East Timor

I salute Mr. M. Khaliq Qureshi for his letter in The Jakarta Post (Oct. 30, 1996) which presented a fine summary of the East Timor issue. The Portuguese should solely shoulder the blame for the East Timor tragedy, not only for the fighting amongst East Timorese, but also for the backwardness of East Timor.

Portugal did nothing for the development of this island and its people. When Indonesia stepped in to crush the communist- leaning Fretilin, Ramos Horta ran away. He cowardly left the island, emigrating to Australia. He did nothing for the island and its people. It is therefore questionable that he was chosen as the Nobel Peace Prize winner.

Back in 1978 when I was in New York, an American friend asked me about Indonesia's action to annex East Timor. My answer was that Indonesia did not want a "Cuba" in its backyard. This answer proved to be satisfactory. As far as I can remember, there has been no strong reaction from the United States on the integration of East Timor into Indonesia. From what I have read in the media, East Timor has rapidly developed ever since the integration, compared to its condition during the Portuguese colonial period.

H.W. PIENANDORO

Bogor, West Java