Category: Archival documents

Truth commissions building states: Lessons from Africa

February 7, 2024

In 2023, McGill-Queen’s University Press released a major contribution to the study of truth and reconciliation. Truth Commissions and State Building discusses the role of truth commissions in constructing stable, democratic countries in often fragile contexts. Below is the text of a talk at the book launch, held at McMaster University, by David Webster.  Truth… More Truth commissions building states: Lessons from Africa

New archival document release : Arnold Kohen papers

October 5, 2021

This week’s release of online archival documents from the Timor International Solidarity Archive (TiSA) represents thousands of pages of publications, news clippings and internal documents from the files of Arnold Kohen, including papers published under the names East Timor Defence Committee, The Humanitarian Project, and others. The materials are organized into three subcollections composed of materials collected by Arnold… More New archival document release : Arnold Kohen papers

Call for contributions: Documents on the Santa Cruz massacre, 12 November 1991

September 2, 2021

In 1991, hundreds of Timorese died or were injured at the hands of Indonesian soldiers at the Santa Cruz cemetery in Dili, Timor-Leste. The massacre was pivotal in the Timor-Leste independence struggle, bringing systematic violations of human rights and mass atrocities to global attention and sparking a wave of solidarity activism around the world. The… More Call for contributions: Documents on the Santa Cruz massacre, 12 November 1991

The United Nations Response to Indonesia’s Invasion of East Timor (December 1975)

May 12, 2021

By Jordan Sneyd-Dewar This post summarizes materials in the United Nations Archives just posted to the Timor International Solidarity Archive, especially the UN Secretariat’s 1975 file. On November 28, 1975, East Timor declared itself independent from their Portuguese colonial occupiers. The declaration should have been a landmark moment for a people that had finally gained… More The United Nations Response to Indonesia’s Invasion of East Timor (December 1975)

first page of Miriam Young's report

Activist travels to occupied East Timor, 1989-99

July 20, 2020

By Olivia Hewitt Between 1975 and 1989 the world was barred from entering East Timor. On more than one occasion the international community would catch a horrific glimpse into the situation unfolding in the region between the East Timorese and Indonesian military forces. Indonesian authorities opened the territory to visitors for the first time since… More Activist travels to occupied East Timor, 1989-99

Canada and East Timor: declassified documents from 1999

September 30, 2019

Reprinted from Canada Declassified. Twenty years ago, the international community faced a humanitarian crisis in East Timor, a territory that had experienced 24 years of Indonesian military occupation. After the fall of longtime dictator Suharto in 1998, his successor B.J. Habibie first offered a special autonomy package to East Timor, and then agreed that it… More Canada and East Timor: declassified documents from 1999

Digitized newsletters of the East Timor solidarity movement

January 17, 2019

A new web site, History Beyond Borders, is starting to share digitized newsletters from East Timor solidarity groups published during the Indonesian occupation (1999-75) and after. It runs off Access to memory (AtoM), a comprehensive archival documents software hosted in Canada and compliant with International Council of Archives standards. A preliminary version with some materials… More Digitized newsletters of the East Timor solidarity movement