Transparency International just released their 2010 Corruptions Perceptions Index, available at http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2010. Timor-Leste scored 2.5 (out of 10), ranking 127th least corrupt country among 178 countries -- in other words, worse than more than 2/3 of the countries rated. In the Asia-Pacific region, TL is 24th out of 34 countries, worse than Indonesia (110th, 2.8 compared to 111th, 2.8 in the 2009 survey), Thailand, Mongolia, and Vietnam, among others.
For Timor-Leste, this is a slight improvement over 2009, when its score was 2.2, ranking 146 of 180 countries worldwide, and 28th of 33 in Asia-Pacific. In 2008, its score was also 2.2 (145th/180). In 2007, it scored 2.6 (123th/180), better than this year.
In other recent indexes:
Global Hunger Index
Timor-Leste is "among the countries with hunger levels considerably higher than their GNI [Gross National Income] per capita would suggest" according to the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) Global Hunger Index (GHI). It is one of four countries (the others are Bangladesh, India and Yemen) which have "the highest prevalence of underweight in children under five -- "more than 40 percent." 23% of the population is under-nourished.Timor-Leste's GHI of 25.6 is considered "alarming" and is the highest of any country in South and Southeast Asia, and ranks 71 of the 84 countries ranked globally. The ranking does not include many countries where hunger is not a serious problem. The previous calculation of the GHI was in 1990, and Timor-Leste was not included. Indonesia is rated "serious" ranking 36 with a score of 13.2 - compared to 19.5 in 1990. 16% of its population was malnourished.
Open Budget Index
On the International Budget Partnership's Open Budget Index 2010, Timor-Leste scored 34 out of 100, characterized as "Provides minimal information to the public in its budget documents during the year." (Timor's country data sheet is here.). TL ranks fifth among the seven Southeast Asian countries rated, better than Vietnam and Cambodia but worse than Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. T-L's score of 34 is less than the global average of 42. It ranks 62nd best of the 93 countries rated. This is the first time Timor-Leste has been included in the OBI. Indonesia ranked 39th, scoring 51, down from 54 in 2008. Indonesia's 2010 country data sheet is here.
UPDATE: added missing data on Indonesia for previous year, also some copy-editing and an added link.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Timor census shows slower than predicted population growth
On October 20, the government of Timor-Leste announced preliminary results of the recently-completed census with a total population of Timor-Leste is 1,066,582.
This number represents a 2.41 per cent annual population growth since the last census was undertaken, in 2004. The growth has been significantly slower than what was projected back in 2004 (3.2% per year) but is still the highest in the Southeast Asia and Pacific region.
Another noteworthy finding among the preliminary census results is that the population of the district of Dili has grown by a third, from 175,730 to 241,331, since 2004. Nevertheless, an overwhelming majority, 70.4%, of the Timorese people still lives in rural areas.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Suharto's No Hero
Three short years after his death, Indonesia's dictator Suharto has been nominated to a shortlist to be designated a "National Hero." The final decision rests with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. and any honors will likely be announced on November 10, Heroes’ Day. President Obama is scheduled to visit Indonesia around that date.
After Suharto died in January 2008, ETAN wrote:
We hope Indonesian authorities do not take their clue from the appalling U.S.'s condolence statement on Suharto's death by now departed Ambassador Cameron Hume. He observed that while "there may be some controversy over his legacy" Suharto oversaw "a period during which Indonesia achieved remarkable economic and social development."
At the time, we expressed our dismay that the "condolence statement on behalf of the U.S. government fails to even acknowledge the extraordinary crimes of this brutal and corrupt dictator" or the U.S. role in arming and supporting the regime.
President Obama once understood this. In his book The Audacity of Hope, Obama wrote that "for the past sixty years the fate of [Indonesia] has been directly tied to U.S. foreign policy," a policy which included "the tolerance and occasional encouragement of tyranny, corruption, and environmental degradation when it served our interests." In Dreams from My Father, he described Suharto's seizure of power: "The death toll was anybody's guess: a few hundred thousand, maybe, half a million. Even the smart guys at the [CIA] had lost count." These "smart guys" had, of course, encouraged and assisted in the coup.
