The ongoing protest against Mari Alkatiri has been a whirl of conflict in East Timor recently. As if the dismissal of Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri and suspension of parliament would be the answer for the people’s urgent problem. It’s an odd amongst the “Viva Timor-Leste”, “Viva Xanana” and “Hatun (sack) Alkatiri”, some protesters shouted: “Viva Australia.” too, remembered that Australian government have played a big role in contributing 40% of the population average income to below 55 cents a day, and 70% are struggling to survive through subsistence agriculture added the unemployed of most youth in the capital Dili.
The conflict has broaden, could not be just about the sack of 595 soldiers or the claimed of Alkatiri toward the protesters who attempted to coup his government. As Asian Times on June 6 2006 noted, there are widespread conspiracy theories surrounding the escalating conflict. It’s still an open question whether the demand of protesters represents the need of majority of Timorese, or, as some sources also said, it has been a political exclusion to Alkatiri’s unfriendly behavior toward foreign capital and big business interests.
Core of the Crisis
We believe that the Maubere’s people deep economic and political crisis worsen since Australian imperialism exploited their oil and gas resources, took away a resource which should contributed to the advancement of productive force of the people. But in fact, Maubere’s continued live under a very miserable condition. Foreign capital exploitation had been never shed a welfare for the poor Timorese majority. The economic concept proposed by IMF and WB has been brought Timorese to the deep dependence of foreign debt.
Along with this unfavorable condition the lack of political leadership among the poor people, the devoid of direct (participative) democracy has also become a time-bomb which can easily burst, and today’s crisis proved those problems accumulation.
This crisis had never stood alone. Back to the date of 3rd and 4th December 2002, where students and youth’s protest answered with tear gas and repression by the government’s police as a response of their protest on the high levels of unemployment, poverty and the lack of infrastructure to meet the basic needs of East Timor’s people. Added to this, there have been increasing allegations of corruption and lack of transparency within the government.
Australian Prime Minister John Howard instead announced on December 5 2002 that his government would provide more aid to the East Timorese police force-ignored the fact that free education and decent job was mostly needed.
Indonesian Government Responsibility
Of course Indonesian government can not easily hand off for what is happening now. Especially Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) was a General who had responsibility as an East Timor battalion commander for the dead of at least 1000 Timorese in Santa Cruz tragedy. Most of the government’s officials took a very opportunist attitude toward Timorese crisis through justification the crisis as a result of Timorese independence from Indonesia. They argued this crisis proved that the source of the Timorese problem had been ethnicity’s conflict, never Indonesia occupation.
The argument of course avoid to make further analysis on the historical background of Indonesian government position in maintaining the pro-Indonesia Militia and support the politic of devide at impera (to disunite the people through the conflict around tribal affiliations, religion, race and societal groups/SARA—similar like the Dutch colonialism strategy toward Indonesian people).
President SBY response on Alkatiri’s claimed (that Indonesian government had relation to the dispute in East Timor recently) was also very childish and opportunist, especially when Alkatiri himself clarified the claim. There was no objective reason why Indonesian government forced to close the country’s border (even refused to accept Timorese who had Indonesian visa to pass the Attambua border, but oddly would accept the Indonesian visa holder who landed in Ngurahrai-Bali Airport).
Indonesian government has responsibility to give Timorese assistance, particularly on cheap energy and food, as an obligation of ex-colonial’s country and the closest neighborhood. So there was nothing so special for the 2000 kilos rice and instant food brought to Dili on 10th June 2006 (in fact it was a little bit late). The price of basic needs of the people in Timor had been very expensive, and it continued under the fact that the need was came from Indonesia. The fair and humanist trade was out of the agenda, because Indonesian government followed their imperialist instrument’s methods (IMF, WB and WTO).
International Solidarity and Maubere’s Unity
The relentlessly called for international solidarity for Timorese especially on the responsibility of international aids is urgently needed now. The UN (through UNOTIL) is responsible in giving guarantee for the basic need of the people, to charge Australian imperialists for the millions dollar flowed to their pocket from Timorese oil and gas.
The people of Maubere through their sectoral organization, political parties (PST, Fretilin), and NGOs should consolidate immediately. Never let the crisis become horizontal conflict any longer. Put the democratic and socialist agenda back on the table, as the genuine objective of the independence struggle we had ever organized. We hope that the fire is still on ablaze.