MOREAU: Is East Timor on the verge of civil war? GUSMaO: No. The violence is small and localized in the western part of the territory, near the border with West Timor, and in parts of the capital, Dili. There, militias armed by the Indonesian military and its intelligence service are walking around trying to intimidate the population into supporting autonomy and continued union with Indonesia. But the rest of the territory is calm.

So there’s no solution short of independence? No. And independence will come soon after East Timorese soundly reject the U.N.-sponsored autonomy [proposal]. In a referendum, 99 percent of East Timorese would choose independence. But since Indonesia rejects a referendum, we are trying to find another mechanism to measure the people’s will. Regardless of the mechanism, a solid majority will choose independence over autonomy. Then, under the umbrella of the United Nations, I think we will need two to three years to build the basic infrastructure of our new government, the economy and of public security. After that, we’ll be truly independent.

Can an independent East Timor eventually stand alone economically without becoming an international burden? We will start from zero and will depend on international aid at first, but not forever. We know we have to stand on our own feet as soon as possible, and we will. We are a small population of some 800,000, and our development program will not be aimed at high technology or megaprojects. We simply want to give our people the opportunity to get out from the poverty and misery they are facing now. We have natural resources, the best coffee, and perhaps even offshore oil.

If you were free to work in East Timor right now, could you bring about a peaceful settlement more quickly? Yes. I would go door to door talking to everyone, but mainly to those who say they favor continued integration with Indonesia. Only a few of these people are still calling for war. So I believe I can persuade nearly all of them that reconciliation is the best, the only way for the East Timorese to face the future.

As a former guerrilla commander, don’t you feel anger or even hatred toward the Indonesian Army and those East Timorese who cooperated with it? There will be no revenge; no one will be chased out, jailed or killed. We will respect everyone’s property rights and give equal opportunities for everyone to make a living. Since 1980 we in [the resistance] have been promoting a policy of national reconciliation. I even taught my soldiers whose families had been killed by Indonesian soldiers not to surrender to feelings of revenge but to promote unity.

So will we see the beginnings of an independent East Timor by next year? Yes. On this there is no compromise. We East Timorese would prefer to be exterminated than to remain enslaved in the year 2000.