JP: Border incident a test case for Jakarta-Dili ties
Jan 14, 2006 07:40 PST

The Jakarta Post
Saturday, January 14, 2006

Border incident a test case for Jakarta-Dili ties

Alexandra Retno Wulan, Jakarta

Security issues have been taking center stage in relations between Indonesia and Timor Leste since 1976. The UN-administered referendum that resulted in independence for Timor Leste in 1999 was expected to bring the conflict to an end.

The death of three Indonesians while they were apparently fishing on the Malibaca River in Belu regency last Friday, however, shows that it is not easy to maintain peaceful and stable relations between the two nations. Furthermore, the incident indicates that ties between the nations are vulnerable to tension.

Indonesia and Timor Leste share 228 kilometers of land boundaries, including around the Ocusse enclave. As has happened in Papua, a number of cultural principles were not taken into consideration when determining these boundaries. Hence, by their very nature, the boundaries will remain an underlying cause for
conflict in this region.

As another example, internally displaced people (IDPs) and their welfare are points of conflict in this area, particularly because both the governments of Indonesia and Timor Leste have no comprehensive and integrated policy to resolve the issues of IDPs and refugees.

Therefore, it is critical that both Indonesia and Timor Leste find a proper and comprehensive solution to prevent another escalation of security problems that will affect their diplomatic relations.

There are several important actions that need to be done by the two governments as the first response to resolve the security problems in the border area.

First -- as the Timor Leste government has already done -- it is important that the bodies of the three Indonesians be returned swiftly to their families in order to confirm political goodwill and to reduce tension that has occurred
on the border recently.

Second, it is necessary for the two governments to arrange a fair investigation into this particular case. However, a comprehensive and long-term policy remains essential to cope with these security problems in the border
regions.

In an international relations context, these problems could be seen from a constructivist perspective. The establishment of a security community to cope with the problems between the Indonesia and Timor Leste is one of the possible solutions to prevent clashes or disputes in the future.

A security community proposes the idea of plural communities within a region who share the same feeling and eventually will encourage the implementation of peaceful mechanisms to resolve any conflict and manage any issue that might occur in that particular region. A security community offers a qualitative view where social construction created an enhanced and peaceful cooperation amongst trans-national institutions.

Nonetheless the idea of a security community is not an easy task to accomplish. It should evolve through at least three important stages. Most importantly, these stages should develop within both countries and particularly within the border regions.

The first stage is to build trust and confidence amongst the stakeholders. In this stage, it is important to uphold the protection of the civilian community's rights, such as cultural norms, beliefs and public participation in
security issues. Therefore, it is essential to acknowledge civilian rights, broaden the public participation and setting up a civilian control mechanism for this particular issue.

The second stage is to develop a mechanism of conflict prevention in the region. This phase requires a professional, competent and well-functioning security apparatus. Hence, it is necessary to improve the role of the
armed forces and develop indispensable rules of engagement between the armed forces and the national police.

The final stage is to arrange conflict resolution mechanisms. This is crucial to encourage a link between Indonesia and Timor Leste. Moreover, this stage compels the development of a joint border community that is responsible for joint border management.

Optimistically, the development of a security community in the border regions will result in peaceful joint management of the border areas. Furthermore, if we can develop a security community along the Indonesian and Timor Leste borders, we can expect to develop a security community along other Indonesian border regions, both land and sea. Finally, building a peaceful border region will certainly reduce security threats to Indonesia, particularly in relation to with border issues.

The writer is a researcher at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). She can be reached at alexandr-@csis.or.id.

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