Solution to East Timor needed<\/p>\n
By Sebastianus Darwin<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): For the eighth time, Indonesia and Portugal met
\nto discuss the issue of East Timor at the UN headquarters in
\nGeneva on June 27. The meeting was held after both countries
\nfailed to find a solution to the conflict in Indonesia's 27th
\nprovince at their previous meeting on Jan. 16 in London.<\/p>\n
The Portuguese colony of East Timor has remained in the
\ninternational spotlight following its integration by Indonesia in
\n1976. But the world has not recognized this integration. There
\nare still conflicting views, especially within the UN.<\/p>\n
Much activity continues in East Timor itself. Anti-integration
\ngroups, including Fretilin (Frente Revolucionaria de Timor Leste
\nIndependente or the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East
\nTimor), have continued to launch political maneuvers to challenge
\nthe Indonesian occupying forces.<\/p>\n
There have been countless demonstrations protesting
\nintegration and a number of tragic incidents, including the Dili
\nincident in 1991 and the Liquisa incident last year.<\/p>\n
So far, the government has been able to contain the troubles.
\nYet that does not mean the authorities have become less vigilant,
\ngiven the continued existence of these independence movements.<\/p>\n
There are two different attitudes concerning development in
\nEast Timor.<\/p>\n
The first holds that East Timor is an integral part of
\nIndonesia. The development model is designed by the central
\ngovernment and all the regional administration has to do is
\nimplement it.<\/p>\n
However, due to East Timor's somewhat unusual conditions, the
\ncentrally designed development program is often difficult to
\ncarry out.<\/p>\n
The other is the attitude of the East Timorese people. They
\nconsider themselves different from people in other provinces,
\naccording to Jao Mariano Sousa Saldhana in Political Economy of
\nEast Timor Development.<\/p>\n
East Timor is a former Portuguese colony, while the rest of
\nIndonesia was formerly under Dutch rule. This widens the gap
\nbetween East Timor and other parts of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
Portugal ruled East Timor according to republican norms, which
\nwere also much influenced by the Catholic church. The Dutch had a
\nmonarchy with a mostly secular Protestant population and did not
\nreally care about the religious life of the colonies.<\/p>\n
The East Timorese are very aware of these differences, and
\nthis has prevented a complete integration. The task now is to
\nblend the two differing views to create a win-win situation.<\/p>\n
Various efforts have been made to settle the East Timor
\nproblem. In mid-1995, the Indonesian Bishop Conference (KWI) met
\nPresident Soeharto to discuss the matter. Head of conference,
\nMgr. Julius Darmaatmadja SJ, said after the meeting that East
\nTimor was not merely the problem of the Catholic church, but was
\nthe problem of the nation as well.<\/p>\n
The Catholic church plays an important role in trying to
\nsettle the case, because the majority of the people are
\nCatholics. It should be noted, however, that since the Middle
\nAges, the Catholic church has strictly separated the power of the
\nstate and the authority of the church.<\/p>\n
The Catholic church strictly forbids church officials,
\nincluding the bishop, from getting involved in politics.
\nTherefore, it would be inappropriate for Dili Bishop Mgr. Carlos
\nFilipe Ximenes Belo to take action to settle the East Timor case.<\/p>\n
The geographical integration of East Timor to Indonesia should
\nbe followed up by integration in all fields, including politics,
\nsociety, culture, religion and economics.<\/p>\n
It is not easy to integrate all these aspects. The management
\nof conflicts in East Timor should take into consideration the
\nfour points below:<\/p>\n
1. Social conditions in East Timor are different from other
\nparts of Indonesia, due to 450 years of Portuguese colonial rule
\nin the province.<\/p>\n
2. The majority of East Timorese are still haunted by the
\ntrauma of the prolonged civil war.<\/p>\n
3. There are few East Timorese who speak Indonesian.<\/p>\n
4. There are some Fretilin members who resist Indonesian rule
\non the province.<\/p>\n
When the Portuguese hurriedly abandoned East Timor in
\nSeptember 1975, Fretilin took power and proclaimed independence
\ntoward the end of November 1975. But things changed after the
\nBalibo Declaration on Nov. 30, 1975, which demanded the
\nintegration of East Timor into Indonesia. The declaration was
\nmade by the Apodeti (Popular Democratic Association of Timorese)
\nand three other parties, UDT (Unitoa Democratica Timorense or
\nDemocratic Union of Timorese), KOTA (Klibur Oan Timur Aswain,
\nSons of the Mountains Warriors) and Partido Trabalhista or
\nWorkers Party)<\/p>\n
Economic development should be given top priority in East
\nTimor. Improving public welfare is essential in the management of
\nconflict in East Timor.<\/p>\n
The economic development of East Timor is rapid, compared to
\nwhen it was still under Portuguese rule. The economic growth in
\nthe past 15 years is impressive.<\/p>\n
Despite this economic growth, East Timor's income is still
\nlow, and so is income per capita (see table). The table shows
\nthat between 1983 and 1990, income per capita had increased from
\nRp 132,454 (1993) to Rp 180,727 (1990). This means that there was
\nan increase of an average of 7.29 percent per year.<\/p>\n
Yet, compared to other provinces in Indonesia, the income per
\ncapita of East Timor is very low. In 1990 the income per capita
\nwas only 28 percent of the national average, which stood at about
\nRp 650,000.<\/p>\n
Economic development is only one of the factors involved in
\nthe efforts to solve the problems of East Timor. There are still
\nother things to deal with, notably the military's policy toward
\nthe province. Another important factor is the special position of
\nthe Catholic church in the region. Without the church's
\ninvolvement, there will be no real solution to the East Timor
\nproblem.<\/p>\n
Table:
\n ---------------------------------
\n Year Income Index
\n ---------------------------------
\n 1983 Rp 132,454 100
\n 1984 Rp 132,920 100.4
\n 1985 Rp 142.843 107.8
\n 1986 Rp 144.141 108.8
\n 1987 Rp 152.349 115.0
\n 1988 Rp 160.996 121.6
\n 1989 Rp 161.890 122.6
\n 1990 Rp 180.727 136.5<\/p>\n
Source: The Political Economy in East Timor Development (1994)<\/p>\n
The writer is a socio-political observer based in Jakarta.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/solution-to-east-timor-needed-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }