myth busting in east timor

Today in the Sydney Morning Herald it's George Quinn from ANU trying to explode some of the myths about East Timor. An interesting article that tries to sift through some of the popular myths amongst those of us who seek to support an independent East Timor. It's a fairly one sided argument about the falsity of the East Timor's distinctive identity against Indonesia. Certainly the article has some truth to it, but seems equally to ignore the arguments that East Timor's colonial history (under Portugal and Indonesia) might have contributed to any sense of national identity? Still, it is part of a move towards a rethinking of Australian foreign policy towards East Timor away from the idealistic/cynical division towards a more pragmatic and grounded debate. Which can only be a good thing.