Timor-Leste triumph of self-determination.

On the eve of Timor-Leste becoming the 191st member of the United Nations, Prime Minister Man Alkaitiri and Foreign Minister Jose Ramos-Horta engaged in a candid discussion at the Asia Society in New York about the future of their country. Timor-Leste--formerly known as East Timor, governed by Indonesia following centuries of Portuguese rule and engulfed in violence and chaos in the wake of the 1999 referendum for independence--had become the newest nation-State on 20 May 2002.

After reading a speech by President Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao, Mr. Ramos-Horta, Nobel Peace Laureate, had a discussion with Mr. Alkaitiri and lan Martin, Vice-President of the International Center for Transnational Justice, on the challenges facing Asia's newest and poorest nation. Mr. Martin, formerly Head of the United Nations Mission in East Timor (UNAMET), was responsible for conducting the referendum and had worked closely with both Ministers over the past years to help realize their country's dream of independence.

Mr. Ramos-Horta said that "the UN agencies and the international community have been extremely supportive", and three years' worth of budgetary needs would be met by the various pledges made. However, describing the country's fledgling infrastructure, he spoke of the dangers of building a nation with so little foundation. The Ministers urged developed countries to offer not lust financial assistance but also aid through education, experience and training, without causing the much-dreaded "brain-drain" syndrome that has afflicted other developing countries.

Both Ministers commended the resolve of the people of Timor-Leste for "keeping the flame alive" and being committed to a belief in self-governance, however remote it may have seemed. Mr. Ramos-Horta also praised the endurance of the Indonesian people who had returned to democracy after being stifled as well by a dictatorship for years. He was quick to point out that there are many other peoples across the globe, equally courageous and often with greater resources, who are not yet free. He emphasized that Timor-Leste's victory was due to numerous outside influences: "Our triumph is not only because of our own doing, but because of the coalition partnership of many others."

He noted that Timor-Leste and Indonesia have made sound progress diplomatically, with Timor-Leste indicating its dire need for domestic improvements and infrastructure development, specifically maintaining social and political stability while attempting to stimulate the economy--all of which would be greatly aided by amicable relations with its neighbouring countries.

Myriad crises face Timor-Leste, ranging from the repatriation of thousands who fled the violence in the past years to prosecuting persons responsible for the savage and atrocious acts, while witnessing the gradual withdrawal of the UN mission. Finding a balance between retribution and justice while preserving stability and peace has been a notoriously difficult task for nations that have emerged from violence, and Timor-Leste's underdeveloped, understaffed institutions and its war-ravaged people will be put to a gruelling test.

"This road will be a bumpy one", the Foreign Minister conceded. "It will be unrealistic to think that there would not be any problems". Nurturing a nation and satisfying a people pose the gravest threats--corruption, violence and dictatorship--and have consumed other developing nations and weakened their potential. In President Gusmao's words: "As a newly independent country, we can learn from both the mistakes and the successes of other countries. The advantage of being a latecomer provides the opportunity to avoid mistakes that have trapped many other poor countries." Although he hoped that Timor-Leste would avoid these pitfalls, Mr. Ramos-Horta said that the only way to truly test his people's resolve would be to watch his nation unfold over the coming years.