Category: Timor

Canada’s East Timor advocacy 20 years ago paves the way for leadership today

September 7, 2019

Can Canada make a difference in international affairs? Can middle powers matter when a global crisis hits? The story of the East Timor independence referendum, held 20 years ago this Aug. 30, says yes. Canadian documents tell the story of Canadian actions during the 1999 referendum. Two decades on, they show that bold and sustained… More Canada’s East Timor advocacy 20 years ago paves the way for leadership today

Voting with Betel Juice: a Timorese short story by Dadolin Murak

August 9, 2019

In this story, written in 2017 and recently translated into English. Timor-Leste writer Dadolin Murak depicts a family caught up in the politics of a Timorese election. Timor-Leste (East Timor) experienced Indonesian military occupation and crimes against humanity from 1975 to 1999, when the country voted for independence. That vote, on 30 August 1999, is… More Voting with Betel Juice: a Timorese short story by Dadolin Murak

Chega! for Us: Socializing a Living Document

May 19, 2019

By Maria Manuela Leong Pereira The Asosiasaun Chega! Ba Ita (ACbit, the “Chega! for Us” Association) aims to promote the values and principles that underlie the work of the Commission for Reception, Truth and Friendship (CAVR), including human rights, justice and reconciliation. We are committed to bringing the lessons of the past to guide our… More Chega! for Us: Socializing a Living Document

Development and Foreign Aid in Timor-Leste after Independence

May 7, 2019

By Laurentina “mica” Barreto Soares State-building and development is a continuous process. Timor-Leste has been engaged in this endeavour since the restoration of its independence in 2002, following a period in which the United Nations helped lay the groundwork for institutional development from 1999 to 2002. Many have acknowledged Timorese development is a difficult process,… More Development and Foreign Aid in Timor-Leste after Independence

“Politika Taka Malu,” Censorship, and Silencing: Virtuosos of Clandestinity in Timor-Leste

April 30, 2019

By Jacqueline Aquino Siapno Excerpted from Flowers in the Wall This chapter explores the paradox of being asked to examine “the truth” when the methods used during the clandestine period were to have no history of records (i.e., leave no trace behind)—a negation of the work of historians and historiography (while keeping in mind the… More “Politika Taka Malu,” Censorship, and Silencing: Virtuosos of Clandestinity in Timor-Leste

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

Memorializing Dili, Timor-Leste

November 12, 2018

The right to food; the right to health. Images of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as it gets ready to turn 70. Centro Nacional Chega, the Timor-Leste centre for truth & reconciliation, Dili, Timor-Leste. pic.twitter.com/sYhjUeKHBE — David Webster (@dwebsterbu) October 30, 2018 Instead of mega-monuments glorifying the past, a photo exhibit explains a complex… More Memorializing Dili, Timor-Leste

Unfinished business: Timor-Leste truth commission recommendations to the international community

October 22, 2018

In 2005, the Timor-Leste Commission on Truth, Reception and Reconciliation issued its report, Chega! (Enough!). It listed dozens of recommendations to the Timorese government and Timorese society, many of which are in the process of being carried out. There were also ten recommendations to the international community, which addressed research, dissemination of information, and actions… More Unfinished business: Timor-Leste truth commission recommendations to the international community

Canadian cabinet minister on the 1999 Timor-Leste referendum

August 30, 2018

Like most observers, Raymond Chan, Secretary of State (Asia Pacific), government of Canada, was impressed by the courage and determination of the Timorese people as they lined up to vote. The following transcript contains his remarks on observing the 1999 Timor-Leste referendum, republished for the 19th anniversary of the vote. Raymond Chan: East Timor press… More Canadian cabinet minister on the 1999 Timor-Leste referendum