AS we look at the region around us today we see great turmoil and suffering.
We see our neighbours in East Timor , the Solomons , Fiji and Tonga all experiencing violent internal strife.
Our Australian Government has dispatched both defence force and Federal Police contingents to these areas in the hope of restoring stability, but despite their gallant and commendable efforts, our search for lasting peace remains elusive.
While the majority of people in all these countries want simply to live in peace, their extraordinary circumstances have led to disenfranchised people on the margins resorting to violence.
Police and soldiers cannot restore stability by their efforts alone .The sources of discord and discontent have to be addressed substantially. Both government and non-government agencies can assist here.
As someone who has served as peacemaker and peacekeeper in most of these conflict areas I would like to analyse what might be going on to fuel these conflicts and what strategies might be needed to contribute to a more peaceful outcomes, particularly from a Christian perspective..
The crisis in East Timor has been reignited in recent days and an analysis of its situation is illustrative of the difficulties and the solutions needed across most of these situations.
Several factors have contributed to the current situation:
- The total destruction of infrastructure in 1999 , and little reconstruction.
- Endemic poverty and resulting frustration with government inaction.
- Widespread trauma within society that explodes under pressure.
- Power struggles between political factions.
- Insufficient depth and competence in national institutions.
- A loss of respect for the rule of law by violent youth gangs.
The roots of conflict in most of our regional areas have their genesis in the inability of tribal/ village/family peoples to integrate into a Western federal democratic political system able to compete in a global economic system.
The transition from colonial rule to independence is a complicated process and the institutions handed over by the UN in Timor have been insufficiently mature to cope with massive social and economic problems these people have faced.
The poverty of the Timorese is acute. Most Timorese have no or little access to clean water, electricity, communications, health care or sufficient food .
Their poverty has appeared to increase in the last few years. Absence of infrastructure has discouraged foreign investment and contributed to massive unemployment in the cities.
While the Timorese developed a unity of sorts in their resistance to Indonesian occupation, in the absence of an external threat, their traditional tribal differences of the past have re- emerged.
Nationalism and federalism are foreign concepts. In Melanesian culture people must look after their “Wontoks” – family/clan/tribal relations, to the exclusion and even the expense of others.
Western concepts of justice and fairness to all are secondary. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is still relatively new to most Timorese (most were animists prior to Indonesian occupation.).
Under tribal leadership, order was maintained by village chiefs, elders were respected, and people lived in discrete tribal areas. (This still occurs in many rural areas.)
The Indonesian occupation saw tribal authority diminished, and a culture of violent resistance to authority emerged.
Regrettably it has remained. There is little support for, or confidence in national institutions, few of which have had time to develop mature and competent management.
The transition to independence occurred too early and disaster has resulted. Despite the charismatic and positive leadership of Xanana Gusmau and Jose Ramos Horta the task ahead of them has been incredibly difficult.
Nevertheless the Timorese are our brothers and sisters and our near neighbours. They have been grateful for our assistance and continue to desire it.
The media reports of anti- Australian sentiment are not a true indication of people’s attitudes. Those complaining are the criminals we are trying to bring justice to!
In recent visits to Timor, both the Bishop of Dili and Prime Minister Jose Ramos Horta have personally assured me of their gratitude for Australian assistance.
Where to now?
For Christians the command to love our neighbour is absolute. We cannot abandon them in our frustration to know what to do. Nor must we be blinded by media reports that focus only on the doom and gloom.
International aid groups, our own AUSAID and even small non-government organisations , like the one I am involved in, Friends and Partners with East Timor ( www.fpet.org.au), have made a big difference in the lives of many people, rebuilding schools, and clinics and empowering local groups.
Overall though, comprehensive long-term assistance will be necessary in the many areas where the Timorese have significant capability gaps that contribute to the current instability.
- Protection and security for the community from criminals.
- Strengthening of the justice system.
- Technical assistance in developing all branches of government.
- Restoration of vital infrastructure.
- Health and trauma recovery.
- Communications and information delivery.
- Reconciliation and restorative justice for victims of crime.
All of these areas need to be addressed. Band-aid solutions will not suffice. The need is as much in the areas of human and intellectual expertise as it is for funding.
They are needing to raise the widest range of government functions out of ashes. The presence of international brothers and sisters helps change the attitudes of people . Our physical presence is itself a ministry.
All of these measures are practical responses to our commission to love our neighbour (Matthew 19:19). It must be a long-term generous response by us. Without a comprehensive response the instability will re-occur.
We are called to be peacemakers (Matthew 5:9). Peace was very much at the forefront of Jesus’ teaching and ministry.
His opening greeting was “Peace be with you” ( Luke 10:5). Elsewhere he says , “Be at peace with one another” (Matthew 9:50) ; Go in peace (Luke 7:50 , 8:48); My peace be with you (John14:27).
There are more than 365 references to peace in the Bible. We must be proactive in peacemaking.
The Timorese have said to me often: Please help us to find peace – we need your help, to help ourselves.
The road to peace in East Timor and in other parts of our region will be a long and expensive one. But God has given us the surplus to make the difference in their lives.
Let us pursue vigorously by government and non-government actions what makes for peace. (Romans 14:19).
Deacon Gary Stone is a chaplain to both the Australian Defence Force and the Australian Federal Police, based in Brisbane. He has served on peacemaking operations in Malaysia, Iran/Iraq, Fiji, Bougainville, East Timor and the Solomon Islands. He has made 10 trips to East Timor in recent years. Friends and Partners with East Timor, which he founded, was awarded the 2005 RSL National Peace Prize.
