Soldiers battling ex-colleagues in Dili gunfights

I truly pity the people of East Timor. For years they had to live under the tight control and brutal occupation of Indonesia. During that 24-year period of colonization, about 200,000 locals were feared dead.

And now barely into its early years of independent existence (since 1999), the people of East Timor are once again one the run from soldiers, or rather this time from their own disgruntled soldiers.

This tiny nation is descending into violence sparked by the sacking of around half the army. The disgruntled soldiers claim that they were being discriminated against because they came from the west of the small country, while the military leadership comes from the east.

Apparently the inexperienced government has set up a commission to look into the complaints and is yet to release results. However these soldiers were rather impatient and went on a strike. Earlier this year, the Dili government sacked them – nearly 600 in all.

Things became heated when these soldiers participated in deadly riots last month and last Tuesday ambushed government troops, sparking firefights. They are threatening guerrilla warfare if they were not reinstated.

This week alone at least three people have been killed and eight injured by the three days of firefights, creating panic amongst the citizens, forcing many to leave the capital in a rush. Earlier fighting had left at least six people dead in Dili.

Reuters reported witnesses as saying that widespread shooting in the capital on Thursday (today) and some buildings had been razed.

The East Timor government is not capable of handling this situation and has sought assistance from Australia, New Zealand, Portugal and Malaysia.

Australia was the first to react by sending 150 commandos – who arrived to the cheers of the local population - ahead of the 1,300 troops to help restore peace and order. New Zealand forces are also on the way.

The East Timorese government has not asked for Indonesia's help but its other close neighbour Malaysia is now in two minds about sending its forces – it is awaiting clarification of whether it would be a UN mission, funded by that organization, or a UN sanctioned mission, in which the costs are born by the countries involved.

Surely this is not the time to be considering such matters, especially when innocent lives are at risk. Surely Malaysia can afford to send some peace-keeping troop to restore order in East Timor.

Further reads:

Foreign troops land in East Timor as violence rages
Peacekeepers rush to E. Timor to quell violence