In the Country of Tombstones, a Diplomatic Breakthrough
More than a decade after its hard-earned independence, Timor-Leste has achieved another diplomatic breakthrough with its former colonist - Indonesia - by processing the Indonesian government’s overdue pension payments for East Timor’s 22,000 former Indonesian employees.
According to local government officials, payments were transferred to the Timorese National Bank earlier this year; the program has commenced in July this year. Under the supervision of SEPFOPE (Secretariat of State for Vocational Training and Employment), the payments will be made available until December this year, benefiting the country’s former Indonesian policemen, military officers and public servants.
Under Indonesian rule, Timorese subjects were allowed to work for Suharto’s military government, mostly by assuming positions in law enforcement. After the fall of Suharto’s regime in 1998, the Reformation era and growing voices for Independence led to Indonesian forces abruptly withdrawing from East Timor -- leaving the question of state pensions for former Indonesian employees in East Timor unaddressed. The rights of former Indonesian government employees to the pensions have since been a primary concern. Discussions regarding severance pay began as early as 2000, with both Indonesia’s government and the United Nations Transitional administration in East Timor regarding it as a crucial step towards reconciliation.
This adds yet another milestone to the list of diplomatic successes between the two nations. Respective governments have been quick to reconcile since the East Timor’s violent split in 1999, and establish diplomatic relations based on extensive trade and restorative justice. The delayed pensions reflects one of many unsolved issues during and after its occupation which both governments are eager to address and resolve.
The diplomatic turnaround after East Timor’s restoration is nothing short of a miracle. After Indonesia’s invasion and occupation of East Timor in 1975, the local population faced gross infringements on human rights. The Suharto regime enforced its grip on the country through mass graves, torture chambers, and resettlement camps. During this 24-year occupation, over 200,000 people, or approximately one-third of the state’s population, lost their lives. Largely unnoticed by the international radar, the occupation was brought to light when a peaceful pro-independence protest in Dili was shot at by Indonesian troops in the infamous Santa Cruz massacre. The occupation ended in 1999, when the country was placed under a UN-maintained peace, which would last for another three years.
Dili, the capital city of Timor-Leste, remains a city of tombstones. However, its people have rebounded from the Santa Cruz Massacre to embrace their former oppressors. As the country strives to reach its seemingly insurmountable millennial goals, from decreasing its abysmal infant mortality rates to managing agriculture more efficiently, it realizes that rapport with Indonesia is crucial to its welfare. Today, Indonesia is East Timor’s largest trading partner, and expects to increase its share in future years. East Timor still lacks the expertise to manage its forestry, fishery and farming industries, and has thus turned to its neighbor for food, among other basic necessities.
Disputes on border demarcations continue be an issue unresolved. In 2013, the two nations agreed at Timorese President Vascolcenos’s official visit to Jakarta that one of the three demarcation segments - Dilumil/Memo - has been agreed upon. However, as long as border disputes continue, Indonesian visits to the districts of Oeccuse will remain constricted. Despite key disagreements, both governments have voiced an urgency to reach a consensus and direct resources towards increasing Indonesia’s business ventures and East Timor’s economic potential.
East Timor’s optimistic, forgiving attitude and Indonesia’s eagerness to correct its wrongs could - and should - be a model for countries in gridlocks due to similar concerns. Times and regimes have changed, so should the dialogue.