East Timor (officially the
Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste) is a country in
Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of
Timor, the nearby islands of
Atauro and
Jaco, and
Oecussi-Ambeno, an
exclave on the northwestern side of the island, within
Indonesian
West Timor. The small country of 15,007 km² (5,376 mi²) is located about 640 km (400 mi) northwest of
Darwin, Australia.
East Timor was colonised by
Portugal since the 16th century, and was known as
Portuguese Timor until Portugal's decolonisation of the country. In late
1975 East Timor declared its independence but was promptly invaded and
occupied by Indonesia, and declared that country's 27th province the following year. In
1999, following the
UN-sponsored act of self-determination, Indonesia relinquished control of the territory and East Timor became the first new
sovereign state of the twenty-first century and of the third millennium on
May 20,
2002. Alongside the
Philippines, East Timor is one of only two predominantly
Roman Catholic countries in Asia.
At $800, the
per capita GDP (
Purchasing Power Parity adjusted) of East Timor is one of the lowest in the world. Its
Human Development Index (HDI), however, corresponds to a medium degree of human development and places East Timor
142nd among the world's nations.
Etymology
The island is known as
East Timor in English,
Timor-Leste in Portugese, and
Timór Lorosa'e in
Tetum. "Timor" derives from
timur, the word for "east" in
Indonesian and
Malay which became
Timor in
Portuguese and hence English.
Lorosa'e is also the word for "east" in Tetum (literally "rising sun").
The Portuguese name
Timor-Leste (
pron. ) (or
Timor Leste, without a hyphen), and the unofficial
Tetum name are sometimes used in
English . The United Nations officially calls the island Timor-Leste in English.
History
Early history
Timor was originally populated as part of the human migrations that have shaped
Australasia more generally. It is believed that descendants from at least three waves of migration still live in the country. The first were related to the principal indigenous groups of
New Guinea and
Australia, and arrived before 40,000 years ago. Around 3000 BC, a second migration brought
Austronesians, who later continued eastward and colonized Island
Oceania, and are possibly associated with the development of agriculture on Timor. Finally, proto-
Malays arrived from south
China and north
Indochina. The mountainous nature of the country meant that these groups could remain separate, and explains why there's so much
linguistic diversity in East Timor today.
Timor was incorporated into Chinese and Indian trading networks of the fourteenth century as an exporter of aromatic
sandalwood,
slaves,
honey and
wax. Early European explorers report that the island had a number of small chiefdoms or princedoms in the early sixteenth century. One of the most significant is the
Wehale kingdom in central Timor, with its capital at
Laran, West Timor, to which the Tetum,
Bunaq and
Kemak ethnic groups were aligned.
Portuguese colonization
The
Portuguese were the first Europeans to colonize
South-East Asia when they arrived in the
sixteenth century. They established outposts in Timor as well as in several of the surrounding islands. However, during the
House of Habsburg's rule over Portugal (1580-1640), all the surrounding outposts were lost and eventually came under
Dutch control by the mid-seventeenth century. The area became a colony in
1702 with the arrival of the first governor from
Lisbon. In the eighteenth century, the Netherlands gained a foothold on the Western half of the island, and formally received West Timor in
1859 through the
Treaty of Lisbon. The definitive border was established by the Hague Treaty of 1916, and it remains the international boundary between the successor states East Timor and Indonesia.
In late
1941, Portuguese Timor was briefly occupied by Dutch and Australian troops in an attempt to preempt a
Japanese invasion of the island. The Portuguese Governor protested the invasion, and the Dutch forces returned to the Dutch side of the island. When the Japanese landed and drove the small Australian force out of Dili, the mountainous interior became the scene of a
guerrilla campaign, known as the
Battle of Timor, waged by
Allied forces and Timorese volunteers against the Japanese. The struggle resulted in the deaths of between 40,000 and 70,000 Timorese. Following the end of the war, Portuguese control was reinstated.
The process of
decolonisation in
Portuguese Timor began in
1974, following the change of government in Portugal in the wake of the
Carnation Revolution. Owing to political instability and more pressing concerns over the decolonisation of
Angola and
Mozambique, Portugal effectively abandoned East Timor and it unilaterally
declared itself independent on
November 28,
1975. Nine days later, it was invaded and occupied by Indonesian forces before the declaration could be internationally recognised.
Indonesian occupation
Indonesia alleged that the East Timorese
FRETILIN party, which received some vocal support from the
People's Republic of China, was communist. Fearing a
Communist domino effect in
Southeast Asia—and in the wake of its failed
South Vietnam campaign—the
United States, along with its ally
Australia, supported the pro-
Western Indonesian government's actions.
