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ASIAWEEK
Intelligence:
The Special Guests
ASEAN
Day Three: Don't Forget About Us
By ALEJANDRO REYES
July 26, 2000
Web posted at 4:00 p.m. Hong Kong time, 4:00 a.m. EDT
During last year's APEC Summit in Auckland almost a year ago, I met Jose
Ramos-Horta, East Timor's de facto foreign minister. He had come to New
Zealand to call on the international community to send an intervention force
to restore peace and order in the troubled territory. Bloody clashes between
pro-independence Timorese and militiamen supporting integration with Indonesia
had triggered a refugee crisis and led to the devastation of the capital
Dili and other cities and towns. The Nobel Peace Prize laureate was deeply
critical of ASEAN's inaction, despite the turmoil. This is what he said:
"They are a club of hypocrites who wear the same shirts whenever they meet,
play golf, display their ostentatious lifestyle and crack down on students
and intellectuals who disagree with their policies and way of life. Of course,
there is some fresh air in ASEAN, notably the Philippines. Philippine democracy
is the only shining example in ASEAN to show the whole stupidity of the
rhetoric of Asian values. The Filipinos showed that you could have fundamental
freedoms and economic growth hand in hand. Of course, we will look for relations
with individual members of ASEAN, the Philippines in particular, because
it is the most dynamic democratic country in the region."
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This
week, Ramos-Horta and East Timor leader Xanana Gusmao, accompanied U.N.
administrator Sergio Vieira de Mello and former East Timor governor Mario
Carrascalao, were in Bangkok for the ASEAN meetings as special guests
of the Thai government. Gusmao, who is likely to become president of an
independent East Timor, was enjoying all the trappings of leadership --
a hotel suite and a Thai government liaison (the foreign ministry's East
Timor affairs man who also looks after relations with Mongolia) attending.
Still, there is no entourage of aides -- a Thai lady working for a local
NGO had volunteered to help coordinate the group's appointments.
Just as Gusmao and Ramos-Horta were beginning a series of bilateral meetings
on 24 July, news came in from East Timor that a New Zealand soldier serving
on the U.N-organized peacekeeping force had been killed in action, allegedly
in a clash with anti-independence militias. It was the 9,000-strong multinational
detail's first combat casualty. Meeting the East Timorese team in Gusmao's
hotel suite the next morning, I asked them to react to the killing. Gusmao
reckoned that the incident was intended to undermine reconciliation between
Indonesia and East Timor, occurring as it did at the same time that the
Timorese leaders were in Bangkok and the new Thai U.N. commander was in
Jakarta for talks.
"It is a strange coincidence," Ramos-Horta suggested, blaming members
of the Indonesian army for instigating the trouble. "They are operating
very much like Russian gangs, out of the control of the central power.
This [killing] implies a deliberate effort by those not interested in
normalizing relations. It is in the interest of those who want to undermine
[Indonesian President Abdurrahman] Wahid and maybe to see if we overreact,
which in turn would make our relationship a bit more complicated." Added
Gusmao, who spoke in halting English: "We would like to see the democratization
process [in Indonesia] go smoothly. And we want to proceed with reconciliation.
But this kind of military action is not helpful."
During the interview, Gusmao happened to receive a fifteen-minute phone
call from Wahid who wanted to express his concern about the U.N. killing
and to discuss the religious strife in Ambon. Gusmao said he offered to
help resolve the Ambon turmoil perhaps by bringing the opposing factions
to Timor to see for themselves how destructive and devastating communal
conflict can be.
Asking about their talks in Bangkok -- local newspapers had reported that
East Timor was planning to apply for ASEAN membership -- I reminded Ramos-Horta
that he had harshly criticized the organization in Auckland. "Did I?"
he asked, jokingly. "Are you sure it was me? You must be talking about
my twin brother." Turning serious, Ramos-Horta explained that East Timor
would "keep our options open" and was weighing membership in ASEAN as
well as the South Pacific Forum, laying the groundwork for applications
to both organizations. "Most likely, either way, we will have to start
with observer status. ASEAN is obviously very important for us. Our future
security rests not so much on a credible deterrent force or standing army
but on a web of relations in the region. ASEAN provides the framework
that is best for East Timor. There is no doubt about that."
Finally, I asked them what a future East Timor government might look like.
Ramos-Horta occasionally referred to Gusmao as "President Xanana," leaving
little doubt who would be in charge. In Auckland, Ramos-Horta had insisted
he did not want to be foreign minister or take any position for that matter.
He had not changed his mind, he maintained. "If there is a real need,
I'm not going to play hard to get. But actually I want to set up a regional
monthly magazine that will outsell Asiaweek, as well as a regional radio
and television operation. I'm looking for potential partners in Thailand
and Indonesia. I want to be a media magnate. I prefer to be a journalist
because you can criticize everybody and not get criticized."
The East Timorese delegation left Bangkok on July 26 for Denpasar, Bali,
where they were to catch a U.N. plane for Dili after an overnight stay.
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