The deep guilty feeling is still there, almost unconsciously embedded deep inside many Indonesians towards people of Timor-Leste as the nation is experiencing a deja vu of circling back to the duo of Jose Ramos-Horta as their president and Xanana Gusmao as their prime minister.
It should be better this time around, though, with more wisdom and experience, gained through the years. But in their late 70’s the window is fast closing and time is ticking for them to deliver after leading their nation to independence from Indonesia more than 20 years ago.
More than two decades after the tiny half-island state seized their independence from its giant neighbor, Indonesian officials, intellectuals, journalists and scholars, who all visited the inauguration of Xanana Gusmao as the country’s new prime minister on Saturday (July 1), could not hide the guilt they felt over what Indonesia’s military and ruling elites had done to Timor-Leste.
Indonesia’s former deputy foreign minister Dino Patti Djalal, a highly-regarded diplomat who as a young official was handling Timor-Leste around the time of its independence, expressed his emotion to people attended a gathering at the Indonesian embassy in Dili a day before the inauguration by stating that Indonesia has betrayed people of Timor-Leste, and broke its own commitment to leave the nation in peace, and make sure there was nothing destroyed and killed behind.
But it was exactly these destruction and killings that Indonesia had left behind, badly tainted not only the nobility of then President Habibie’s decision to give Timor-Leste its right for referendum but also Indonesia’s image in the world. Using Dino’s words: “never in my life I felt so ashamed of myself then standing at that UN meeting listening to the UN Secretary General requesting all attendance to pray for UN officers killed by Indonesian militias in Timor-Leste.”
Meanwhile, Philips J. Vermonte, Indonesian scholar dan dean at the newly established University International Islam Indonesia who was here for the inauguration, said jokingly every time we bought merchandise from local shop owners: “Just a token of pay back for what Indonesia had done to this country.”
Dino even went a bit further in expressing how willing was Indonesia to see its former colony to prosper, saying that Timor-Leste is the only country in the world Indonesia never asked “What will we get in return? What can you do for us?” when forging a relation.
Christine Hakim, regarded as Indonesia’s biggest actress, stated that what all of us had to do is do what best for people of Timor-Leste.
The attempt to get over the past is obviously mutual. Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta invited more Indonesian figures than those from any other countries for the inaugurations, while called them “my Indonesian friends.” Xanana stopped as soon as he saw a group of Indonesians walking to his inauguration ceremony, shaking hands with former Indonesia’s cabinet secretary Dipo Alam, Pradono Handojo, director of Muhammadiyah Hospital, and author Okky Madasari.
People on the street also quickly responded in Bahasa Indonesia while smiling whenever they were greeted in the language as if no more acrimony was felt.
But making up for brutal colonizing that caused nothing but misery and conflicts for more than 25 years for people here require much more than just expression of guilt and rhetorics of redemption.
The question is how this guilty feeling and the willingness to redeem such past crimes could be translated into supporting Timor-Leste to progress without sparking the reminiscent of a colonizer who plays a savior, coming to civilize local people.
In fact, in term of civility, Timor-Leste has been regarded by the UN as the region’s most democratic nation, with higher democracy index than Indonesia.
For this, the way forward is encouragement of much more organic cooperation between Indonesian and Timor Leste people as equal partners, with the emphasis on what the people here need, like education, environment to innovate and critical thinking, health care and collaboration in research, science and technology.
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One immediate concrete step is for Indonesian private and public education institutions to provide as many scholarships to Timor Leste young people to study across Indonesia, or even open schools here.
Indonesian hospitals can also open their branches across Timor-Leste.
The next Indonesia’s move that matters and show its genuineness that it wants Timorese to advance is to push harder for Timor Leste to be a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) now that Indonesia is still the chair of the grouping.
President Joko Widodo must push for Timor Leste to be an ASEAN member when he chairs the grouping’s summit in November. There should be no more delay. It can be done while waiting for Timor-Leste to catch up, not the other way round. If Myanmar can maintain its membership despite committed crimes against humanity, and humiliating ASEAN globally, why Timor-Leste, the most democratic country in Asia, can’t? If Laos, a more or less equal economy to Timor Leste can, why Timor Leste can’t?
In his speech for the inauguration ceremony, Ramos-Horta expressed the importance of an ASEAN membership, highlighting the potential it offers for Timor-Leste’s future.
“The integration into ASEAN provides opportunities toTimor-Leste to fulfil its interests and strategic development goals…”
But whatever it is, this nation and its people deserve better. The return of the duo of Xanana and Ramos-Horta is one step to be better on the condition that they must quickly prepare the next leaders who are even more capable and strong than they are. Otherwise, their return as ruling duo will be nothing more than a repetition of history and ambition to keep power as long as possible.
Speculations have circulated that China will soon put the country under its thumb with its money and might. But those who have followed Ramos-Horta, Xanana and people of Timor-Leste know that this is a premature speculation.
Their decades of resistance against Indonesia show that Timor-Leste people are a fighter, has been and will always be that way. In the long run they will turn out to be fine with or without Indonesia, Australia, or China.
As we were strolling along the beach and looking the Cristo rei statue, not far down east, we felt there is something almost magical and innocent about Timor Leste that captivate whoever come here, and pull them to be always be back. It could be the raw genuineness of its people or the always bright and fresh air, or it could be the feeling of the raw optimism despite the circumstances, and decades of suffering.
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