East Timor Falls Apart

A few years ago, East Timor was the trendy cause among neophytes in global affairs. The poor down-trodden region languished under the oppressive boot of Indonesia. When it finally won independence thanks to diplomacy and UN efforts (and some common sense in Jakarta), a new day dawned. In the last week, the sun has set on those hopes as East Timor has fallen apart. Australian troops were cheered by the people when they arrived to help establish some kind of order. Evidence suggests East Timor wasn’t ready for self-rule.

The trouble all started back in February when some 400 troops went on strike over pay and soldiering conditions including discrimination against troops from the west by officers from the east of the nation. In March, the government responded by firing 600 of the 1,400-man military, in a country suffering from 40% unemployment. In April, these unemployed, trained fighters led riots. Last week, the government asked for help, and Australian troops have been working to avert a humanitarian crisis since they arrived.

Australia, the nearest trusted country with troops to spare, sent 1,300 of its men to Dili and other parts of East Timor, effectively out-gunning the rebels and the loyalist forces. Malaysia, New Zealand and Portugal (the former colonial power) have agreed to send a few hundred more. President Xanana Gusmao, a former guerilla leader who is widely respected across East Timor, legally took charge of the nation’s security apparatus, but effectively, it is hard to say just what he controls. His army isn't even the biggest in the country right now.

East Timor, according to the UN, is the poorest country in Southeast Asia, and after four years of independence, it is getting ever poorer. Some 40% of the population lives below the poverty line (which by western standards is horrific), and 90 out of 1,000 babies don’t make it to their first birthday. Immunizations are rare, and half the population of under 1 million has no access to clean drinking water.

East Timor, simply put, isn’t working. Independence may have been a noble and lofty goal, but President Gusmao and especially Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri have failed to deliver any goods. There is some promise of off-shore oil wealth in years to come, but right now, the place is a basket-case. The Australian-led expeditionary force cannot be a permanent solution, but right now, there are no indigenous solutions at all. So, just what was the independence fight trying to achieve?

© Copyright 2006 by The Kensington Review, Jeff Myhre, PhD, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux.

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