Word: indonesian
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...What's behind the current violence? The Timorese have bitterly resisted the Indonesian invasion over the past 24 years, and the territory was never fully pacified. Timorese such as guerrilla leader Xanana Gusmao and 1996 Nobel Peace Prize winners Jose Ramos Horta and Bishop Carlos Belo have fought for independence throughout Indonesia's occupation. Indonesia is estimated to have killed as many as 100,000 Timorese in its failed attempts to colonize East Timor...
...January of this year, Indonesia's new president, B. J. Habibie, attempted to boost his international credibility by offering East Timor a referendum on its status. In the August poll, 78 percent of the electorate chose independence, but pro-Indonesia militias ? backed by Indonesian military officers ? then launched a reign of terror against the pro-independence majority...
...Will East Timor get an international peacekeeping force, and which countries would send troops? Indonesia's failure to keep its commitment to ensure security in East Timor has raised the clamor for an international peacekeeping force to replace Indonesian troops. Jakarta has thus far resisted the idea, at least until the Indonesian parliament recognizes East Timor's independence ? which will take at least a month, and is far from a done deal. Nobody is advocating that peacekeepers fight their way in, which means that right now the international community is raising pressure on Indonesia to accept such a force. Australia...
...Indonesia the cure or the cause of East Timor's turmoil? While the Indonesian government professes neutrality and vows that it will restore order in the territory, even its foreign minister has been forced to admit that what he called "rogue elements" of the Indonesian army are directly involved in the violence. The anti-independence militias are widely believed to have been organized, armed and in some cases even directed by members of the Indonesian military, and Indonesian troops have done nothing to restrain the militias' rampage...
...being ignored by his armed forces, but they actually forced him to reluctantly declare martial law in the territory after the referendum result was announced. Some analysts believe that East Timor may also have become caught in the crossfire of a struggle for power between different factions within the Indonesian military itself...