Three decades ago, he was a ticklish campaign that wandered worldwide corridors of a dream to win independence for her little homeland. Today, at the age of 75, José Ramos-Horta is both president and ruthless seller for Eastern Timor.
He asked Chinese President XI Jinping to “help us solve the problem of agriculture, food and poverty safety.” He prayed with Vietnam leaders to do the same. He inserted Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed, the ruler of the United Arab Emirates, his dream of building student dormitory.
Mr. Ramos-Horta is under a strong pressure to maintain his nation-nation of Asian and One of his poorest. Home about 1.4 million people, East Timor is half of the island lying near the northern summit of Australia; The other half is part of Indonesia. For centuries, the Portuguese colony appeared as an independent state in 2002 after the brutal occupation of Indonesia. His economy, about two billion dollars, remains largely relying on oil and gas revenues, which evaporates quickly, and it is estimated that more than 40 percent of his people live in poverty.
“No country in Southeast Asia or Africa has started as we, from the ashes, of complete destruction,” said Mr. Ramos-Horta. But, he added: “In 22 years, we needed to solve the poverty of the child, the failure of the child, the failure of the mother and extreme poverty. So it was a failure. “
However, according to other measures, the Eastern Timor or Timor-Level, as known in Portuguese, is a success. She strengthened her young democracy, holding competitive elections with multiple power transfers. This is among the highest in Asia for the Freedom of the press. The expectation of life is About 70,, Worse than about 64 2002. The whole population now has access to electricity.
While politically motivated violence Independence followed, including an attempt to assassinate Mr. Ramos-Hort 2008, during its first term as president, the country is now stable.
The Eastern Timor is a positive case of a case for young post-confessional state, said Parker Novak, an Indo-Pacific expert in the Atlantic Council. “They built a rather resistant democracy. It’s something they are very proud of is right.”
In September, the visit of Pope Francis briefly put the Eastern Timor at the global center of attention. About 97 percent of the population identify as Roman Catholic, the inheritance of Portuguese colonizers and, more recently the main role that the church played In conquering independence from Indonesia. Some clergy fought for independence, and bishops and nuns protected people from Indonesian forces.
In Dilia, the capital, the streets were purified and the walls were freshly colored on a papal journey. Prime Minister, Xanana Gusmão, was out with a broom.
For one of the least visited countries in Asia, it was the main moment. Outside the dilia, the main center of the population, East Timor still feels like an intact paradise. High, lush mountains are surrounded by wide expanses of azure seas. There are few people on his white sandy beaches.
Francis’ arrival also resurrected the memories of the extinguished past. Bishop Carlos Ximenes Belo, one of the heroes of the Independence Movement, was charged with 2022 Sexually abused children Decades ago.
Few Timors talk about Bishop Bella, who remains widely respected. Mr. Ramos-Horta, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1996, together with Bishop Bela for their work to conquer independence, said that the thing “had been resolved several years ago by the Vatican” and that any restitution has already been made between the Church and victims.
Chinese factor
Based on the presidential palace in Dili, members of the public walk freely and sit in lush gardens.
Cinema made it all possible.
Beijing gave nearly $ 7 million For the construction of the Palace, which opened in 2009 (the US dollar is an official currency here.) Less than a mile are the Ministries of Defense and Foreign Affairs, and both have also built cinemas.
Mr. Ramos-Horta recounted that he had asked the Chinese ambassador to assist in pure water.
“Even before I went to China, Chinese engineers were already coming to Timor to look at water sources for irrigation and water supply communities,” he said. “Chinese, they are delivered very quickly.”
This reliance on China has triggered the fear of Beijing’s intentions in Eastern Timor, and what could mean for the United States, which enhanced its presence of troops in the Australian port city of Darwin, only a few miles from the Eastern Timor.
“When China considers investments in another developing country, they do so with one eye, surely on a sustainable job, but with another eye, to a great extent to a long -term strategic interest,” said Damien Kingsbury, professor of Emeritus at Deakin, University of Australia.
