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East Timor: A Memoir of the Negotiations for Independence

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Ambassador Marker demonstrates that diplomacy truly is just the `Art of the Possible'.

This memoir is about the responsibilities, hazards and rewards of being entrusted with a no-win scenario and making the best of it that one can.

An experienced diplomat with a distinguished career behind him, Ambassador Marker was appointed by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan as his Personal Representative for East Timor in 1997.

Marker wryly defined his mission as being akin to `polishing the dinner silver on the Titanic'.

Quietly erudite, approachable and enlightening, the book describes the 'two steps forward and one step back' of the perilous road to independence for East Timor.

Jamsheed Marker's appealing personality and gentle sense of irony shine through the rather grim story he has to tell. It is obvious that he has vast affection and tolerance for the glories and foibles of his fellow men.

Each character described in these dramatic events is accorded understanding and respect.
Marker is tough-minded enough to see the flaws and weak points of the people he is called upon to deal with, but also generous enough to play to their strengths.

There are none of the shrill denunciations of incompetence, greed and opportunism that one comes across so often in diplomatic or political memoirs.
He spends no time on indulging in moral indignation about what others should or should not have done, preferring instead to quietly do his duty by all the conflicting parties, and encouraging them to try and do the same.

He is refreshingly modest about his own achievements, but not so reticent about others'.
Indeed, his world seems to be peopled by `brilliant', flamboyant', `solid', `decent', `dedicated, `intelligent', `hard-working', `decisive', `highly skilled' individuals, who between them seem to have managed to iron out most of their differences with just an occasional nudge from the Personal Representative of the Secretary General for East Timor.

He shows that patience, pragmatism and prudence make excellent companions to passion and courage. Without ever wavering from his vision, he was able to persuade disparate personalities with diametrically opposing points of view to sit down and talk to each other seriously. No mean accomplishment.

Marker gives us a straightforward chronological account of the whole process; an unflinchingly lucid and honest report of a series of delicate negotiations, rendered even more colourful by descriptions of backstage politicking, diplomatic reflexology (applying pressure where needed) and liberal applications of good, old-fashioned charm.

Reading his natural, unpretentious prose somehow enhances the tragic effects of the turbulent events unfolding, and heightens our disgust for the total waste and futility of violence.