Whether or not the corrupt or brutal dictator receives the posthumous honor, we urge President Obama to apologize to the people of Indonesia and East Timor for the U.S. role in their suffering during the Suharto years and to offer his condolences to Suharto's many victims throughout the archipelago.
After Suharto died in January 2008, ETAN wrote:
Indonesia's former dictator General Suharto has died in bed and not in jail, escaping justice for his numerous crimes in East Timor and throughout the Indonesian archipelago. One of the worst mass murderers of the 20th century, his death tolls still shock...
We cannot forget that the United States government consistently supported Suharto and his regime. As the corpses piled up after his coup and darkness descended on Indonesia, his cheerleaders in the U.S. welcomed the "gleam of light in Asia." In the pursuit of realpolitik, U.S. administration after administration, fully aware of his many crimes, provided military assistance and hardware, training and equipping Suharto's killers. The Indonesian dictator sought and received U.S. approval before he launched his invasion of East Timor; ninety percent of the weapons used in this illegal attack came from the U.S.Indonesia's human rights, anti-corruption and other activists are opposed. Agence France Presse quotes human rights activist Raharjo Waluyo Jati,
"He caused so much suffering. So many activists were arrested, detained, punished and some even killed without trial during his rule. All the mess Indonesia is in now, with problems of corruption and human rights violations, were his doing. He built this chaos."
At the time, we expressed our dismay that the "condolence statement on behalf of the U.S. government fails to even acknowledge the extraordinary crimes of this brutal and corrupt dictator" or the U.S. role in arming and supporting the regime.
President Obama once understood this. In his book The Audacity of Hope, Obama wrote that "for the past sixty years the fate of [Indonesia] has been directly tied to U.S. foreign policy," a policy which included "the tolerance and occasional encouragement of tyranny, corruption, and environmental degradation when it served our interests." In Dreams from My Father, he described Suharto's seizure of power: "The death toll was anybody's guess: a few hundred thousand, maybe, half a million. Even the smart guys at the [CIA] had lost count." These "smart guys" had, of course, encouraged and assisted in the coup.
Whether or not the corrupt or brutal dictator receives the posthumous honor, we urge President Obama to apologize to the people of Indonesia and East Timor for the U.S. role in their suffering during the Suharto years and to offer his condolences to Suharto's many victims throughout the archipelago.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
ETAN helps East Timorese runners enter New York Marathon
Office of the President
Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
20 October 2010
Marathon running in Timor-Leste has kicked into gear this year with the inaugural International Dili "City of Peace" Marathon taking place on 20 June 2010. 24 year old Augusto Ramos Soares inspired the nation, coming in just one minute behind the Kenyan star and winner, Philemon Rotich, to take second place in a solid time of 2 hours and 36 minutes. From an incredibly poor farming family in rural Timor, Augusto and Olympic veteran Agueda Amaral will be joining their neighbours from regional Australia in under three weeks to compete in the NY Marathon.
The International Dili Peace Marathon is a dynamic new addition to the President's 'Dili - City of Peace' initiative, and was run on 20 June 2010. On 6 April 2010, Sydney Olympic Marathon Course Director, Stephen Jackson, confirmed the course for the Marathon to be up to international standards. The Dili Marathon attracted 1270 runners from across 28 nations, of which 115 ran the full 42 kms, while the others ran either 21, 10 or 5 km races. The President announced: "It is my honour to welcome, on behalf of the State, all of our participants and supporters of the first Dili Marathon. This is an inaugural event, which will help place Timor-Leste in its rightful place on the world stage."
The President of Timor-Leste and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, H.E. Jose Ramos-Horta, initiated a process of cooperation with the Australian Indigenous Marathon Project, which has led to the two Timorese runners and coaches joining de Castella and his team for a training programme in Australia and a week of intensive preparation for the marathon.
But it nearly didn't happen. The registration process for the New York City Marathon had already passed its deadline before the starting gun had even been fired here in Dili. The final means of registration was through the Team for Kids charity in New York, requiring a certain amount of money to be raised for guaranteed entry into the race. Team for Kids (http://www.runwithtfk.org/) raises money to allow disadvantaged children to get involved in regular health and fitness programmes where they otherwise wouldn't have access to such facilities.
