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1/4/2001 - The Youngest Nation by Curt Gabrielson

ICWA LETTERS Since Institute Current World Affairs Crane Rogers Foundation provided fellowships enable outstanding young professionals outside United States write about international areas issues An exempt operating foundation endowed Charles R Crane Institute supported contributions minded individuals foundations TRUSTEES Carole Beaulieu Mary Lynne Bird Steven Butler William F Foote Pramila Jayapal Peter Bird Martin Ann Mische Dorothy S Patterson Paul A Rahe Carol Rose Chandler Rosenberger John Spencer Edmund Sutton Dirk J Vandewalle Sally Wriggins HONORARY TRUSTEES David Elliot David Hapgood Pat M Holt Edwin S Munger Richard H Nolte Albert Ravenholt Phillips Talbot Institute Current World Affairs The Crane Rogers Foundation Four West Wheelock Street Hanover New Hampshire 03755 U S A CG Southeast Asia Curt Gabrielson science teacher Institute Fel observing establishment education East Timor The Youngest Nation By Curt Gabrielson JANUARY DILI East Timor On arrival East Timor I stood sweating outside house scant shade papaya watched children Shriek running group dozen occupied themselves hours different games which sophisticated equipment plastic other tightly compressed plastic I impressed wondered youth I California could match creativity enthusiasm I witnessed these Our short street capital Dili happens shelter hundred including residents Catholic orphanage I East Timor because I interested these Specifically I learn I watching development education system newest nation world Last schools East Timor destroyed sacked Two thirds teachers Indonesian nearly returned Indonesia The entire cation system collapsed organs government Now East Timorese begun constructing system their design The shape style education system emerges great impact future people I delighted opportunity ICWA given during critical East Timor history I I insight children East Timor I convey I learn these newsletters When Dili notice distance announce urgently other Malae Malae Then closer exclaim litely Hello Meester If their offer Catholic Portuguese Louisa Constancio If their nickname distinctly local syllable often giggle For years leading Portuguese present Timor another Missionaries pirates traders sometimes diplomats government Portugal these colonists large influence cultures East Timor But original foreigners East Timor Malae South East Asian people Malaysia Indonesia Building obsolete termi nology East Timorese Europeans Malae Mutin mutin white Africans Malae Metan metan black Chinese Malae Xina My partner Pamela I group Malae present East Timor With thousand soldiers UN Peace Keeping Force thousand other internationals doing various sorts which Dili chance practice their En glish Muscular Portuguese berets direct traffic around intersections modern missionaries Au stralia United States stride through narrow streets looking potential converts civil servants world stumble busily around UN quarters To explain influx foreigners violence place early East Timor still official colony Portugal In Portugal sulted relatively liberal Portu guese government allowed East Timor preparations dependence Political parties formed decolonization process begun Indonesian ernment began covert opera tions bringing East Timor under influence Much false propaganda distributed ultimately short civil incited By Indo nesian efforts proved fective independent cialist government emerged Dili enormous popular support On December Indonesian military called ABRI invaded East Timor The committed heinous atrocities against local population cluding systematic killings targeting politi leaders ABRI forces killed Timorese directly bombs bullets within after close third invasion population result occupation The international commu East Timorese government repeatedly pleaded proved dubious Both United States Australia knowledge invasion before occurred steps U S President Ford Secretary State Kissinger Jakarta before invasion asked delayed until their country Alto gether United Nations General Assembly Secu Council raised different resolutions Timor issue U S Australia other western nations consistently blocked action rectify situation According U S ambassador U N Patrick Moynihan The U S Department State desired United Nations prove utterly ineffective whatever measures undertook Timor issue This given I carried forward inconsider success The U S supplied percent initial invasion East Timor contin provided training weapons ABRI throughout occupation I asked friends acquaintances about their personal experiences during occupation It painful listen shame strong feelings I about U S complicity their suffering My neigh Pedru father story Tetum lingua franca East Timor Portuguese Bahasa Indonesia Mumbai other local dialect Pedru unemployed He spoke Tetum small attered family pictures Pedru common soldier Portu guese As Portugal pulling government He never fought years soldier interested doing He children invasion On invasion Pedru family ABRI violence Dili He followed soldiers their secret bases jungle central Timor There family stayed three years They house fields All children there hunger sickness After three years Pedru brother developed lations leaders their mountain refuge He tiously Dili found place Soon Pedru return They started family lived years skirts Dili before Pedru found employment He raised pitiful sidehill fields whatever could generate When family money bought When their