An
Indonesian invasion was launched over the western border on
7 December,
1975. Two days before the invasion of
Dili and subsequent annexation,
U.S. President Gerald Ford and
Secretary of State Henry Kissinger met President
Suharto in
Jakarta where Ford made it clear that "We will understand and won't press you on the issue. We understand the problem and the intentions you have." Kissinger added: "It is important that whatever you do succeeds quickly [because] the use of US-made arms could create problems." U.S. arms sales to Indonesia continued well into the
Clinton Administration, although the U.S. did eventually discontinue its support of Suharto's regime. As "
Timor Timur", the territory was declared the twenty-seventh province of Indonesia in July
1976. Its nominal status in the UN remained that of a "non-self-governing territory under Portuguese administration."
The East Timorese guerrilla force,
Falintil, fought a campaign against the
Indonesian forces from 1975 to 1999, some members being trained in Portugal by Portuguese special forces.
Indonesian rule in East Timor was often marked by extreme violence and brutality, such as the
Dili massacre and the
Liquiçá Church Massacre. From 1975 until 1993, attacks on civilian populations were only nominally reported in the Western press. Death tolls reported during the occupation varied from 60,000 to 200,000. A detailed statistical report prepared for the
Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation in East Timor cited a lower range of 102,800 conflict-related deaths in the period 1974-1999, namely, approximately 18,600 killings and 84,200 'excess' deaths from hunger and illness. Since each data source used under-reports actual deaths, this is considered a minimum.
Amnesty International estimated deaths at 200,000.
Ben Kiernan has written in
War, Genocide, and Resistance in East Timor, 1975–99: Comparative Reflections on Cambodia that "the crimes committed ... in East Timor, with a toll of 150,000 in a population of 650,000, clearly meet a range of sociological definitions of
genocide used by most scholars of the phenomenon, who see both political and ethnic groups as possible victims of
genocide. The victims in East Timor included not only that substantial 'part' of the Timorese 'national group' targeted for destruction because of their resistance to Indonesian annexation—along with their relatives, as we'll see—but also most members of the twenty-thousand strong ethnic
Chinese minority prominent in the towns of East Timor, whom Indonesian forces singled out for destruction, apparently because of their ethnicity 'as such.'"
Independence
Following a UN-sponsored agreement between Indonesia, Portugal and the United States and a surprise decision by the Indonesian President
B. J. Habibie, a UN-supervised popular
referendum was held on
August 30,
1999. The East Timorese voted for full independence from Indonesia, but violent clashes, instigated primarily by the Indonesian military (see
Scorched Earth Operation) and aided by Timorese
pro-Indonesia militias led by
Eurico Guterres, broke out soon afterwards. A peacekeeping force (
INTERFET, led by Australia) intervened to restore order.
Militias fled across the border into Indonesia, from which they attempted sporadic armed raids, particularly along the southern half of the main border held by the
New Zealand Army. As these raids were repelled and international moral opinion forced Indonesia to withdraw tacit support, the militias dispersed. INTERFET was replaced by a UN force of
International Police, the mission became known as
UNTAET, and the
UNTAET Crime Scene Detachment was formed to investigate alleged atrocities. The result of these actions caused
Osama Bin Laden to place a
fatwa on
Australia and Australian interests.
Following a visit by
Xanana Gusmão to
Lisbon, Portugal agreed to recognise East Timor's independence on
May 20 2002. On
September 27, East Timor joined the United Nations.
2006 crisis
Unrest started in the country in April 2006, following riots in
Dili. A riot broke out during a rally in support of 591 East Timorese soldiers who had been dismissed for deserting their barracks; 500 people were killed and over 20,000 fled their homes. Fierce fighting between pro-government troops and disaffected Falintil troops broke out in May 2006. While unclear, the motives behind the fighting appeared to be the distribution of oil funds and the poor organization of the Timorese army and the
police, including former Indonesian police and former Timorese rebels. Prime Minister
Mari Alkatiri called the violence a "coup" and welcomed offers of foreign military assistance from several nations. By
May 25 2006, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, and Portugal sent troops to Timor, attempting to quell the violence.
On
June 22,
2006, President
Xanana Gusmão delivered an ultimatum on a national television broadcast, saying that he'd resign as President the following day if Prime Minister Alkatiri didn't resign. Prime Minister
Mari Alkatiri replied that he'd only resign if
Fretilin wanted him to do so. On 25 June, a meeting of Fretilin leaders confirmed Alkatiri's status as Prime Minister and in response, Foreign and Defence Minister
José Ramos Horta resigned from office. Pressure was mounting on Mari Alkatiri as 8 more ministers threatened to resign the next day,
June 26. On the same day, Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri resigned, stating, "I declare I'm ready to resign my position as prime minister of the government... so as to avoid the resignation of His Excellency the President of the Republic". José Ramos Horta was appointed as his successor on
July 8,
2006.
