Interviews with Jose Ramos-Horta

The Indonesian regime– all Indonesia, as such– very, very important. It´s one of the largest countries in the world. It´s strategically located. And in particular, during the Cold War and in post-Vietnam, not only because of Indonesia at that time was very rich in oil and gas reserves– but– I would say, more important than that was– it is a strategic– location in Southeast Asia.

But the same time, what were Indonesia´s weaknesses? It was rule by a very corrupt regime, authoritarian, undemocratic, extremely corrupt, that gradually, slowly– was– corroding itself, rotten inside. And as time went by, the regime was even more corrupt.

Way back in– ´95, I gave an interview to CNN to a program call– “Light– t– a Diplomatic License”– by– Richard Roth. Even though– were– back then I was not even well known, I was already having some contacts with media. I was– known to some of the media, but it was before the Nobel Peace Prize. And in that interview that was– air– in mid-May ´95, I said the following, “Within two to three years, the Suharto regime will collapse under the weight of corruption, mismanagement and increasing political illegitimacy. When that comes, that moment comes, it will be easier to negotiate a solution to the Timor conflict.”

Well, let me repeat, that was in May ´95. In May ´98, the Suharto regime fell, almost exactly two to three years, as I had said in that interview. Because by then it was obvious that why l– the World Bank and IMF and the United States, the Europeans, all were still looking at Indonesia with– rosy– or tinted– glasses, well, those of us who knew better– were anticipating that the– that regime can not go on pretending.

Of course– you– we had the economic financial crisis the– that happened, that started in Thailand in July– ´97. By December ´97, it had affected– most of– Southeast Asia. Hardly any country in Southeast Asia escape. Even Korea– suffered severely. In Korea we had– the fall of the dictatorship, the election of Kim Dae-Jung– who was– fighting for democracy for over 30 years.

And in the streets of Jakarta, also in Indonesia, the students went to the streets. As a result of the economic financial crisis, Timor-Leste was by then too– much of a burden for Indonesia. So, that was Indonesia weaknesses– corrupt, mismanage, live– the regime was living on falsehoods. And sooner or later, any regime like that will crumble.

José Manuel Ramos-Horta was the president of East Timor (Timor-Leste) from 2007 to 2012. In 1996, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his advocacy of human rights and self-determination for the Timorese people.

Born in Dili in 1949 to a Portuguese father and a Timorese mother, Ramos-Horta was educated in Catholic schools and became a journalist. His articles advocating independence for the territory led to his deportation at the age of 18. He returned to Timor in 1971 and, after the 1974 revolution in Portugal, joined with other young Timorese pro-independence activists to found the Social Democratic Association of Timor, later known as the Revolutionary Front of Independent Timor-Leste (FRETILIN). When FRETILIN declared the independence of East Timor in 1975, Ramos-Horta was appointed the minister of external affairs and was instructed to go abroad to seek international recognition and support. He was just 25 years old.

Ramos-Horta left East Timor three days before the invasion by Indonesian troops that led to a 24-year occupation. A few days later, he became the youngest diplomat ever to address the United Nations Security Council, successfully urging the Council to adopt a resolution that recognized the right of the people of Timor-Leste to self-determination and independence.

After the 1999 referendum in which the people of East Timor voted overwhelmingly for independence from Indonesia, Ramos-Horta returned to his homeland for the first time in 24 years. He served as foreign minister under the provisional United Nations administration (2000–2002) and during the first four years of independence (2002-06), and was selected as prime minister after the political and social crisis that led to the resignation of the first government in 2006. In 2007 he was elected president of the Republic, receiving over 70 percent of the votes cast.

On February 11, 2008, Ramos-Horta was shot twice and severely wounded. Evacuated to Australia, he remained for 10 days in an induced coma and spent several months recovering from his injuries. Upon his return to Dili, he was received in triumph by an estimated 100,000 people of all ages, walks of life, and political perspectives.

After initially stating he would not seek reelection, Ramos-Horta decided to run as an independent candidate. He placed third in the balloting. In 2013, he was named the United Nations Special Representative to Guinea-Bissau.