It's hardly worth the effort responding to such ill informed rubbish and indeed most of the misguided posts that question the rights of people to want Independence over brutal repression from an invader.

Distasteful as it must be to some,the Majority of East Timorese support Fretilin which was founded on 20th May 1974 following the demise of the Portuguese fascist Salazar/ Gaetarno regime in a bloodless coup on the 25th April 1974, 25 days earlier.

The party of the elites and Portuguese expats was UDT (Timor Democratic Union) who initially formed a fragile coalition with Fretilin as the ASDT.They were so dismayed by the overwhelming support for Fretilin by the Maubere ( majority Native population)that they pulled out of the coalition and staged a coup attempt which started fratricidal killing.

The Portuguese bureaucrats and Governor abandoned the Capital Dili and moved to Atauro island while Fretilin put down the coup and offered control back to the Governor.
They refused to take back the reins of Government from Fretilin who were quite happy to go to an election and did not want to take power by force.

When UDT were overrun by Fretilin within 3 weeks, they called on Indonesia for support, accusing Fretilin as being 'communist'which it was not.The Indonesians invaded after being given the green light from Gerald Ford and Henry Kissenger.

What followed was 24 years of brutal repression with acess denied to independent observers.

Habibi agreed to a referendum which he believed would not support Independence because the TNI and their Militias carried out a policy of threats and intimidation. We all saw what they did under the noses of the UN and yes, they took about 180,000 across the border into refugee camps which still exist.

TNI and Militia criminals have not yet been brought to justice

So the Balibo journalists, in bravely seeking to discover the truth and bring it to the world, were largely responsible for their own deaths? This appalling statement tries to deflect criticism of the cold-blooded murderers who killed them, and of the Australian bureaucrats and politicians who, ever since, have meekly washed their hands of the affair. How, Mr Morris, can we discover the truth if journalists are prevented from doing their job?

Of course Indonesia has been presented as the boogie-man: its army illegally invaded East Timor then proceeded to wipe out its inhabitants and steal their property and resources – with, as it happens, total impunity. Mr Morris apparently thinks such behaviour is OK.

"Selective and even untrue information about East Timor" has come from Australian politicians and bureaucrats following the official appeasement line, all faithfully reported, rarely critically, by Australia's compliant media. The TNI's actions in Timor were in fact far worse than was ever reported.

There was plenty of "information about the amount of money the Indonesian Government was pouring into East Timor for development of roads etc" – I remember seeing it. Official propaganda. But the roads – such as they are - were built primarily for military purposes, and the hospitals were primarily for military use. The schools were used to indoctrinate students in Indonesian values.

In the brief civil war that broke out in 1975 – provoked by Indonesian agents, who encouraged UDT to wipe out its coalition partner Fretilin – Timorese protagonists killed each other. That's what happens in wars, civil or not. Indonesia then used that as a pretext to invade. In 1998 it started forming, arming, and paying militia, encouraging them to attack fellow citizens who supported independence. Thousands of innocent people were murdered, before and after the referendum. Australia knew about this, but did nothing to stop the killing, muttering, instead, about "rogue elements". Today's violence has most of its roots in past conflicts. Blaming the Timorese, as Mr Morris does, not only blames the victims but seeks to ignore Indonesia's role in the whole mess.

Part 11
After the Independence vote,the election of the Alkatiri Government was democratically conducted and the present 'debacle' is a product of the work of the same elements assisted by covert external elements who seek to gain by deposing a Nationalist socially responsible Government which continues to implement policies aimed at sustainable development dealing with priorities determined by the Parliament.The elite elements opposing the Government want open slather foreign investment and borrowings from the IMF for fast infrastructure growth.

Australia dislikes Alkatiri for his hard bargaining over the Timor Gap issue and Oil revenues and The US is angry that East Timor has done a deal with Cuba for 300 doctors to work in the countryside. (250 are working already) The Catholic church is angry because the East Timor Constitution provides for a secular Government which separates the State from the Church.They demonise Alkatiri as a Muslim devil.

