Word: timorous
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Even a Nobel Peace Prize can't ward off bloodshed in East Timor. President José Ramos-Horta won the award in 1996 for his tireless efforts to free his nation from a repressive occupation by Indonesia, and ever since has commanded respect both internationally and from a majority of his people. But his legacy of peace was shattered on Monday morning, when renegade East Timorese soldiers attacked his home on the outskirts of the capital, Dili, shooting Ramos-Horta at least twice in the torso. The East Timorese president was airlifted to Darwin, Australia, where hospital staff have characterized...
Meanwhile, the regime brooked no opposition. Behind the President's smile were very sharp teeth. Student activists would vanish, dissident writers and journalists jailed. Thousands were killed in Aceh, where a separatist rebellion simmered for 29 years; and more than 200,000 are believed to have perished in East Timor after Indonesia invaded the tiny Portuguese enclave in 1975. (East Timor has since established its independence from Indonesia...
...Alexander Downer "Being Foreign Minister is the second best thing in politics in Australia." Experience: Foreign Affairs Minister since 1996; former Liberal leader Scion of an Adelaide political dynasty, Downer has led Australia's forays into world affairs for a decade, from peacekeepers in East Timor and the Solomons to combat troops to Afghanistan and Iraq. He has energetically promoted ties with Asia, notably Indonesia and China, but is reportedly keen to swap departure lounges for budgets if Costello becomes...
...could go Nigeria's way so far as oil is concerned. Cambodia, which is still recovering from the Khmer Rouge era, ranks near the bottom of Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, and does not possess the institutions to monitor how the government uses its new oil riches. East Timor's economy will have almost no other foundations - studies estimate over 90% of government revenues eventually will come from oil. Before its latest brutal crackdown on peaceful protestors, Burma's military regime already demonstrated such little concern for its people that it reportedly spent among the lowest on health care...
...Some Southeast Asian governments seem to want to learn from the mistakes committed by other countries. East Timor has created a national petroleum fund to save revenues for future generations. Dili has also enlisted advisers from Norway, one of the best examples of putting black gold to good use, to manage its oil money. But noble intentions are not enough. East Timor NGOs worry that their country's oil laws are so vague that they open the door to mismanagement and skimming. A damning World Bank-Indonesia joint study earlier this year showed Indonesia was struggling to spend state funds...