The Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC), a civil society-led movement engaging governments, multi-laterals and other stakeholders to institute mechanisms to avoid violent conflicts, expresses its grave concern over the unfolding events in the world’s youngest country, Timor-Leste.
The Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC), a civil society-led movement engaging governments, multi-laterals and other stakeholders to institute mechanisms to avoid violent conflicts, expresses its grave concern over the unfolding events in the world’s youngest country, Timor-Leste.
Mindful of the continuing loss of lives and destruction to property and most importantly the emotional trauma still embedded by the East Timorese people under the 24-year despotic rule of the Indonesian military, we urge the committee organized by the government composed of representatives of the church, civil society and other relevant sectors, to swiftly address the situation by hastening its investigation of the grievances aired by the dismissed soldiers and collectively agree on binding and long-term peaceful solutions to the problem.
We also call on the committee to be transparent in all its processes and make public its findings to inform the East Timorese citizenry of the truth behind the April bloody riot and the simmering conflicts that ensued, which has deteriorated from bad to worse over the past weeks.
The unrest may be fueled by the population’s growing dissatisfaction over their situation which remains to be difficult — delivery of basic services remain scarce, access to economic opportunities to help meet even basic needs is nil if not absent. Added to this is the need to respond to the cry for justice over the atrocities committed by the Indonesian military during its occupation. And acting on the recommendation as outlined in the final report of CAVR (Commission on Reception Truth and Reconciliation) to give reparation to all the victims of violence may help alleviate the poverty experienced by majority of the population.
Timor Leste’s democracy remains to be fragile and its leadership has yet to win the full confidence of its population while it has made significant progress after it gained its independence in May 2002. The recent events in this newly-independent nation attest to this. This brings us to also reflect that much still has to be done and that the international community should continuously toil to help build the capacities of the East Timorese for them to be genuinely empowered in charting their own destiny.
We can only hope that no more untoward incidents will further occur in Timor Leste.
GPPAC offers its hand of solidarity and would gladly welcome any role the East Timorese see fit for us in these trying times.
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