[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 24 (Wednesday, February 13, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Page S964]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               EAST TIMOR

  Mr. FEINGOLD. Madam President, I would like to take a moment to note 
the violent attacks which took place earlier this week on the President 
and Prime Minster of East Timor, or Timor-Leste as it is also called. 
The people of East Timor have experienced far too much violence for 
such a small nation and it is time, once again, for the world to 
renounce violence as a means to achieving any political agenda. I 
condemn such acts and urge all parties to seek legitimate peaceful--and 
political--means to ensure their voices are heard.
  Earlier this week, President Jose Ramos Horta was shot by rebel 
soldiers. This band of rebels, led by the infamous Alfredo Reinado, 
attacked President Ramos-Horta outside his house. As a longstanding 
advocate of East Timor's self-determination, I have met President 
Ramos-Horta and am very troubled by this attempt to take his life and 
to undermine East Timorese stability and independence. President Ramos 
Horta is a Nobel Peace Prize winner and is known for his leadership of 
a nonviolent struggle against the Indonesian occupation. It is 
precisely because of these honorable principles that he has espoused, 
in the face of repeated violence, that I am doubly concerned by this 
recent attack. I am also worried that this violent act could affect the 
stability and progress of this young country and am pleased that 
Australia has agreed to send additional soldiers and police officers to 
address any unrest that might occur in the aftermath of this heinous 
attack.
  I have followed East Timor's ongoing transformation very closely 
since the disastrous crisis in the late 1990s and have been so pleased 
to see its successful transition from Indonesian occupation to a U.N. 
administration to an independent nation over the years. Certainly East 
Timor's path forward has not been free from challenges but it has moved 
consistently in the right direction. I have long supported a robust 
U.N. peacekeeping mission there, I pressed the administration to take a 
hard line with the Indonesia military as a result, in part, of its 
actions in East Timor, and I spoke out against the renewed unrest in 
2006 which led to a collapse of many key institutions and once again 
required the international community to step in and play a key role in 
security reform.
  We cannot overlook the significance of these attacks in East Timor as 
the country stands to chart a course for emerging democracies around 
the world. A stable East Timor sends a signal that the international 
community can work collaboratively and consistently for the betterment 
of a nation--and a people. East Timor has received significant 
multilateral support over the years and if it fails to develop into a 
fully functioning and stable democracy, we will need to reexamine what 
kinds of commitment our nation truly makes to young democracies 
striving to succeed. For these reasons, I hope this incident is little 
more than a blip on the radar for Ramos-Horta and that his recovery is 
a speedy one so he can return to the helm of leadership and finish his 
term as President.

                          ____________________