In the build-up to the
April 2007 presidential elections there were renewed outbreaks of violence in February and March 2007, particularly in the city of
Same. At this point people that had fled the 2006 violence in Dili were still displaced, living in camps around the country.
José Ramos Horta was inaugurated as
President on
May 20,
2007 following his election win in the second round.
United Nations history
Government departments
Policia Nacional de Timor-Leste (police)
East Timor Ministry for State and Internal Administration
Politics
The Head of state of the East Timorese republic is the president, who is elected by popular vote for a five-year term. Although the role is largely symbolic, the president does have veto power over certain types of legislation. Following elections, the president appoints the leader of the majority party or majority coalition as the prime minister. As head of government, the prime minister presides over the Council of State or cabinet.
The unicameral Timorese parliament is the National Parliament or Parlamento Nacional, whose members are elected by popular vote to a five-year term. The number of seats can vary from a minimum of fifty-two to a maximum of sixty-five, though it exceptionally has eighty-eight members at present, due to this being its first term of office. The East Timorese constitution was modelled on that of Portugal. The country is still in the process of building its administration and governmental institutions.
Districts, subdistricts, and sucos
East Timor is divided into thirteen administrative districts:
The districts are subdivided into 65 subdistricts, 443 sucos and 2,336 towns, villages and hamlets.
Geography
The island of Timor is part of the Malay archipelago and the largest and easternmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. To the north of the mountainous island are the Ombai Strait and Wetar Strait, to the south the Timor Sea separates the island from Australia, while to the west lies the Indonesian Province of East Nusa Tenggara. The highest point of East Timor is Mount Ramelau (also known as Mount Tatamailau) at 2,963 meters (9,721 ft).
The local climate is tropical and generally hot and humid, characterised by distinct rainy and dry seasons. The capital, largest city and main port is Dili, and the second-largest city is the eastern town of Baucau. Dili has the only functioning international airport, though there are airstrips in Baucau, Suai and Oecusse used for domestic flights. Dili's airport runway is unable to accommodate large aircraft.
Economy
Prior to and during colonisation, Timor was best known for its sandalwood. In late 1999, about 70% of the economic infrastructure of East Timor was laid waste by Indonesian troops and anti-independence militias, and 260,000 people fled westward. Over the next three years a massive international program led by the UN, manned by civilian advisers, 5,000 peacekeepers (8,000 at peak) and 1,300 police officers, led to substantial reconstruction in both urban and rural areas. By mid-2002, all but about 50,000 of the refugees had returned. This successful UN effort was headed by Special Representative of the Secretary-General Sérgio Vieira de Mello, later to become High Commissioner for Human Rights (and subsequently killed in Baghdad, August 2003).
The country faces great challenges in continuing to rebuild the infrastructure and strengthen the infant civil administration. One promising long-term project is the joint development with Australia of petroleum and natural gas resources in the waters southeast of Timor.
The Portuguese colonial administration granted a concession to Oceanic Exploration Corporation of Denver, Colorado to develop the petroleum deposits of the Timor Sea. Before the concession could begin to be developed, the Indonesian invasion made it impossible.
Timor Sea petroleum resources were divided between Indonesia and Australia by the Timor Gap Treaty in 1989, (External Link
) which established guidelines for joint exploitation of seabed resources in the area of the "gap" left by then-Portuguese Timor in the maritime boundary agreed between the two countries in 1972.(External Link) Revenues from the "joint" area were to be divided 50%-50%. Woodside Petroleum and ConocoPhillips began development of some resources in the Timor Gap on behalf of the two governments in 1992.
OCEX currently has a $30 billion lawsuit against ConocoPhillips pending in US District Court in New York. This lawsuit is the company's sole significant asset; to fund the suit, it relies on the deep pockets of its majority owner, James Neal Blue, who also owns General Atomics (maker of the RQ-1 Predator drone aircraft).
