Living with violence in East-Timor
Only five months after da Silva received the Student Peace Prize, he was exposed to a murder attempt by the pro-Indonesian militia in East-Timor. Da Silva, among other voluntary students, arranged information campaigns before the election in August 1999. The militia, who did not approve of these information campaigns, was terrorizing and killing the Timorese during and after the election; between 2000 and 5000 people were killed, among them several students.
East-Timor has struggled with violence, poverty, high unemployment, demonstrations and collisions between police, fractions in army and former guerrilla soldiers; ravages which lead to people being killed and hurt, and making the build-up of East-Timor difficult. When 600 soldiers were kicked out of the army in 2006, the conflict escalated. The soldiers made a revolt towards frictions in the police, armed themselves with axes and ravaged around in the main city Dili.
Peace Prize laureate exposed to murder attempt
During the crisis in 2006, da Silva was running the organization Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC), which had a central role in the reconciliation work with the conflict in East-Timor. After a reconciliation meeting in the city Baucau in October 2006, da Silva was attacked and exposed to violence by twenty young men outside his home in Dili. Da Silva was hit in the chest by an arrow which fortunately did not collapse his lungs.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner, and former speaker at ISFiT Plenary Sessions 2007, President José Ramos-Horta has been exposed to the violence in East-Timor, as well. In February 2008 Ramos-Horta was shot and almost killed by a revolt leader. The President has explained has explained the violence with insufficient education of policemen and army soldiers. But the violence has fundamental causes, such as poverty and unemployment, problems that the President and the other politicians in East-Timor have to find a resolution to.
Running a peace centre
Today da Silva is running the Peace and Community Development Centre, as well as being a lecturer on peace. The main target of the Peace Centre is to contribute to the development of the local community in East-Timor. Through this work, the Peace Centre further wants to give the students an experience which hopefully can increase their chances of getting a job after graduation. Da Silva is also the leader of the youth organization of the Fretilin Party, which is the biggest opposition party in East-Timor these days, and he is working on a PhD at the University of New England in Australia.
A changing situation
From being tortured and exposed to murder attempt while fighting for peace and resolution in East-Timor, to be running a peace centre and being the leader of a youth party organization; the situation for the former Student Peace Prize laureate has changed a lot. Da Silva's work has showed us what a non-violent attitude can lead to, and how non-violent methods can be the resolution to achieve peace. The long-forgotten conflict in East-Timor is today on the international agenda, contributed by da Silva on his way towards peace.
