'We'll learn to swim', asserts Carrascalao<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): East Timor will have to prove it can survive on
\nits own if the government decides to grant the province
\nindependence, according to Mario Viegas Carrascalao.<\/p>\n
The former governor of East Timor was responding on Friday to
\nPresident B.J. Habibie's announcement that he wanted to see an
\nindependent East Timor by Jan. 1 next year.<\/p>\n
The announcement was not unexpected, he said. The President
\nalready told aides that he wanted to start the millennium without
\nany \"extra baggage\".<\/p>\n
Carrascalao said, however, that the timetable for independence
\nwas too hasty. \"At least two or three years\" of preparation are
\nneeded, he said before addressing a luncheon of the Indonesia-
\nAustralia Business Council here.<\/p>\n
He told the forum, however, that if East Timor was granted
\nindependence in the near future, the East Timorese \"would learn
\nto swim\", and would prove that they were able to survive. He
\ncited potential industries in the province, including agriculture
\nand oil, which would allow the economy in East Timor to thrive.<\/p>\n
\"What's painful is that the government doesn't want (a) one
\nman one vote (on the future of East Timor),\" he said. Allowing
\nthe East Timorese to decide their future was necessary because
\nthe population of some 800,000 could not be represented by \"a
\nhandful of people who could afford plane tickets to fly to
\nJakarta and lobby the government\".<\/p>\n
Most East Timorese did not even know what Indonesia's offer of
\nwide-ranging autonomy meant. He also said that the province
\nshould be given time \"to not hate Indonesia\", an attitude created
\nby the behavior of authorities in the province.<\/p>\n
Carrascalao said that Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas
\nrejected a referendum because of fears of civil war.<\/p>\n
\"However, don't forget the civil war in 1975 involved armed
\ncivilians with weapons from Portugal which no longer exist. The
\nonly weapons which now exist in East Timor are those from the
\nIndonesian Armed Forces.\" So the future depends on the
\ngovernment's seriousness in promoting peace, including the
\nconfiscation of all weapons from civilians, he said.<\/p>\n
\"I would agree to arming civilian security guards if they were
\n100 percent under the military's control,\" he said after the
\nluncheon, adding that it was dangerous if people were armed only
\nbecause they were pro-integration supporters, which was often the
\ncase. Hundreds of East Timorese have recently taken shelter at
\nhis Dili residence, citing intimidation from armed pro-
\nintegration civilian groups.<\/p>\n
Carrascalao, known as a pro-integration figure, particularly
\nwhen he served as governor from 1982 to 1992, said he would not
\nfight for independence, but would not refuse it.<\/p>\n
The East Timorese, he added, would have to work hard to
\ndevelop their infrastructure and resources, and not merely wait
\nfor independence to be given to them \"on a golden platter\".<\/p>\n
He also told the luncheon that in a recent meeting with jailed
\nresistance leader Alexandre Jose \"Xanana\" Gusmao, Xanana asked
\nhim to chair a new peace commission, to help ensure security in
\nthe province. Carrascalao said he would accept the position if
\neverybody else agreed. The proposed commission would also include
\nmembers of the National Commission on Human Rights, the church,
\nthe Armed Forces and pro-integration and pro-independence East
\nTimorese. (anr)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/well-learn-to-swim-asserts-carrascalao-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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