East Timor inherited no permanent maritime boundaries when it attained independence, repudiating the Timor Gap Treaty as illegal. A provisional agreement (the Timor Sea Treaty, signed when East Timor became independent on 20 May 2002) defined a Joint Petroleum Development Area (JPDA), and awarded 90% of revenues from existing projects in that area to East Timor and 10% to Australia.(External Link) The first significant new development in the JPDA since Timorese independence is the largest petroleum resource in the Timor Sea, the Greater Sunrise gas field. Its exploitation was the subject of separate agreements in 2003 and 2005. Only 20% of the field lies within the JPDA and the rest in waters not subject to the treaty (though claimed by both countries). The initial, temporary agreement gave 82% of revenues to Australia and only 18% to East Timor.(External Link)
The Government of East Timor has sought to negotiate a definite boundary with Australia at the halfway line between the countries, in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The Government of Australia preferred to establish the boundary at the end of the wide Australian continental shelf, as agreed with Indonesia in 1972 and 1991. Normally a dispute such as this could be referred to the International Court of Justice or the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea for an impartial decision, (External Link) but the Australian government had withdrawn itself from these international jurisdictions (solely on matters relating to maritime boundaries) shortly before Timorese independence.(External Link) (External Link) Nevertheless, under public and diplomatic pressure, the Australian government offered instead a last-minute concession on Greater Sunrise gas field royalties alone.(External Link) On July 7, 2005, an agreement was signed under which both countries would set aside the dispute over the maritime boundary, and East Timor would receive 50% of the revenues (estimated at A$26 billion or about US$20 billion over the lifetime of the project (External Link)) from the Greater Sunrise development. Other developments within waters claimed by East Timor but outside the JPDA (Laminaria-Corallina and Buffalo) continue to be exploited unilaterally by Australia, however.(External Link)
East Timor also has a large and potentially lucrative coffee industry, which sells organic coffee to numerous Fair Trade retailers and on the open market.
Currently three foreign banks have a branch in Dili: Australia's ANZ, Portugal's Banco Nacional Ultramarino, and Indonesia's Bank Mandiri.
Demographics
The population of East Timor is about one million. It has grown considerably recently, because of a high birth rate, but also because of the return of refugees. The population is especially concentrated in the area around Dili.
The Timorese are called Maubere collectively by some of their political organizations, an originally derogatory name turned into a name of pride by Fretilin. They consist of a number of distinct ethnic groups, most of whom are of mixed Malayo-Polynesian and Melanesian/Papuan descent. The largest Malayo-Polynesian ethnic groups are the Tetun (or Tetum) (100,000), primarily in the north coast and around Dili; the Mambae (80,000), in the central mountains; the Tukudede (63,170), in the area around Maubara and Liquiçá; the Galoli (50,000), between the tribes of Mambae and Makasae; the Kemak (50,000) in north-central Timor island; and the Baikeno (20,000), in the area around Pante Macassar. The main tribes of predominantly Papuan origin include the Bunak (50,000), in the central interior of Timor island; the Fataluku (30,000), at the eastern tip of the island near Lospalos; and the Makasae, toward the eastern end of the island. In addition, like other former Portuguese colonies where interracial marriage was common, there's a smaller population of people of mixed Timorese and Portuguese origin, known in Portuguese as mestiços. The East Timorese mestiços best-known internationally are Xanana Gusmão, the resistance fighter and national hero, and now Prime Minister of East Timor; and José Ramos Horta, the spokesman for the resistance movement in exile, and now President of East Timor. Mário Viegas Carrascalão, Indonesia's appointed governor between 1987 and 1992, is also a mestiço. East Timor has also tiny Chinese and Portuguese minorities (most of them left the area after the Indonesian invasion).
Religion
Upon independence, East Timor became one of only three predominantly Roman Catholic Christian countries in Asia (along with the Philippines and Papua New Guinea). The population predominantly identifies as Roman Catholic (90%), though local animist traditions have a persistent and strong influence on the culture. Religious minorities include Muslims (5%) (including former Prime Minister of East Timor Mari Alkatiri) and Protestants (3%). Smaller Hindu (0.3%), Buddhist (0.1%) and traditional animist minorities make up the remainder. Church membership grew considerably under Indonesian rule, as Indonesia's state ideology Pancasila doesn't recognize traditional beliefs and requires all citizens to believe in God. Although the struggle wasn't about religion, as a deep-rooted local institution the Church not only symbolized East Timor's distinction from predominantly Muslim Indonesia, but also played a significant role in the resistance movement, as personified by Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo, the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. The constitution acknowledges the Church's role among the East Timorese people although it also stipulates a secular state that guarantees freedom of religion to everyone.
