East Timor in a bit of a pickle

Australian troops were flown into East Timor today to help put down a barney between the Timorese army, and some of their former comrades. East Timor became independent from Indonesia in May 2002, after a bloody struggle with the Indonesian army and militias.

Some of the former Timorese army soldiers fought for independence, and don’t like the way they have been treated since. The local police and army have been fighting the former soldiers in the capital Dili, and the East Timor’s Foreign Minister Jose Ramos-Horta, asked for foreign help.

East Timor has a lot of problems to overcome. The UN was there for a while, helping to get things straightened out after independence. Prices for food, accommodation, internet access etc. are extremely expensive and infrastructure is bad.

Here’s what the CIA think about East Timor.