THE wave of changes in East Timor has turned Mari Alkatiri into some sort of magician. Returning to East Timor in 1999 from self-imposed exile in Mozambique, the 53-year-old politician magically brought Frente Revolucionaria de Timor Leste Independente (Fretilin) back to life after years of apparent death. As if mesmerized, the East Timorese welcomed the revived party, which had been fighting for an independent state, as a savior of the long-su