DILI:  20th May 2005 -- ET, or East Timor (Timor-Leste, to the locals) turned three years of age today.  The world's youngest nation gained independence formally, and the support of the UN peacekeeping force in May 2002.  Today, most of the 450 peacekeepers pulled out, leaving a small group of 130 or so behind.  They will remain a further year. 

    East Timor President, 'Xanana' Gusmao, addressed a crowd in Dili today, telling them: "we are a resilient people and we understand that independence is a long process".  East Timor is desperately poor and faces a struggle to kick-start its economy to finance education, health and other necessary public services.  But a long-awaited deal with Australia to develop undersea oil and gas deposits is due to be signed shortly.  Benefits for East Timor are expected to be in the order of $5 billion.

    Meanwhile, Br Marcel Lopes SDB, who had taken up studies in education at Australia's Catholic University, became the first East Timorese last month to graduate with a Masters Degree in education from that university.  Br Marcel is stationed at Don Bosco Technical School at Fatumaca.

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VOCABULARY

resilient: ability to recover from sickness or other serious difficulty

kick-start: to make a strong, even forceful beginning