With time running short and money needing to be raised, The East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) came into play. ETAN was pivotal in mobilising contacts both in Australia and New York to make the project a reality.
This momentous work has been greatly helped by the generosity and quick mobilisation of countless individuals. Two of the major hurdles presented along the way were getting the right training and race gear, as well as getting travel to New York from Dili.
After their excellent support during the Dili Marathon on 18 June this year, Nike was once again keen to get involved and support Timorese runners. With the AIS coaching session organised for Sydney and New York's Central Park, the Timorese athletes are sure to excel now that they are equipped with the top gear.
Getting the athletes and delegation over to New York was no small task. From the dusty Dili streets to the city that never sleeps on the opposite side of the world was made considerably easier by the generosity of V Australia and our long-term regional airline partner in Airnorth.
The momentum gained from pushing for the sports/peace "heroes" development in Timor-Leste is now going to an all new level with this first and all important step towards the London 2012 Olympics.
Follow the progress of Augusto and Agueda at www.dilimarathon.com
Contact Michael Stone on +670 7231964
Email contact: media@tourdetimor.com
Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
20 October 2010
Timorese runners to take on the New York City Marathon
Top male and female distance runners from Timor-Leste are getting set to take on the New York City Marathon on 7 November. They will be accompanying the Australian Indigenous Marathon Project fronted by Australian marathon legend Robert de Castella.Marathon running in Timor-Leste has kicked into gear this year with the inaugural International Dili "City of Peace" Marathon taking place on 20 June 2010. 24 year old Augusto Ramos Soares inspired the nation, coming in just one minute behind the Kenyan star and winner, Philemon Rotich, to take second place in a solid time of 2 hours and 36 minutes. From an incredibly poor farming family in rural Timor, Augusto and Olympic veteran Agueda Amaral will be joining their neighbours from regional Australia in under three weeks to compete in the NY Marathon.
The International Dili Peace Marathon is a dynamic new addition to the President's 'Dili - City of Peace' initiative, and was run on 20 June 2010. On 6 April 2010, Sydney Olympic Marathon Course Director, Stephen Jackson, confirmed the course for the Marathon to be up to international standards. The Dili Marathon attracted 1270 runners from across 28 nations, of which 115 ran the full 42 kms, while the others ran either 21, 10 or 5 km races. The President announced: "It is my honour to welcome, on behalf of the State, all of our participants and supporters of the first Dili Marathon. This is an inaugural event, which will help place Timor-Leste in its rightful place on the world stage."
The President of Timor-Leste and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, H.E. Jose Ramos-Horta, initiated a process of cooperation with the Australian Indigenous Marathon Project, which has led to the two Timorese runners and coaches joining de Castella and his team for a training programme in Australia and a week of intensive preparation for the marathon.
But it nearly didn't happen. The registration process for the New York City Marathon had already passed its deadline before the starting gun had even been fired here in Dili. The final means of registration was through the Team for Kids charity in New York, requiring a certain amount of money to be raised for guaranteed entry into the race. Team for Kids (http://www.runwithtfk.org/) raises money to allow disadvantaged children to get involved in regular health and fitness programmes where they otherwise wouldn't have access to such facilities.
With time running short and money needing to be raised, The East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) came into play. ETAN was pivotal in mobilising contacts both in Australia and New York to make the project a reality.
This momentous work has been greatly helped by the generosity and quick mobilisation of countless individuals. Two of the major hurdles presented along the way were getting the right training and race gear, as well as getting travel to New York from Dili.
After their excellent support during the Dili Marathon on 18 June this year, Nike was once again keen to get involved and support Timorese runners. With the AIS coaching session organised for Sydney and New York's Central Park, the Timorese athletes are sure to excel now that they are equipped with the top gear.
Getting the athletes and delegation over to New York was no small task. From the dusty Dili streets to the city that never sleeps on the opposite side of the world was made considerably easier by the generosity of V Australia and our long-term regional airline partner in Airnorth.
