For every 100 East Timorese the country boasts one foreign soldier. The official tender is the US dollar. The large expat community almost exclusively patronise foreign-owned establishments, where hard currency gets transferred, via beer and burgers, directly to Darwin or Singapore. The international presence is a major inflationary factor. Add to that damage to local food production and labour lost in the violence or to international organisations that pay more, and it is easy to see why food has become costly for the average East Timorese.
Jobs are another contention.
Certainly a few East Timorese entrepreneurs are doing well in Dili, sporting cars and mobiles to rival the foreigners. The new East Timorese elite, mainly members of the pro-independence front, CNRT, and those in position for top civil service jobs, are accused by the local people of social climbing and empire building. The administration explains these frustrations as understandable, nay inevitable, given the difficulties of transition. Cutting the most visible waste, such as district helicopter shuttles, would help public relations, but the key thing would be the publication of milestones for measured withdrawal.