Megawati betrays Sukarno's views

Megawati betrays Sukarno's views

Having known Sukarno well since I first met him in Yogyakarta
in 1948, I was shocked to learn that Megawati Soekarnoputri is
accepting the advice of those who advocate the incorporation of
East Timor into the Indonesian state. Such a course would be a
gross betrayal of Sukarno's views and flagrant abandonment of the
realities of Indonesian history.

When I knew Sukarno there were certainly some Indonesians who
urged annexation of East Timor, but he steadfastly opposed doing
so. Among his objections, one also strongly shared by Hatta, was
that for Indonesia to annex East Timor would undercut the logic
and the argument for its claim to all of the Netherlands East
Indies, including West Irian.

Later, Sukarno additionally argued against annexation of East
Timor because to do so would make it appear that Indonesia was
imitating India's 1961 annexation of the Portuguese colony of
Goa.

GEORGE MCT.KAHIN

Ithaca, New York