The momentum gained from pushing for the sports/peace "heroes" development in Timor-Leste is now going to an all new level with this first and all important step towards the London 2012 Olympics.
Follow the progress of Augusto and Agueda at www.dilimarathon.com
Contact Michael Stone on +670 7231964
Email contact: media@tourdetimor.com
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
WPAT: Torture video reveals "Indonesia's Abu Ghraib" on eve of Obama visit
UPDATE: Interview with Ed McWilliams on Radio Australia's Connect Asia program
Contact: Ed McWilliams (WPAT) +1-575-648-2078
October 19, 2010 - A new video shows the torture of helpless men in the Indonesian-ruled territory of West Papua. Monitoring groups are already describing the footage as "Indonesia's Abu Ghraib." The video reveals indisputably Indonesian security force brutality, and raises serious questions about the Obama administration's decision to embrace cooperation with Indonesian security forces engaged in active and ongoing torture.
The video, available at ; http://material.ahrchk.net/video/AHRC-VID-012-2010-Indonesia.html is the second in recent months to offer graphic footage of Indonesian security force torture of Papuans. In it, a Papuan man is held to the ground while a hot stick, still smoldering from a fire, is held against his genitals. A plastic bag is wrapped around his head several times, a rifle held against him. Another man has a large knife held against him while he pleads: "I'm just an ordinary civilian, please..." One of his interrogators responds: "I'll cut your throat... Do not lie, I will kill you! Burn the penis!" The video appears to have been taken on the cell phone of one interrogator.
Thanks to the courage of Papuan human rights advocates in the face of harsh security measures designed to silence them, the world periodically has been witness to the harsh rule of West Papua. In the past, the faith in international justice and humanity demonstrated by these courageous Papuans has been betrayed by the international community's deference to the Indonesian government's insistence that neither its course nor rule there not be challenged. Numerous governments have placed the territorial integrity of Indonesia and the desire to support its democratization process first. In the process, however, they have abandoned what could have been constructive efforts to uphold human rights in West Papua, which continue to be systematically violated.
Geopolitical and commercial goals led the U.S. government to ignore Suharto dictatorship atrocities targeting its own people and the people of East Timor for decades. President Bill Clinton acknowledged this when East Timor gained its independence in 2002, saying : "I don't believe America or any of the other countries were sufficiently sensitive in the beginning and for a long time, a long time before 1999, going all the way back to the '70s, to the suffering of the people of East Timor." It was the suffering of the people of East Timor that led to Congress deciding tosuspend military cooperation with Indonesia.
The system of security force rule and repression of peaceful dissent has been dismantled in much of Indonesia, but the same security system and the same systematic human rights violations continue in West Papua today. Such stopgap solutions as "special autonomy" have been clearly rejected by the Papuan people. Despite the continued human rights violations, the Obama administration has continued the Bush administration's policy of support to the Indonesian security forces. It has continued support to the Indonesian military through the IMET program, and support through the Anti-Terror Assistance Program to the notorious Detachment 88 of the Indonesian National Police, credibly accused of torture and other rights violations. It has resumed cooperation with the Indonesian special forces (Kopassus) notwithstanding that unit's decades-old record of human rights abuse including recent, credible accounts of brutality targeting Papuan civilians. In so doing the Obama Administration, like its predecessors, has wittingly or unwittingly made itself complicit in the repression now underway in West Papua.
The United States, under President John F. Kennedy, was responsible for the transfer of West Papua to Indonesian rule. In that act, the United States made itself co-responsible for the outcome of its actions. Successive administrations have not been sufficiently sensitive to the ongoing human rights violations, including torture to this day, which resulted from Indonesian rule.
President Obama's upcoming visit to Indonesia offers an opportunity to end the silence on West Papua, and to craft new policies that advance human rights rather than lending support to human rights violators. Information about the ongoing human rights violations in West Papua was
heard on September 22 by the House of Representatives Sub-committee on Asia, the Pacific.
The Obama administration should:
see also
Contact: Ed McWilliams (WPAT) +1-575-648-2078
October 19, 2010 - A new video shows the torture of helpless men in the Indonesian-ruled territory of West Papua. Monitoring groups are already describing the footage as "Indonesia's Abu Ghraib." The video reveals indisputably Indonesian security force brutality, and raises serious questions about the Obama administration's decision to embrace cooperation with Indonesian security forces engaged in active and ongoing torture.