Australia wants Alkatiri's resignation and openly encourages the rebel elements with constant media coverage of a deserter who sought to overthrow the democratically elected Government by force and encouraged the present violence and arson by young militias.

Understand that Fretilin is defending the Constitution and Alkatiri will not resign.
An election is scheduled for next year and it is in that forum where the future of East Timor lies.

The Howard Government's agenda is clearly for "regime change". Their preferred candidate is Jose Ramos Horta who is not elected and is not likely to stand for election because contrary to western opinion, is not widely acceptable.

East Timor did not want the UN to withdraw so early but this was a preference of Australia and the US most likely to placate Indonesia As it happens, Alkatiri asked for police to help quell the violence, not Military.

The East Timorese people deserve support in their move towards democracy and less uninformed, misguided undermining of a Government trying to govern for the Majority not the elites.

Hey Maracas...
I don't think we always see eye to eye on some things, but I sure appreciate your comprehensive account of the various factions and forces at work in E.Timor. Outstanding.

You must have access to a considerable body of information most of us are not privy to, or have a particular interest in this area.

What I complement you on, is how you highlighted the Cuban doctors, the Timor Gap the Catholic church re Alkatiri and the such like, and how various external interests are all seeking to benefit from and shape the place according to their own interests.

Aspects you did not touch on, and if u have details I'd appreciate knowing about are:

1/ Where do the Transmigrants brought in by Indonesia fit into this puzzle in terms of loyalties alleigances ?
2/ The Rebel leader does not seem to represent Indonesian interests, yet he is in West Timor geographically, which is seen to be pro Indo.
Any comment on that ?

We need to apply the same analytical approach to Australia itself. In particular to the pressures on our own cultural and ethnic mix, by whom and for what reasons and who's interests are ultimately served by diluting our heritage.

Maracas,
You gave an overview of East Timorese history, but what you don't say is most relevant to our discussion. Governments are usually given a period of 100 days in office to prove they have achieved something. Fretilin has had 4 years. Conveniently, you have said nothing about the part of Timor's history that is most relevant - the last 4 years. I want to know how many jobs has Fretilin created for its people? You don't have to believe me about the terrible harm being done to the country by the Altakiri government. Just watch it on your TV screens every night. Watch the looting and killings. Watch the demonstrations calling for Alkatiri's resignation. Are you saying the protesters are paid? How many are demonstrating in his favour? Fretilin is the new Golkar. Its legacy will be the same as that of all the other African countries that they model their governance on - poverty, dictatorship, human rights abuse and then more poverty again....

BOAZ_David,
1. Almost all the Indonesian transmigrants have gone home to a better country.
2. The rebel leader just wants a better deal for his country - the country he fought for. He's not aligned to Indonesia.

Why do some people automatically assume I am pro-Indonesian when I attempt to clarify some points that have been obscured for so long? I am definitely not. Rather I feel compassion for the ordinary people who have sufferred so much as a result of the machinations of the Catholic church and the latte lefties.
After 350 years of catholicism only 3% of the population were literate. The church kept the conflict going for all those years while Indonesia pumped in $100 million per year trying to stabilise the situation. They educated a generation of East Timorese in Indonesian universities and created a civil service and decent infrastrucure.
I went to the camps around Atambua and saw the homeless, stateless people living in abject poverty, there only crime to have voted for the status quo.
One of the main problems for East Timor is overpopulation caused by the Catholic churche's attitude to contraception. Condoms are not allowed in East Timor and almost every woman has 10 kids.
From my experience in East Timor I know that the people there are violent by nature, even if it is more likely to be referred to as 'emotional'. Traditionally they were headhunters.
Bottom line is that Australia has scored itself a dead-end colony when a better aproach may have been the tying of aid money to genuine reforms throughout Indonesia so that all Indonesians could have been free'ed from the filthily corrupt elite that keeps the masses poor. My main intention is to cause the do-gooders to think a bit more deeply before they create a similar disaster in West Papua.