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Subject: JP: Response to 'Grandpa' story Jakarta Post Response to 'Grandpa' story Opinion and Editorial - May 06, 2008 This refers to letter written by Soedibyo (The Jakarta Post, April 30, p.7). Please tell your grandchildren to do a five-minute Internet search instead, because your "facts" will lead to another lost generation of Indonesian youth. The 1975 "civil war" lasted only three weeks (less than 400 casualties). It was a mere skirmish. Similar skirmishes occur across our beloved archipelago once a month in villages here and there. Does that give stronger countries like China, Australia or the U.S. the justification to invade and occupy Indonesia? No. So that little August 1975 skirmish is inconsequential. Where in the world did you get the info about celebrating Christmas? That's just silly rubbish talk. At the end of the day, the Portuguese and Timorese are all Catholics and they really love their religious holidays, and always have. You say, "For almost 25 years, the people of East Timor lived normal lives." If you consider genocide, starvation and rape to be "normal", it truly is frightening what you are teaching your grandchildren. You say "nationalist groups requested Indonesia to invade." Actually, Apodeti was the party you refer to and they gained a mere 1 percent of the vote earlier that year. They, of course, were funded by Jakarta. The Indonesian Foreign Ministry was monitoring very closely with their East Timor task force, and the poll counting was NOT done at UN headquarters in NY, but in fact was held at the old museum in Dili with the Indonesian police providing security and over 2,000 election monitors from Indonesia and all over the world. Now I'm not trying to be anti-nationalist or pro-timor or pro-UN. I'm actually being pro-Indonesia. I sincerely want to see the next generation of my country learn the truth, not the lies and propaganda that my generation were told. It's all available, documented fact. There is no reason for us to tell our lovely Indonesian kids lies. JOSEF Jakarta
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