For more than half a century, Jose Luis Guterres has been East Timor’s voice to the world – first as a diplomat in exile during Indonesia’s brutal occupation, and later as the fledgling nation’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister.
At 71, he still carries the weight of a tiny country that only gained sovereignty in 2002, after nearly 400 years under Portugal and a generation under Jakarta’s rule.
Back in Washington for a second, non-consecutive stint as ambassador – his first was under George W. Bush – Guterres sipped Timorese coffee on a late summer afternoon and reflected on the turbulent path that his nation of about 1.3 million people took to independence, and the challenges ahead.
“We are focused on the future, not on revenge for past mistakes,” he told The Post, noting the dramatic turnover of Indonesia from occupier to partner.
After declaring independence from Portugal in 1975, enduring two decades of conflict, a 1999 referendum, and a UN-led intervention, an independent East Timor has forged cordial ties with its giant neighbour.
So much so that Indonesia’s president Prabowo Subianto, once accused of unleashing militias against pro-independence civilians, has joined current Asean chair Malaysia in backing East Timor’s bid for full membership.
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