Security first<\/p>\n
U.S. senator Tom Harkin is not alone in calling on the United
\nNations to send a peacekeeping force to East Timor to ensure
\nsecurity during and after the Aug. 30 ballot. At the end of his
\nvisit to the territory on Saturday, the Iowa Democrat said he
\nwould bring up the proposal with U.S. President Bill Clinton and
\nthe United Nations on his return to the U.S.<\/p>\n
But Harkin's recommendation might as well be a voice in the
\nwilderness as far as the Indonesian government is concerned. For
\nJakarta, a UN peacekeeping force in East Timor is not in the
\ncards, and never has been. The agreement Indonesia signed with
\nPortugal and the United Nations in May stipulates that
\nresponsibility for the security in the run up, during and
\nimmediately after the ballot rests with the Indonesian
\ngovernment. The United Nations will send civilian police officers
\nto assist and monitor the organization of security in the area.
\nThe security task of Indonesia, in this case the Indonesian
\nMilitary (TNI), includes disarming the hostile sides in East
\nTimor.<\/p>\n
While Harkin's proposal for a UN peacekeeping force departs
\nfrom stipulations of the May agreement, it reflects the
\ninternational community's growing concern, if not frustration, at
\nIndonesia's inability to secure peace and order, which all agree
\nis a prerequisite for a truly free and fair ballot in the
\nprovince. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has already postponed
\nthe ballot date twice, chiefly because of concerns about the
\nsecurity situation. The United States and Australia have publicly
\ncriticized the Indonesian government for its failure to contain
\nviolence committed by both proindependence and pro-Indonesia
\ncamps. In short, the international community is not impressed.<\/p>\n
The United Nations Mission on East Timor (UNAMET) looks set to
\ngo ahead with the ballot on Monday despite the deteriorating
\nsecurity situation. This contradicts its own principle that there
\ncan be no real ballot in a hostile setting. UNAMET, and the
\nIndonesian government, are prepared to take the risks entailed in
\nholding a ballot in such an environment.<\/p>\n
Reports and comments from East Timor this past week suggest
\nthat tension is rising and will further escalate, rather than
\nabate, before the ballot. The UN and the Indonesian government
\nhave even begun preparing for the various scenarios that could
\nemerge after the ballot. A recommendation to beef up the UN
\ncivilian police force only confirms that they both fear, or
\nanticipate, the worst.<\/p>\n
To be fair to Jakarta, nobody said that managing security in
\nEast Timor would be easy. Animosity between the proindependence
\nand pro-Indonesia camps runs deep, dating back to the 1975 civil
\nwar which broke out in the wake of the hasty departure of the
\nPortuguese colonial administration. Indonesian military
\nintervention in that civil war changed the picture entirely,
\nturning it into a war between Indonesian forces and the
\nproindependence camp.<\/p>\n
A UN peacekeeping force, as suggested by Harkin, would have
\ntrouble securing the support of the two sides in order to conduct
\nits task. But TNI faces an almost insurmountable challenge: How
\nto win the trust and confidence of the proindependence camp to
\npropel its members to surrender their weapons. It is hard to
\nimagine Falintil, the armed wing of the proindependence Fretilin
\nfaction, handing over its weapons to the very force it fought
\nbitterly against in the past 24 years.<\/p>\n
Instead of disarming the sides, we have heard reports of
\nelements in TNI arming the pro-Indonesia militias, which in turn
\nare blamed for committing some of the recent acts of violence and
\nterrorization. TNI also has been accused of taking sides, or of
\nbeing indifferent to the atrocities committed by pro-Indonesia
\ncamps. Although TNI has issued denials, the allegations have
\nchipped away at the military's credibility as it attempts to
\ncarry out its tasks in East Timor.<\/p>\n
With less than a week before balloting, the idea of disarming
\nthe warring camps appears to have been dropped, or put aside, as
\nUNAMET and the Indonesian government forge ahead with
\npreparations. Given that the hostile sides are still fully armed,
\nwe are left with disturbing misgivings about what will follow the
\nvote. Will the loser, whichever side that may be, graciously
\naccept the result, or will it turn its weapons on the winner?
\nSince the Indonesian government insists on being fully in charge
\nof the security situation, it also will have to go it alone in
\nshouldering the responsibility if violence erupts after the
\nballot.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/security-first-1447899208",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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