From Portuguese pan to Indonesian fire

IN 1974 Portugal had a radical mili tary uprising, in part against dictator Salazar’s futile but costly attempts to hold onto empire. The new rulers were eager to divest themselves of the 5700 square mile colony of East Timor and set a date of October 1976, but after four centuries of colonialism its mostly Cath olic population of around 600,000 had little political experience.

A variety of parties and groups were soon vying for power. One of the main movements was Fretilin, (Frente Revolucionaria de Timor Leste Independente) which was to the Left.

The anti-leftists tried to seize power in August, but Fretilin effectively beat them and declared independence unilaterally on November 28, 1975. In reply, oppo sition groups called on the Indonesians, who invaded on December 7.

The Security Council unanimously condemned the invasion in resolutions 384 and 389, as did the General Assembly, where the voting was 72 to 10 with 43 abstentions, but international opposition began to diminish under pressures of expediency.

Neighbours, OPEC and Islamic na tions, and anti-communist countries, either abstained or supported Jakarta’s

position. While the non-aligned move ment generally supported East Timor, even India supported Indonesia. (In 1961 India had itself annexed Goa, and other Portuguese enclaves on its coast).

As Daniel P Moynihan, then US ambassador to the UN, later wrote, “China altogether backed Fretilin in Timor, and lost. In Spanish Sahara, Russia completedly backed Algeria and its front, known as Polisario, and lost. In both instances the United States wished things to turn out as they did, and worked to bring this about. The Depart ment of State desired that the United Nations prove utterly ineffective in whatever measures it undertook. The task was given to me, and I carried it forward with no inconsiderable success”.

When the Security Council recon sidered the issue in April 1976, Japan and the US abstained. In the General Assembly, Australia voted against In donesia in 1975, but soon joined US and New Zealand support for Jakarta.

In 1982, the last time the issue was raised, the voting was 50 for the resolution, 46 against, and 50 absten tions. Since then it has been deferred annually, awaiting the results of the Secretary General’s mediation.

Adroit lobbying by Indonesia has

stopped the issue being raised at the UN Human Rights Commission, de spite evidence of violations. Up to one third of East Timor’s people are estimated to have died in the years after the occupation. Amnesty International has since reported torture, extrajudicial executions, and hundreds of unresolved cases of “disappearances”. While In donesia claims that East Timor is open to foreign visitors, Amnesty and similar organisations have been refused entry.

Vanuatu is one of the few neighbours of Indonesia opposing it on the issue. Its UN Ambassador Robert Van Lierop stresses that, despite its friendship with Indonesia, “It’s a matter of public record that Vanuatu doesn’t accept the illegal occupation and annexation of East Timor, any more than it accepted the attempted annexation of Kuwait. It is also a matter of public record that Vanuatu does not accept attempts to legitimise Indonesia’s actions in East Timor through economic ventures, and more than it accepted South African attempts to legitimise its occupation of Namibia through economic ventures.”

It seems the change of Vanuatu government does not imply change in

foreign policy.

Australian Foreign Minister, Senator Gareth Evans, distinguished in 1989 between approval of the circumstances of the acquisition of the territory, whose “possible illegality” he accepts, and subsequent treaty relations by a third party with the occupying power.

Similarly, a US State Department spokesman told PIM “The US accepts the incorporation of East Timor by Indonesia, without maintaining that a valid act of self-determination has taken place. The US is also fully supportive of discussions between Por tugal and Indonesia under the auspices of the Secretary General, to resolve the issue”. In contrast, the British question the treaty’s legality while accepting there was little chance of getting the Indonesians out.

However there may be some hope.

Last year the Pope went to East Timor.

His remarks on Human Rights have been backed by the Bishop of Dili who called for a UN-supervised referendum.

In January last year, US ambassador John Monjo condemned the violent break-up of a peaceful demonstration outside his hotel, and later visited injured demonstrators.

Bonus for Marshalls, FSM

Following Federated States of Micro nesia and Marshall Islands indepen dence, the two are getting an “indepen dence bonus” from the United Nations

Development Programme the bud

get for FSM will rise by US$BOO,OOO to about US$2.3 million for the next five years, and for the Marshalls by $700,000 to US$l.7 million. □