Languages
East Timor's two official languages are Portuguese and Tetum, a local Austronesian language. The predominant form of Tetum, known as Tetun-Dili, grew out of the dialect favored by the colonizers at Dili, and thus has considerable Portuguese influence, but other dialects of Tetum are also widely used in the country, including Tetun-Terik which is spoken along the southwestern coast. Indonesian and English are defined as working languages under the Constitution in the Final and Transitional Provisions, without setting a final date. Although the country has about 1 million inhabitants (August 2005; estimate made by UNDP census consultant in Dili), another fifteen indigenous languages are spoken: Bekais, Bunak, Dawan, Fataluku, Galoli, Habun, Idalaka, Kawaimina, Kemak, Lovaia, Makalero, Makasai, Mambai, Tokodede and Wetarese.
Under Indonesian rule, the use of Portuguese was banned, but it was used by the clandestine resistance, especially in communicating with the outside world. The language, along with Tetum, gained importance as a symbol of resistance and freedom and was adopted as one of the two official languages for this reason, and as a link to nations in other parts of the world. It is now being taught and promoted widely with the help of Brazil, Portugal and the Latin Union, although its prominence in official and public spheres has been met with some hostility from younger Indonesian-educated Timorese.
According to the 2006 UN Development Report (using data from official census), under 5% of the Timorese population is proficient in Portuguese. However, the validity of this report has been questioned by members of the Timorese National Institute of Linguistics, which maintains that Portuguese is spoken by up to 25% of Timorese, with the number of speakers more than doubling in the last five years. Along with other local languages, Tetum remains the most common means of communication between ordinary Timorese, while Indonesian is still widely used in the media and school from high school to university. A large proportion of words in Tetum are derived from Portuguese, but it also shares many Malay-derived words with Indonesian. Many Indonesian words are still in common use in Tetum and other Timorese languages, particularly numbers.
East Timor is a member of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP), also known as the Lusophone Commonwealth, and a member of the Latin Union. It is the only independent state in Asia with Portuguese as an official language, although this is also one of the official languages of China's Special Administrative Region of Macau.
Culture
The culture of East Timor reflects numerous influences, including Portuguese, Roman Catholic, and Malay, on the indigenous Austronesian and Melanesian cultures of Timor. Legend has it that a giant crocodile was transformed into the island of Timor, or Crocodile Island, as it's often called. East Timorese culture is heavily influenced by Austronesian legends, although the Catholic influence is also strong.
Illiteracy is still widespread, but there's a strong tradition of poetry. President Xanana Gusmão, for example, is a distinguished poet. As for architecture, some Portuguese-style buildings can be found, along with the traditional totem houses of the eastern region. These are known as uma lulik (sacred houses) in Tetum, and lee teinu (houses with legs) in Fataluku. Craftsmanship is also widespread, as is the weaving of traditional scarves or tais.
Sports
International sports associations
East Timor has joined many international sport associations, including the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The IOC board has granted full recognition to the East Timorese Olympic Committee (COTL). The IOC had allowed a mainly symbolic four-member team to take part in the 2000 Sydney Games under the Olympic flag as "Independent Olympic Athletes." The Federação de Timor-Leste de Atletismo has joined the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). The Federação de Badminton de Timor-Leste joined the International Badminton Federation (IBF) in April 2003. The East Timor Cycling Federation has joined the Union Cycliste Internationale. The Confederação do Desporto de Timor Leste has joined the International Weightlifting Federation. East Timor is also a full member of the International Table-Tennis Federation (ITTF). In September 2005, East Timor's national football team joined FIFA.
Participation in international events
East Timor has taken part in several sporting events. Although the athletes came back with no medals, East Timorese athletes had the opportunity to compete with other Southeast Asian athletes in the 2003 Southeast Asian Games held in Vietnam in 2003. Most of their equipment was lent by the other nations competing. In the 2003 ASEAN Paralympics Games, also held in Vietnam, East Timor won a bronze medal. In the Athens 2004 Olympic Games, six athletes participated in three sports: athletics, weightlifting and boxing).
On East Timor's performance in the 22nd SEA Games in 2003, karate coach Austo Aparício remarked, "This was an opportunity for our athletes to gain experience. East Timor is still young, so it has lots of financial problems." He also commented on his team's karate performance, "We are fairly good at karate and we can make sure that we win a medal in the Philippines in 2005." East Timor went on to win three medals in Arnis at the 2005 Southeast Asian Games.
East Timor was also one of the competing nations in the first Lusophony Games, winning a bronze medal in the women's volleyball competition (finishing third out of three teams), despite the fact the team had lost all its three games.
Public holidays
East Timor now has public holidays that commemorate historic events in the liberation struggle, as well as those associated with Catholicism. They are defined in .
In addition, the law defines "official commemorative dates" which are not considered holidays but could be subject to time off from work:
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