THE OFFICIAL WEB SITE OF THE MADISON TIMES WEEKLY NEWSPAPER

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

East Timor Today:

The struggle continues

By Laura Salinger

Madison residents Inga and Tom Foley recently spent over three weeks in the small country of East Timor. As members of the Madison-Ainaro Sister-City Alliance 2004 delegation, they delivered medical aid and reconstruction supplies and joined efforts to help expand Ainaro’s community-radio program. The Foleys spoke to a modest group in downtown Madison recently about their experience to raise support and awareness about the small country that has faced years of turmoil.

East Timor, the eastern half of a mountainous island 400 miles north of Australia, was a Portugese colony for over four centuries, from the 1500s to the mid-1970s. The country gained independence in 1974 when Portugal withdrew from the country, but nationhood was short-lived. East Timor was rich in resources: Oil and natural gas were discovered off the coast of Timor in the early 1900s; and the island had other natural resources as well, such as marble and the right conditions for growing coffee beans. On Dec. 7, 1975, Indonesia invaded East Timor with the approval of U.S. leaders, who gave military aid and continued to do so throughout the occupation.

Indonesia’s occupation of East Timor, from 1975 to 1999, was brutal. More than 200,000 East Timorese were killed in campaigns of violence through forced starvation, or by disease, and their natural resources were pillaged.

In 1998, the Indonesian people forced the resignation of then Indonesian dictator Suharto. It was during Suharto’s regime that the people of East Timor had been subjected to the most brutality.

On Aug. 30, 1999, the East Timorese were allowed to vote for their independence. Despite  threats of violence and persecution from the Indonesian government should they vote for independence, the East Timorese showed up to the voting booths in full force.

"Ninety-five percent of the people voted in the elections," Tom Foley said. "Close to 80 percent of the people voted for independence."

With such a victory, it would seem that the country could now only move forward. The Indonesia-backed militia thought otherwise. Following the vote, they left a wake of destruction as they headed out of East Timor. Thousands were killed, houses and towns were burned, and a quarter-million people were taken forcibly to Indonesia. Ainaro, a town in southwestern East Timor, was among the hardest hit.

"In Ainaro, a town in the mountainous southwest of the country, the Indonesian military-backed militia were numerous and ruthless in 1999," Madison-Ainaro Sister-City Alliance organizer Diane Farsetta said. "Ninety-five percent of all buildings, including the only hospital and all the town’s schools, [were] destroyed following the vote for independence."

Ainaro and the rest of the country now faced the extraordinary task of developing a government and rebuilding their country. The Madison community set out to help the town of Ainaro do just that. On Feb. 20, 2001, the Madison Common Council voted unanimously to make Ainaro an official Madison sister city. It was the first East Timor community to become a sister with any U.S. city.

"Timor has never been one to be on the radar screen," Tom Foley said. "It doesn’t mean that the people don’t deserve some attention. They have been through so much."

The Foleys witnessed a number of problems on their visit to Ainaro. The roads from Ainaro to other cities, including the capital Dili, are bumpy and unpredictable. There are no phone lines, and Ainaro has electric power only from 6 p.m. to midnight every day. The water supply is unpredictable and unsafe to drink, unless it is boiled. Agricultural support is needed, and unemployment is rampant. Hunger is very apparent on the faces of some Ainaro citizens.

"Unemployment is a huge problem, because the economy is basically starting from nothing," Tom Foley said. "There are still problems with hunger. There is not really starvation, but a lot of people are underfed."

Despite the challenges  Ainaro and its residents face, many good things are taking place, the Foleys said. A community-radio station, currently being transmitted from the town’s police station, has taken root in this city of roughly 4,300 people.

On this last trip, the Madison-Ainaro Sister City Alliance made a substantial donation to help Ainaro construct a building to house the studio. The alliance also donated tools to a youth-training center in Ainaro, which is teaching young people carpentry and other skills. Another alliance donation was tree seeds to aid in their reforestation efforts; the delegation observed that Ainaro citizens are becoming better schooled in sustainable agriculture. Tom Foley, a self-employed guitar maker, donated 10 intricately designed guitars to the people of East Timor.

While there is still much work to be done, there is improvement in Ainaro and in the rest of East Timor. The Madison Sister-City Alliance will continue its support of the people of Ainaro and their community rebuilding. Though they have been through so much, the people of East Timor are extraordinarily resilient.

"For all the poorness, they are some of the nicest people I have ever met," Inga Foley said. "They have nothing, but they don’t think twice about having you on their porch and feeding you coffee and biscuits."