As Mr. Ramos-Horta took me to a tour of the palace, he rejected those fears, saying that “China is not a threat to the world.”
He said Beijing reluctant to help more, such as the construction of the police, because he was aware of American and Australian sensitivity. He added that the Eastern Timor does not borrow money from China without the only arrangement for military security with Australia.
Not ‘hostages of the past’
Mr. Ramos-Horta loves to share anecdotes. One referred to the invasion of Indonesia President, Prabowo Subiano, in Singapore in July. said Mr. Prabowo for his younger brother Mr. Ramos-Hort, his close friend.
“It’s a level of friendship we have with Indonesian leaders,” Mr. Ramos-Horta said.
The same Mr. Prabowo who led the terrible unit of the Kopassus special forces that slaughtered hundreds in Eastern Timor during the Indonesian occupation?
The Indonesian army moved for days after the Portuguese left in 1975, after The United States illuminated the invasion of. According to some estimates, as many as 200,000 people were killed before they allowed the 1999 referendum. Mr. Ramos-Horta lost four brothers and sisters.
However, in the confession that Indonesia paid tribute to the results of the referendum, Mr. Ramos-Horta said that he and Mr. Gusmão, the Prime Minister, decided that he would not allow “we alone hostage of the past.”
“We respect the victims. We bury the dead, but we look forward to.”
He said that when he and Mr. Gusmão first heard that Mr. Prabowo was chosen, Mr. Gusmão was “very happy” and gave him his thumbs.
“Those who were here, during difficult times, have the greatest emotional connection” with the Eastern Timor, said Mr. Ramos-Horta, adding that such people would support the stability of the country more.
Famous challenges
A quarter of a century after the Indonesians left, many heroes of independence East Timor remain in the Government. While Mr. Gusmão fought in the jungles, Mr. Ramos-Horta spent decades in exile for decades, lobbying for freedom. He served as an Foreign Minister, the Prime Minister and is now in his second term as president.
“People feel obliged to them, they have released the land from a terrible military occupation,” said Charles Scheiner, a La’o Hamutuk researcher, local advocacy groups. “Everyone in this country has a family killed by an Indonesian army, and many of them survived from torture and rape.”
But the victory of sovereignty is different from running the earth.
Analysts say that instead of using oil and gas revenues for improvement of dilated schools and the development of fishing and agricultural industries, officials directed them to creating inflated bureaucracy and paying those involved in violence after independence of great pensions to “buy peace”. The World Bank warned that the Eastern Timor moves toward a “Harmful fiscal cliff” by 2035.
“The fundamental assumption of democracy is that it would lead to better policy creation,” said Guteriano Neves, an independent analyst of politics based in Dilia. “But not.”
Mr. Ramos-Horta is counted on the development of a gas field at sea, called a larger sunrise, which will bring a much needed revenue. Although coffee remains great export, Mr. Ramos-Horta effectively speaks of the development of Eastern Timor as an air cargo or the Pharmaceutical Product Center. He also hopes to join the Southeast Asia Association to facilitate regional trade.
The odds are long. Negotiations for the larger field of sunrise are continued, and it is expected to undergo at least five years of development before they generate any income. Tourism remains unused because of several commercial flights. Internet speeds still crawl.
About 25 minutes away from Dili, in the village of Ulmer, Alda Bisoi Correia, 74, she recalled why she voted for independence. She was terrified of pro-Indonesian militia, but said she was “our last opportunity” to take up. Today he wonders what was everything.
“Independence did not make us a difference,” she said.
Mrs. Correia said the government did not supply water. Her family cannot afford a refrigerator. Her son is a security guard. His adopted daughter Sandra Correia Lopes, 12, weighs only 12 pounds, or 26 pounds, and often gets sick.
As the dusk turned around at night, Sandra sat down for dinner. It was a plate of rice and vegetables that the aunt cooked over the firewood. It will take almost a month before her family can afford to serve meat.
Hit carvalho de Jesus contribute to reporting.
