East Timor's fate in its own hands

By Desi Anwar

JAKARTA (JP): From the outset, global politics played a major part in the creation of the East Timor problem. Back in 1975, when the Cold War was the order of the day and international communism the specter that haunted the free world, it was easy to take sides in the civil war that was taking place in East Timor. After all, the choice was a straightforward one: independence, albeit under the communist Fretilin rule, or tolerate integration with a staunchly anticommunist Indonesia. Clearly, it was more favorable then to be under Indonesian Armed Forces than under armed guerrillas espoused to Marxist and Leninist teachings. And for over two decades, the prointegration camp and the international world tolerated Indonesia's presence in the area -- although with more and more misgivings as the Armed Forces, though ideologically correct, turned out to be armed thugs.

Politically, things would have been a lot simpler if the proindependence group was completely defeated and followed the path of integrationists. However, they merely relocated their position to jungles and mountains, and formed their own government there. The East Timorese, therefore, had two masters: one hidden in the jungles and another sitting in a government office in town. Both were equally influential, intimidating and uncompromising in their stance.

With the fall of communism and the end of the Cold War, global politics changed and so did the nature of struggle in East Timor. Human rights issues became more important as the world turned democratic. The lords of East Timor's jungles said goodbye to their communist past and changed their cause into a nationalist one based on the values of democracy and human rights. Values which the lords in town unfortunately failed to foster as they remained stuck in their thug mode, a behavior that alienated the locals and gave fodder to critics all over the world. Indonesia as the former liberator became the evil colonizer but the proindependence movement, the former agents of communism, emerged as the champion of democracy and human rights, and also pressed for the freedom of the East Timorese.

The New Order government would not have tolerated this kind of pressure. It did not even countenance autonomy for the region let alone the possibility of independence. The new Habibie government, however, proved to be more pragmatic, if somewhat impulsive, regarding the East Timor issue. A possible solution cooked up by the United Nations, the Indonesian foreign ministry and Portugal, wide-ranging autonomy for the region was supposed to be a compromise to appease the East Timorese and silence international critics. However, Indonesia's messy domestic politics and regional upheavals are sucking up all of the government's patience and energy leaving little room to worry about a far-flung province that no one really takes an interest in. President Habibie threw the East Timor problem back to where it originally belongs, the East Timorese themselves.

This is tantamount to turning back the clock to where East Timor was over two decades ago: a confrontation between the prointegration and proindependence camps. Actually, neither side asked for autonomy. Those who are prointegration are quite happy to be part of Indonesia. All they ask for is a little understanding and sensitivity from the Indonesian authorities about how they are treated. Those who dream of an independent East Timor on the other hand would certainly not accept autonomy without the possibility of self-determination at some point.

Autonomy, therefore, is a compromise for both camps. However, Indonesia's promise of instant independence means that the table has now turned in favor of the proindependence group. Having struggled for over two decades in the jungles, the ballot enabling East Timor to either remain an autonomous part of Indonesia or separate is not only a recognition of their existence long denied by the Indonesian government, but also a real opportunity to create their own nation.

With the wind blowing in favor of independence, pro- Indonesians are afraid that they are the ones who will end up hiding in the jungles exiled from their homeland, or face retribution if East Timor does become independent.

However, now that the fate of East Timor is once more in the hands of its people, it is imperative that all involved in supervising the ballot maintain complete neutrality to ensure that a peaceful and fair ballot can be conducted. Seeing that the ballot would make winners of one side and losers of the other, only a peaceful ballot free from violence, fear and intimidation can produce a result that is acceptable to all, and hence ensure a legitimate identity for East Timor on the world stage.

Complete neutrality goes for the UN personnel and international champions of the underdog who are prone to sympathize with those who dream of leaving the jungles to claim their place in the sun, and the Indonesian authorities who still cling to the memory of lives sacrificed to save the region from the grip of communism in order to return the eastern half of the island to its rightful place in the archipelago.

A failure to hold a peaceful ballot in East Timor is not only Indonesia's failure, but that of the United Nations, Portugal and those in the world who truly care about the future of East Timor. And when that happens, it is the East Timorese who will have to suffer the consequences.

The writer is a journalist and columnist.