Birth of a nation

A new nation is about to be born. Almost 24 years after Jakarta invaded East Timor to make it Indonesia's 27th province, the people of this former Portuguese colony last week overwhelmingly voted to end their ties with their big neighbor and enter the future as an independent nation. The official announcement, made simultaneously on Saturday in New York, Lisbon and Jakarta, said the decision was taken by a vote of 78.5 percent against 21.5 percent in favor of independence.

By doing so, the East Timorese have resoundingly rejected an offer by Jakarta for wide-ranging autonomy within Indonesia. Without doubt, for quite a number of Indonesians -- and some East Timorese as well -- last week's vote represents a painful decision. Indonesian soldiers have lost their lives in the territory. Jakarta has spent a good deal of money building roads and other public infrastructure in what has for 23 years been its youngest province. Thousands of ordinary Indonesians have settled there in the belief that the territory would offer them an opportunity to build a living that is better than what they had in their own hometowns and villages.

Nevertheless, the dice is cast and the decision cannot be altered, much less reversed. In fact, for any self-respecting nation that considers itself civilized, it has been irreversible ever since January of this year, when President B.J. Habibie offered the East Timorese the option of full independence in a referendum supervised by the United Nations should they reject his offer of wide-ranging autonomy within Indonesia.

Considering all that has been said, there is good ground for believing that last week's vote does not necessarily mean the end of violence in the area. Indeed, if the increased unruliness of the pro-Indonesian militias and the killings that have been going on in Dili and other areas since the previous weekend can be taken as a foreshadow of what is to come, East Timor and the world had better brace themselves for ever greater trouble in the days ahead.

All this is utterly lamentable, and not only for East Timor but for Indonesia as well. As experiences in Aceh, Ambon, Irian Jaya and other regions of this country should have taught us, the use of force may have its uses in the immediate term, but it does not solve problems in the long run. The best Indonesians can do under the circumstances is to respect the decision the East Timorese have taken. This means that Jakarta must use all the influence it has over the pro-Indonesia elements in East Timor -- the militias in particular -- to accept the majority decision, lay down their arms and work with the rest of the population to bring about a reconciliation among all the rival factions in the territory.

Jakarta should realize that even the impression that it is assisting the militias, or any other group of trouble-makers for that matter, will hurt its reputation as well as its credibility in the eyes of the world -- with possibly serious consequences for the country. As for the people of East Timor and their leaders, who have through all these years inspired courage and confidence in their fellow countrymen by their perseverance and integrity, our sincere congratulations are due.

Whatever Indonesians may feel about an independent East Timor, for this country and for this region as a whole, the best bet for securing stability and prosperity is by helping the elected leaders of the newly independent nation to ensure that peace and order are restored and maintained. There can be little doubt that a free, peaceful and democratic East Timor can make a valuable contribution to the progress of this region.