Dili – East Timor's independence leader Jose Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmao said Friday that East Timor will be the first new independent nation of the new millennium, but not with him as president.

Gusmao has been widely regarded as the main contender for the presidency when East Timor, now under UN administration, becomes independent.

However, the former guerrilla commander said that in other emerging nations those who lead independence struggles often do not make the best leaders in times of peace.

"We read about many other failures, in many other countries, in which heroes of the struggle become the leaders. A new country needs someone of more capability to lead, to govern and to guide," Gusmao said.

But no matter who eventually wins the presidency, East Timor entered the new millennium as a nation on the road to independence.

Crowds gathered to celebrate on the main square along Dili's waterfront. Gusmao unexpectedly appeared during the festivities and greeted the revelers. Nobel laureate Jose Ramos-Horta, who has spent the past 24 years campaigning for independence, said the celebrations reflected the joy of the people.

"It is a dream becoming a reality, a dream that every East Timorese has had for the past 24 years, that I have had for the past 24 years," Ramos-Horta said. "East Timor is basically free now," he said. "Maybe by the year 2001 the flag of East Timor will go up and the flag of the United Nations will go down."