primary cassava roots Pedru survivor He never school picked In donesian language picked Portuguese chatting Malae listening their versation whenever could He enough Indonesian achieve position Dili regional department agriculture His improved steady salary things going right family during In during period economic crisis widespread dissent Indo nesia nation President Suharto forced By international solidarity East Timor built great pressure Jakarta address East Timor issue Suharto successor B J Habibe yielded January agreed requested erendum monitored U N would ecide future East Timor Habibe promised outcome would honored Jakarta Representatives U N Indonesia Portugal negotiated terms referendum In Indo nesian police military forces charge curity U N presence East Timor completely unarmed The results disas trous In months leading referendum local Indonesia militias strengthened militias formed under rection support Indonesian military called TNI TNI forces brought numbers territory distributed The militias carried several massacres taking lives hundreds East Timorese intense intimi dation including foreigners The militias promised complete destruction country turned independence On August percent those registered turned My partn Pamela dreds foreigners present observe tifies continued intimi dation militia TNI sonnel around polling stations However there gross violations during voting ballot counting results nounced later In incredible courage tenacity count showed percent East Timorese population favor independence Indone But planned destruction ready begun In three weeks TNI militias stroyed percent infrastructure East Timor They burned entire villages killed thousand people including priests forced approximately East Timorese their country camps Indonesian West Timor other islands Hundreds thousands again mountains Before U N distributed literature created large billboards stating would abandon people East Timor after Within after results announced U N diminished around people holed U N compound Dili Militia surrounded pound fired weapons walls night Almost other foreigners present intimidated evacuating East Timor Pamela TNI Indonesian police dramatically escorted airport through streets marauding militia TNI claimed militia their control people local interna tional witness collusion teamwork tween TNI militia The international community hesitantly discussed debated possible actions taken Presi Clinton waited after start atroci U S weapon sales Indonesia refused organize international force intervene Australia New Zealand Philippines others ticulously planned strategies intervention includ drops those stranded mountains before Jakarta agreement I found Pedru experiences during after erendum typical Scared militia intimidation family stayed their house possible weeks leading Being conspicuous invite trouble supplies He Indonesian leaders promising clothes houses favor Indonesia After referendum Pedru watched terror streets descended chaos When opportunity could carry forest The place where ended crowded people Pedru worked together guard their militias This remarkable statement weapons militias armed They lived forest three weeks eating could often going hungry thirsty Scouts their group would descend periodically check situation Dili The little colony refugees eventually Australian ships coast could doing On September after announcement referendum results after destructive plans TNI militias essentially carried untold numbers hunger thirst mountains multinational military force Australia landed East Timor coordination departure Indonesian forces The painful Indonesian occupation Pedru family returned their house burned someone squatting Pedru money house moved house relatives He hopes INSTITUTE OF CURRENT WORLD AFFAIRS Rebuilding market S place future money The current feeling East Timor tense There minor skirmishes border flare surrounding families returning West Timor Re efforts winding families shelter requirements Evidence destruction present charred build piles rubble Overall Timorese people greatly relieved living terror overt control still strong healthy skepticism foreign UN I speaking friend works local human rights organization Your country colonizers I observed Yes first Portuguese Japanese during World War Two Indonesians UN World Bank replied This cynicism perhaps displayed visibly among East Timorese education leaders Though working under extreme limitations resources foreigners Many international agency turned without explanation offer proposal assistance Not educators express resistance foreigners though Fa Armindo Covalim trict Catholic school which school district running He teaches several classes religion every morning travels around parish helping other schools afternoon He country little It needs crawl Since there opportunities East Timorese leadership tions under Indonesians there learn Fa Armindo thinks foreign crucial quick healthy recov East Timor In coming months I become acquainted teachers students East Timor As Tetum improves I involved teacher train curriculum development peripheral manner using background hands science cation From vantage point I witness first extraordinary construction East Timor cation system larger context growth nation I another fellowship launched Institute Current World Affairs Neighborhood Christmas carols house nearly every night during before Christmas One elaborate nativity scenes sprung around Dili before Christmas For further information Aditjondro George J In Shadow