NATION BUILDING 101: THE CHINA CARD
Sandy Berger, Bill Clinton's national security adviser from 1997-2000,has receently written a very important op-ed piece for the IHT titled:AMERICA'S ERODING GLOBAL LEADERSHIP. Co-authored with Mr. Eric P.Schwarz,former senior director of multilateral and humanitarian affairs for the National Security Council, the article describes how China has rushed into the vacuum created by the Bush administration's obsession with Iraq, and provided "billions of dollars in aid for roads and bridges from Laos to the Philippines, far outstripping U.S. aid and engagement in the region and rivaling World Bank and Asian Development Bank aid programs..."
One of the showcases for this generosity is Timor-Leste, the island nation which was the subject of the documentary film I made several years ago, EAST TIMOR: BETRAYAL AND RESURRECTION. My film traced the history of the country through to independence in 2002, and ended with a terse postscript describing the economic plight of the country in 2004. At that time, the film deviated from the official UN party line, which was that the UN nation building effort under UNTAET had been a great success.
My view, which I shared with many others, was that the scope of the nation building effort had been far too limited to achieve any real success. Subsequent events in Timor-leste have unfortunately proven this view to be, if anything, an understatement.
In January of 2006, the Foundation for Post Conflict Development and the World Harmony Foundation, a Chinese entity devoted to reminding the world of the horrors of the Rape of Nanking, sponsored a screening of my film in New York for President Jose Ramos Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao. At that time, their roles were reversed, and they invited me to return to make a sequel on the economic development of their country. The troubles of May 2006 forced me to put this projecton hold, since it was not at all clear to me where the country was heading.(it still isn't!)
The Chinese presence at that screening was substantial, but I did not think much about it at the time. They were generously funding the event,and I was most appreciative. I had been aware of a Chinese interest in Timor-Leste when I was working with UNTAET in 2000, but it seemed anything but sinister.
At that time, most of Timor-Leste was in ruins, and the country received material assistance from China in the form of farm tractors and other equipment. Then the Hotung family from Macao contributed a boat to transport refugees. They eventually came for a visit, and showered us with luxurious electronic appliances hard to use in a country without a viable electric grid.
When we met with Mr. Hotung, we asked about the nature of his interest in Timor-Leste, and he answered by declaring his love for his Portuguese speaking cousins, and their country. After after some gentle prodding, he revealed an ambition to build a hotel in Timor-leste. This was a bit startling, since Timor-leste was hardly a tourist destination at the time. After further prodding, Mr. Hotung noted
that the hotel might also have a casino. Aha! That made sense, since the Chinese had been trying to crack the Australian casino market for years. However, it was clear that Mr. Hotung would have to make a substantial contribution to the Timor-Leste's
very conservative Catholic church, since they would strongly oppose such a venture.
To date, no hotel or casino have been built. However, the Chinese have built a spectacular new presidential palace, along with other major buildings, and have provided a great deal of material assistance as well as economic aid without asking for anything in return.
Meanwhile, according to Mr. Berger, American assistance to Timor-Leste was cut 40% between 2001 and 2006. Mr. Berger then goes on to say that Timor is not a "national security priority for the United States", and there I must disagree with him.
Since Timor-Leste is undeniably a national priority for neighboring Australia, it is, by extension, a priority for the United States. Aside from the country's oil and natural gas reserves, the country enjoys a strategic location overlooking the Timor Gap, one of the two major maritime routes from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific.
It is hard to say whether the American plan was to keep Timor-Leste poor and dependent,like Micronesia, or was just the result of tunnel vision by the Bush administration. Regardless, the results are the same.
The Chinese have become very popular in Timor-Leste, and one can hardly fault the East Timorese for appreciating this very tangible assistance in their time of need. Timor-Leste still has many serious problems that will take decades to solve, but I, for one, am happy to see that SOMEONE is helping them.
One of the showcases for this generosity is Timor-Leste, the island nation which was the subject of the documentary film I made several years ago, EAST TIMOR: BETRAYAL AND RESURRECTION. My film traced the history of the country through to independence in 2002, and ended with a terse postscript describing the economic plight of the country in 2004. At that time, the film deviated from the official UN party line, which was that the UN nation building effort under UNTAET had been a great success.
My view, which I shared with many others, was that the scope of the nation building effort had been far too limited to achieve any real success. Subsequent events in Timor-leste have unfortunately proven this view to be, if anything, an understatement.
In January of 2006, the Foundation for Post Conflict Development and the World Harmony Foundation, a Chinese entity devoted to reminding the world of the horrors of the Rape of Nanking, sponsored a screening of my film in New York for President Jose Ramos Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao. At that time, their roles were reversed, and they invited me to return to make a sequel on the economic development of their country. The troubles of May 2006 forced me to put this projecton hold, since it was not at all clear to me where the country was heading.(it still isn't!)
The Chinese presence at that screening was substantial, but I did not think much about it at the time. They were generously funding the event,and I was most appreciative. I had been aware of a Chinese interest in Timor-Leste when I was working with UNTAET in 2000, but it seemed anything but sinister.
At that time, most of Timor-Leste was in ruins, and the country received material assistance from China in the form of farm tractors and other equipment. Then the Hotung family from Macao contributed a boat to transport refugees. They eventually came for a visit, and showered us with luxurious electronic appliances hard to use in a country without a viable electric grid.
When we met with Mr. Hotung, we asked about the nature of his interest in Timor-Leste, and he answered by declaring his love for his Portuguese speaking cousins, and their country. After after some gentle prodding, he revealed an ambition to build a hotel in Timor-leste. This was a bit startling, since Timor-leste was hardly a tourist destination at the time. After further prodding, Mr. Hotung noted
that the hotel might also have a casino. Aha! That made sense, since the Chinese had been trying to crack the Australian casino market for years. However, it was clear that Mr. Hotung would have to make a substantial contribution to the Timor-Leste's
very conservative Catholic church, since they would strongly oppose such a venture.
To date, no hotel or casino have been built. However, the Chinese have built a spectacular new presidential palace, along with other major buildings, and have provided a great deal of material assistance as well as economic aid without asking for anything in return.
Meanwhile, according to Mr. Berger, American assistance to Timor-Leste was cut 40% between 2001 and 2006. Mr. Berger then goes on to say that Timor is not a "national security priority for the United States", and there I must disagree with him.
Since Timor-Leste is undeniably a national priority for neighboring Australia, it is, by extension, a priority for the United States. Aside from the country's oil and natural gas reserves, the country enjoys a strategic location overlooking the Timor Gap, one of the two major maritime routes from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific.
It is hard to say whether the American plan was to keep Timor-Leste poor and dependent,like Micronesia, or was just the result of tunnel vision by the Bush administration. Regardless, the results are the same.
The Chinese have become very popular in Timor-Leste, and one can hardly fault the East Timorese for appreciating this very tangible assistance in their time of need. Timor-Leste still has many serious problems that will take decades to solve, but I, for one, am happy to see that SOMEONE is helping them.
Labels: NationBuilding
posted by Ted Folke at 12:16 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home