East Timor and the free association model

Many East Timorese leaders and people have returned to rebuild their lives and their ravaged new nation. Regarding the future of the territory, political researcher Hermawan Sulistyo recommends the adoption of a system that will benefit the new nation and its neighbor.

JAKARTA (JP): Almost no political observer or politician at a domestic or international level has paid much attention to the future political format of East Timor. Recent commentaries, reviews and analyses have focused on the displaced people, the scale of the killings and the reign of terror in the post-ballot period. There is a need to formulate in the near future and the long run a transitional scheme or final format for East Timor's statehood.

Whether we like it or not, the results of the ballot showed that East Timor has chosen the path toward independence. Yet many obstacles still dog the process toward independence. Leaving aside recent political problems, East Timor as well as Indonesia must face the future problems of their relationship. An internationally backed independent but politically unstable East Timor will pose an inherent threat to Indonesia's political stability. Therefore, we urgently need a proposal that can cater to the needs of both sides.

One of the biggest problems toward resolving the current conflict is the status of prointegration East Timorese. They lost their hope of residing in East Timor when the proindependence side won the ballot. After the bloody outburst which followed the announcement of the ballot's result, the prointegration camp came up with a proposal to divide East Timor into eight regencies. The prointegrationists said the territory would maintain its status as an Indonesian province, but that it would allow the rest of the territory -- the remaining three regencies -- to have their independence. No consensus has so far been reached on this matter or on other issues pertaining to the future independent East Timor.

In proposing a format for an independent East Timor and its relationship with Indonesia, we might learn something from several small countries in the Pacific. Palau, the Cook Islands, Nieu and the Marshall Islands can provide valuable lessons regarding their independent status.

As small states, they adopt a scheme called a "free association" with certain larger countries. The scheme retains some functional services and systems of a small state with various "metropolitan countries".

A free association scheme, drawn from these small states' experiences seems a suitable model for the future relationship between Indonesia and East Timor. Under the scheme, the first and most important problem to be solved is the status of citizenship. Under a "free association" scheme, a proindependence East Timorese could have his or her East Timor citizenship, while a prointegration East Timorese could hold dual citizenship.

"An East Timorese Indonesian", or whatever the term we use, then retains his or her Indonesian citizenship without leaving East Timor. On the part of the proindependence camp, free association would be suitable for a reconciliation strategy. The scheme should also be suitable for the prointegration camp, because it solves the residency and citizenship status problem.

If both warring parties agreed to a free association scheme, then there would still be a need for further technical arrangements. Indonesian immigration law does not recognize dual citizenship. However, legal reforms could provide room for a new law to accommodate the special status of dual citizenship for the Indonesian East Timorese.

With the problem of citizenship solved, other technical arrangements would follow. These could include the use of the rupiah as the currency. Rational considerations would prevent any objection to the use of the Indonesian currency as East Timor's currency. A shared postal system is another possible aspect of a free association scheme. But a stamp indicates national identity, and thus an independent East Timor should print its own stamps.

The list is much longer than we may think. Just consider the systems of transportation, irrigation, education and language -- after Tetun and Portuguese, bahasa Indonesia is likely to be the country's third language.

This is not to mention the economic relationship. For more than two decades East Timor has received an annual subsidy of US$70 million. After the post-ballot disaster, it is expected that international grants and loans will soar to unprecedented figures.

An economically booming East Timor, at least for a short period, may lead to an imbalanced structure of regional economic entanglements, which in turn will destabilize the region. A free association scheme could serve as a proper economic arrangement which would benefit both countries. Supplies that traditionally came from Surabaya and other islands in East Nusa Tenggara can lead to prosperity for nearby communities.

A carefully thought-out free association scheme could also perhaps serve as a first step in easing Indonesia's long and bitter tensions with Portugal. One stage of history is now over. Under the new government of Indonesia, and under a free association scheme between Indonesia and East Timor, there is no need for an acrimonious relationship between Indonesia and Portugal to continue. Many Indonesians do not know that the current Portuguese government is not the same government that enjoyed colonizing East Timor in the past.

There is no question that both Indonesia and East Timor urgently need a modified free association scheme. To recover from the bitter conflict of the past, the new government of Indonesia can take the initiative to propel the scheme forward. The sessions of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) are the best place for us to start a new and positive course for both the future of East Timor and Indonesia.