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Show 5 The Salt Lake Tribune OPINION Tuesday, November 20, 2001 Kast Timor Offers Successful Modelfor Afghanistan WASHINGTON — After this incredible week — which saw antiTaliban forces sweep victoriously across to the astonish- Afghanistan, such a force would immensely relieve ethnic tensions GEORGIE ANNE GEYER within the country and dilute any idea of European colonialism or Soviet imperialism, or American cultural impositions, being revived. Plans do call for French and British ahead. From all indications, not only the United States has learned from its bad experiences in Vietnam, Somalia and troops to take controlof two key air- fields. They mayalso aidin securityin the northern sector of the country, Bosnia, but other international orga- nizations have learned from theirs as well. Even the United Nations’ nightmare experiences in the 1990s in the Balkans, in Rwanda andin Sierra Leone seem to be swept awaybyeffective thinking about Peacekeeping. this week in the comprehensive news stories aboutbattle in Afghanistan and exhilarated and perhaps provide supplemental UNIVERSAL PRESS SYNDICATE force around Kabul. But word from the United Nations in New York, as professional and tough (always re- wellasfromofficials in Turkey,is that Turkey's role, according to Turkish membertheir ferocity in the Korean War!) armed forces in the world. One cannot picture them allowing themselves to be humiliated by their ene- mies (remember when U.N. troops women suddenly being able to see the were chained to bridges by Serbs be- blurb saying that the multinational force to police Kabul would be headed by the Turks. Because the success or failure ofthe entire campaign will depend uponthis force, which will have defend themselves?). The Turks are also part of NATO, which gives them lateral, crossnational military contacts across Eu- sunlight, for instance, was little cause the U.N. wouldn't allow them to the presence on the groundto see that a representative ernment is formed and the law obeyed,this news was far more important than it seemed. No one questions that the Turkish military comprises one of the most rope andin the United States; but at the sametime, Turkey isa Muslim country with a secular governmentof the kind manyother Muslim nations yearn for, and the force it would head would be all-Muslim.. Because these Muslim forces would comefrom countries that are not immediate neighbors of diplomats,will be “similar to that assumed by Australia in heading the U.N. peacekeeping mission in East Timorafter it won independence from Indonesia.” The “East Timor example,”as it is sometimes called, points to the United Nations’ only success story since the Soviet Union collapsed exactly 10 years ago. This is the peacekeeping force that was interjected into East Timor,a part of the Indonesian archipelago that lies some 400 miles north- westof Australia,after it broke out in spasms of violence when it rebelled against Indonesian rule two years ago. In the Balkanswars ofthe'90s, the United Nations had such an uncertain line of command — in Bosnia, command deci: ively in the hands of a U.N. “special representa- tive” who refused to give orders to contain the Serbs — that the U.N. ended up actually aiding and abetting the oppression. In Rwanda, the United Nations’total lack of vertical command structure, its mix of Third World contingentforces that could not even understand one another's languages,andits “neutralist” philosophy that in truth was reallyall-outpacifism allowed the massacre of nearly 1 million Tutsi tribesmen. But in East Timor, something different happened because,in great part out of desperation and disgrace atits failure, the United Nations embarked upon a “new way” of peacekeeping that began with putting onemajor,responsible, tough-minded powertotally in charge. In Southeast Asia, it was Australia. WhenI was in Bangkok, I spoke at length with Australian, Thai, and other diplomats and military men about why “East Timor” was working as the newest case study while the others so egregiously had not. Theytold me: We Can Only Guess WhatSecrets BushIs Keeping MARIE COCCO NEWSDAY Black smoke rises up from terrorism and war, perfect concealmentfor a Bush administration assault of a different kind. This other attack is on history itself. The White House has delayed documents ofa predecessor. He can do this even if the past president wants the records disclosed. A formerpresident who wants to keep secrets could do so, too, with or without agreement of the incumbent. A Democrat — say Al Gore, who served as vice president under Bill Clinton — could comeinto office and decide unilaterally to keep boxes of old Democratic papers off-limits. The Bush order also gives family members of a deceased or disabled And this is the law Bush now shreds. The administration, as is its custom,does little to explain. Ittalks of need for an “orderly process”for releasing records. White House counsel Alberto R. Gonzales claims, as well, the desire to protect “records that former president these privileges. Bush would enable Nancy Reagan to could impact national security.” order that promises to scrub the truth out of presidential history after proves especially convenientif the in- erty of the people, not the presidents. cumbentpresident’s father served as It set a 12-year timetableaftera presi- essary. Historians are apoplectic. Re- JimmyCarter.It is, even in this White vice president under ‘a previous Re- agan’s librarians already were pre- House with a penchantfor secrecy, an extravagantindulgence ofthe habit. publican administration and has his dentleaves office for-release of sensitive material. This made the Reagan own papers in the vault. papers eligible for release in January. House called it to a halt. records remain secret. Theywill, most likely, forevermore. President Bush signed an executive like this: A Republican like Bush — one day claim authority to keep her husband’s papers secret; so, too, might say, one whose top advisers did their Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y. first tour of duty in a previous Republican administration andcould be embarrassed by old White House files — could just keep them locked up. This of 1978 was to end. The post-Watergate law made White. House records prop- This is how they cover up the cover-up. Classified national security material isn’t covered by the act atall. It isn’t even reviewed for release for 25 years, according to the National Archives. Noone has comeforward to declare this Bush restriction welcome,or nec- nearly a year the scheduled release of thousandsof presidential documents the Reagan administration. The stall has now, in a way, ended. The a Under Bush’s order, any incumbentpresident — thatis, Bush himseif — can block release of presidential The Bush ordereffectively works Private control over public papers is whatthe Presidential Records Act paring a big release when the White the United Nations in New York to mandate them down to impotence with all the usual curbs on exercising power. A coalition of nations supported them but was not allowed to dilute their mission. And there was an “exit strategy,” but only after a clear outcome, in this case when independence for the East Timorese was assured. Since the East Timor mission began two years ago, I have spoken reg- ularly with peacekeeping officers at the United Nations. Mostofthem were deeply troubled with their tion's costlyfailures, but I did not geta sense that they had grasped what needed to be done. Until now. If this change is real — and the United States in its present mood is not aboutto let any of the majorplayers in this expensive drama muddle around anymore — then we have indeed worked through a terrible and dangerous period. And if any of those notoriously obstreperous Afghan fighters have any doubts about their legendary ‘kish uslim “brothers,”suggest we show them some old Korean War movies. Congress grumbles. Its members — notably Republicans in the House — grouse about their own curtailed right to have a look. Clinton, through his longtime aide Bruce Lindsey, has publicly opposed the strictures as un- needed and contrary to the law's intent. Just this week, Lindsey said in an interview, he searched papers relating to presidential gifts that had been requested by Rep. Douglas Ose, R-Calif. The memos from White House lawyers were clearly eligible for disclosure be- fore now. Theycould just as clearly be withheld under Bush's new order. “We could have unilaterally with- held them, but. we didn’t,” Lindsey said. Nonedesires this secrecy, save the current occupantof the White House. Weare left only to guess at why. And to shiver atall the possibilities, now and in the future. HOOVER FOR YOUR HOLIDAYS SELF-PROPELLED § |WindTunnel ) @ » HOOVER HOOVER. Portable 2 aconceteernaes 5:Hose and nozzle with storage tray and ott eC Long Distance included. TMme) ‘dual-tank rates clean and yf$29°./3000... » THE HOOVER COMPANYy 801-304-0516 mo LS CORNER OF FT. 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