Washington, Canberra hope to disarm Falintil
By Jon Land
Falintil, the armed wing of the East Timorese resistance, is under renewed pressure to disarm. Although Falintil has upheld a unilateral cease-fire and abided by security guidelines called for by the United Nations Assistance Mission in East Timor, there are continuing calls by the United States, Australia and Indonesia for Falintil guerillas to turn in their weapons. East Timorese resistance representatives have stated that Falintil will not disarm while the pro-integration gangs remain active and the Indonesian military is in East Timor.
Talks held at the UN in New York on July 15 and 16, involving representatives of Portugal, Indonesia and the secretary-general, discussed the security situation in East Timor and "post-ballot issues". It has not been made public what the issues under discussion were, but they are likely to have included the possible role of a UN security force in East Timor and the disarming of pro-integration and pro-independence groups.
On August 5, UN officials revealed that private talks involving Australia and the US proposed increasing the number of international police by an extra 200 to 300 and military liaison officers by at least another 200.
The July UN talks coincided with a strong condemnation of Indonesia by United States assistant secretary of state Stanley Roth on the ongoing support provided by the Indonesian military to the pro-integration gangs. However, as a warning to Falintil against resuming the armed struggle, Roth "emphasised" that "the United States condemns violence by all parties".
During his recent visit to Indonesia and East Timor, foreign affairs minister Alexander Downer stressed the need for the disarming of Falintil, along with the pro-integration gangs. On July 29, after he met with President B.J. Habibie and the chief of the armed forces, General Wiranto, Downer claimed that Wiranto "does not want to see his soldiers and police at risk", adding that this risk would be greater "the more heavily the two sides in East Timor are armed".
Yet the only side actively engaging in acts of violence — and threatening to continue such acts after the ballot — is the pro-integration gangs directly armed and funded by the Indonesian military. Human rights observers in East Timor report that the pro-integration gangs are stockpiling weapons (given to them by the Indonesian military) in preparation for attacks after the ballot.
Downer also supports Indonesian military and police remaining in East Timor for an unspecified period after the vote, saying, "There's no question that there will be an increased Indonesian security presence after the ballot".
With a better than expected turnout during the voter registration period, a strong vote in favour of independence is increasingly likely. While resistance leaders such as Xanana Gusmao and Jose Ramos Horta have repeatedly stressed that there will not be retribution against pro-integration supporters, analysts in the media are "predicting" that this will not be the case.
Tim Dodd, writing in the August 4 Australian Financial Review, for example, claimed, "When fear of the militias is lost, bloody paybacks could follow. The ideal solution would be to disarm Falintil and the militias".
The only ideal solution to the violence in East Timor is for the Indonesian military to withdraw and for the pro-integration gangs to disarm. Falintil is not the cause of violence. Falintil exists because of the popular support it receives from the East Timorese people, who recognise that it is their right to take up arms for the liberation of their nation.