The Belo uproar

The Belo uproar

It is perhaps not very hard to understand the hurt which East
Timor's Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo's remarks, as published
by the German magazine Der Spiegel, have caused many Indonesians.
Whether one approves of it or not, many Indonesians have, over
the past several years, shown themselves to be highly sensitive
to what they consider as undue criticism of their country and its
leaders. In light of this, the demonstrations that have been
staged in a number of cities can likewise be easily understood.

However, this tendency to vent our anger at critics without
apparently giving much further thought to what underlies their
criticism is a penchant that, to be quite frank, we find rather
disturbing. Noisy demonstrations and counter-demonstrations seem
to be gradually replacing sensible public debates directed toward
examining controversial issues that may arise. But while no doubt
demonstrations have mass appeal, they seldom help to fairly and
effectively resolve the issues against which they are aimed.

This is certainly true in the case of East Timor's Bishop
Belo. Though a strong critic of human rights abuses, the bishop
is not only a highly esteemed and popular public figure among the
people of the province, he is generally known here and abroad as
a sensible man as well as a comparatively moderate leader of the
Roman Catholic Church of East Timor. True, his choice of words as
published in the Der Spiegel interview may hurt most Indonesians'
sensitivities, but protests can be delivered in ways that temper
the issue and not aggravate it instead. It must be remembered
that the East Timor issue is still one that easily incites
sentiments and that provocative actions and statements had
therefore be better avoided by everyone concerned.

There is, however, another no less important aspect to the
present case that deserves our attention. Assuming that Belo was
quoted correctly in Der Spiegel, one question that we might have
asked ourselves is, what drove the usually temperate East
Timorese bishop to make his piercingly critical statements? Could
it be true that there is still that much room left for
improvement in East Timor, especially with regard to the
protection of human rights? Surely the fact that Belo enjoys such
huge support among the East Timorese is an indication that his
words and actions appeal to the conscience of the people of the
province. This, if nothing else, should serve as a warning for us
to try to get to the essence of Belo's message and to start to
properly address whatever grievances there still may be in East
Timor.

As the present stage of developments, restraint is what is
first of all needed before we can work effectively on improving
the situation with regard to East Timor. Common sense and reason
on all sides must prevail. There is an impression that at least
some of the "spontaneous" anti-Belo demonstrations have been
staged by manipulating the crowds, an action that can only be
counterproductive.

We hope that, more than just keeping us busy with the problem
of the moment, the present case involving Bishop Belo will lead
us to reflect on the wider implications of our actions and
reactions towards criticism, however painful it may be.
Criticism, after all, leads to correction and is one of the
essential elements of democracy. It is not an exaggeration to say
that unless one can accept criticism with a positive attitude,
one is not ready for democracy, and to live in a healthy
democracy is surely something to which we all aspire.