leste’s
population is especially sensitive to rumors and displays of force, a
situation worsened by an absence of accurate information. The telephone
system must therefore be made reliable under peak loads, and with wider
coverage. Journalists and other media personnel, both Timorese and
international, need to better understand and avoid the inflammatory
effects of unverified reports. To help regain public trust, the
government should release the long-completed reports on the December 4,
2002 unrest in Dili, when police killed several demonstrators.
The Timor-Leste government and the international community should heed
the Timorese people's cry for justice for crimes committed during the
quarter-century Indonesian occupation. The UN and key governments,
including the United States, must move beyond platitudes and actively
pursue real accountability. We cannot but wonder if international and
Timorese failures to ensure justice have led some in Timor-Leste to
believe that their own use of violence would be met with similar
impunity. As described in the recent report of Timor-Leste's Commission
for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation (CAVR), several countries -
including the U.S., U.K., and Australia - bear a special responsibility
to ensure justice and accountability due to their actions and inaction
from 1975 on. Reparations, as called for by the CAVR, would help
alleviate the poverty and joblessness that have fueled some of the
unrest and help rebuild the country’s infrastructure, which the
Indonesian military so thoroughly destroyed during the brutal
occupation supported by these countries.
The international community has invested heavily in Timor-Leste since
1999, but their job is not complete. Transforming a guerilla resistance
into an official military is always difficult, but the roots of many of
the current problems in Timor-Leste’s UN-designed military grow out of
the international community’s failure to help Timor-Leste define and
implement a clear mandate for and effective training of the defense
force.
We urge the international community and the UN, especially the Security
Council, to work with Timor-Leste to complete the nation-building and
development tasks to which it has already committed. Security Council
members should favorably consider the Timor-Leste government's request
for a special UN office until after next year's presidential and
parliamentary elections. These national elections, the first in
independent Timor-Leste, will help determine if democracy has staying
power in this new nation. In addition to electoral assistance, the
Secretary-General has proposed continued human rights monitoring,
military liaisons, police training advisers, and other assistance to
improve the competence of government institutions. A formal mission
will also increase the East Timorese people's sense of security over
the coming year, whereas a premature end to the mission could escalate
public fear.
International support and expertise are still needed but must be geared
toward empowering the Timorese people to take full charge of their own
destiny. It is not too late to keep Timor-Leste from joining the ranks
of post-conflict “failed states.” However, the people of Timor-Leste
will require further assistance to reach that goal -- to secure the
self-determination for which they struggled many years and at such
great human cost.
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