Ramelau The Impact Occupation East Timor Indone Documentation Information Centre Leiden The Netherlands East Timor Action Network US website Jardine Mathew East Timor Genocide Paradise Odonian Press Monroe Maine USA Pinto Constancio Jardine Mathew East Timor Unfinished Struggle Inside Timorese Resis tance South End Press Boston Massachusetts USA Turner Michele Telling East Timor Personal Testimonies New South Wales University Press Kensington NSW Australia INSTITUTE OF CURRENT WORLD AFFAIRS INSTITUTE OF CURRENT WORLD AFFAIRS FELLOWS AND THEIR ACTIVITITES Shelly Renae Browning March AUSTRALIA A surgeon specializing hearing Dr Browning studying approaches traditional healers among Aborigines Australia hearing problems She B S Chemistry University South studied physician patient relationships China Australia Thomas J Watson Fellowship M D Emory University Atlanta Before ICWA fellowship Fellow Skull Base Surgery Montreal McGill University Department Otolaryngology Wendy Call May MEXICO A Healthy Societies Fellow Wendy spending years Mexico Isthmus Tehuantepec immerse contradictory trends attempt industrialize develop along proposed Caribbean Pacific containerized railway desire indigenous peoples preserve their Mexico remaining growth forests With B A Biology Oberlin Wendy worked communications coordinator Grassroots International national campaign director Infact corporate accountability organization Martha Farmelo April ARGENTINA A Georgetown graduate major psychology minor Spanish Master Public Affairs Woodrow Wilson School Princeton Martha Institute Suzanne Ecke McColl Fellow studying gender issues Argentina Married Argentine doctoral candidate mother small focusing genders which immensely important Italo Latino machismo Martha involved Latin America professional having worked Catholic Relief Services Inter American Development Bank Costa Rica Human Rights Watch Ecuador Inter American Foundation El Salvador Uruguay UN World Conference Women Beijing Gregory Feifer January RUSSIA With fluent Russian Master Harvard Gregory worked Moscow political editor Agence France Presse weekly Russia Journal Greg Russia latest failures economic political reform continuation failed attempts Westernization began Peter Great failures succession behind scenes elites Russia behind mythic facade strong rulers centuries He plans assess continuation these cultural underpinnings Russian governance Gorbachev Yeltsin succession Curt Gabrielson December EAST TIMOR With Missouri background MIT degree physics Curt spending years East Timor watching nation education system ashes Indonesian system Since finishing MIT Curt focused delivering inexpensive culturally relevant hands science education minority income students Based Teacher Institute Exploratorium San Francisco worked youth teachers Beijing Tibet Mexican agricultural Watsonville California Peter Keller March CHILE Public affairs officer Redwood National Park planner Yosemite National Park before fellowship Peter holds B S Recreation Re source Management University Montana Masters Envi ronmental Law Vermont Law School As John Miller Musser Me morial Forest Society Fellow spending years Chile Argen comparing operations parks forest reserves controlled Chilean Argentine governments those controlled private persons governmental organizations Leena Khan April PAKISTAN A lawyer dealing immigration international business Washington DC Leena study status women under islamization Pakistani began 1980s continues Born Pakistan immersed Persian Urdu literature grandfather Muslim herself holds B A North Carolina State University J D University San Diego Whitney Mason January TURKEY A freelance print television journalist Whit began career founding newspaper called The Siberian Review Novosibirsk worked editor Vladivostok News wrote Asiaweek magazine Hong Kong In switched radio video journalism working Bosnia Korea CBS As ICWA Fellow studying writing about Turkey nexus between East West between traditional secular Islam Jean Beno Nadeau December FRANCE A French Canadian journalist playwright Jean Beno studied drama National Theater School Montreal received B A McGill University Political Science History The holder several Canadian magazine investigative journalism awards spending ICWA fellowship years France studying resistance French trend economic cultural globalization ICWA Letters ISSN published Institute Current World Affairs Inc exempt operating dation incorporated New York State offices located West Wheelock Street Hanover NH 03755 The letters provided charge members ICWA available libraries professional researchers subscription Phone E Mail ICWA valley Fax Web Site Executive Director Peter Bird Martin Program Assistant Brent Jacobson Publications Manager Ellen Kozak Institute Curr World Affairs The Crane Rogers Foundation The information contained publication reproduced without writer permission Author Gabrielson Curt Title ICWA Letters South Asia ISSN Imprint Institute Current World Affairs Hanover NH Material Type Serial Language English Frequency Monthly Other Regions East Asia The Americas Mideast North Africa Europe Russia Sub Saharan Africa Institute Fellows chosen basis character previ experience promise They young professionals funded spend minimum years carrying designed programs study writing outside United States The Fellows required report their findings experiences field month They write subject formally informally The unique reporting analysis periodic sessment international events issues