The video, available at ; http://material.ahrchk.net/video/AHRC-VID-012-2010-Indonesia.html is the second in recent months to offer graphic footage of Indonesian security force torture of Papuans. In it, a Papuan man is held to the ground while a hot stick, still smoldering from a fire, is held against his genitals. A plastic bag is wrapped around his head several times, a rifle held against him. Another man has a large knife held against him while he pleads: "I'm just an ordinary civilian, please..." One of his interrogators responds: "I'll cut your throat... Do not lie, I will kill you! Burn the penis!" The video appears to have been taken on the cell phone of one interrogator.
 | |
| Still from video via Sydney Morning Herald |
Thanks to the courage of Papuan human rights advocates in the face of harsh security measures designed to silence them, the world periodically has been witness to the harsh rule of West Papua. In the past, the faith in international justice and humanity demonstrated by these courageous Papuans has been betrayed by the international community's deference to the Indonesian government's insistence that neither its course nor rule there not be challenged. Numerous governments have placed the territorial integrity of Indonesia and the desire to support its democratization process first. In the process, however, they have abandoned what could have been constructive efforts to uphold human rights in West Papua, which continue to be systematically violated.
Geopolitical and commercial goals led the U.S. government to ignore Suharto dictatorship atrocities targeting its own people and the people of East Timor for decades. President Bill Clinton acknowledged this when East Timor gained its independence in 2002, saying : "I don't believe America or any of the other countries were sufficiently sensitive in the beginning and for a long time, a long time before 1999, going all the way back to the '70s, to the suffering of the people of East Timor." It was the suffering of the people of East Timor that led to Congress deciding tosuspend military cooperation with Indonesia.
The system of security force rule and repression of peaceful dissent has been dismantled in much of Indonesia, but the same security system and the same systematic human rights violations continue in West Papua today. Such stopgap solutions as "special autonomy" have been clearly rejected by the Papuan people. Despite the continued human rights violations, the Obama administration has continued the Bush administration's policy of support to the Indonesian security forces. It has continued support to the Indonesian military through the IMET program, and support through the Anti-Terror Assistance Program to the notorious Detachment 88 of the Indonesian National Police, credibly accused of torture and other rights violations. It has resumed cooperation with the Indonesian special forces (Kopassus) notwithstanding that unit's decades-old record of human rights abuse including recent, credible accounts of brutality targeting Papuan civilians. In so doing the Obama Administration, like its predecessors, has wittingly or unwittingly made itself complicit in the repression now underway in West Papua.
The United States, under President John F. Kennedy, was responsible for the transfer of West Papua to Indonesian rule. In that act, the United States made itself co-responsible for the outcome of its actions. Successive administrations have not been sufficiently sensitive to the ongoing human rights violations, including torture to this day, which resulted from Indonesian rule.
President Obama's upcoming visit to Indonesia offers an opportunity to end the silence on West Papua, and to craft new policies that advance human rights rather than lending support to human rights violators. Information about the ongoing human rights violations in West Papua was
heard on September 22 by the House of Representatives Sub-committee on Asia, the Pacific.
The Obama administration should:
- Insist upon an investigation and prosecution of those who recently tortured Papuans in Puncak Jaya
- Seek an investigation by relevant United Nations human rights rapporteurs of this and other instances of torture in West Papua
- Suspend cooperation with Indonesian security forces accused of systematic human rights violations, including Detachment 88 and the Brimob (Mobile Brigade) of the National Police and the Indonesian special forces (Kopassus)
- Call for full and open access for journalists, humanitarian assistance personnel including the International Committee of the red Cross and other international monitors to all of West Papua
- Seek meetings between President Obama and Papuan human rights and civil society leaders during his visit to Indonesia
- Call upon the Indonesian government to carry out an internationally facilitated, senior-level dialogue process with Papuan officials and civil society designed to resolve the Papuan conflict peacefully, as was done in Aceh province
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