Demographic and Health Survey 2009-10 - Timor-Leste Ministry of ...

INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, AND ECONOMY
1.1.1 History
Timor-Leste is a small country in Southeast Asia. It occupies primarily the eastern half of the
island of Timor, with West Timor being part of the Republic of Indonesia. Timor-Leste includes the
nearby islands of Ataúro and Jaco, and also Oecussi, an exclave in Indonesian West Timor. The first
inhabitants are thought to be descended from Australoid and Melanesian people. Contact between the
Portuguese and the island of Timor began in the early 16th century, with trade and eventual
colonization occurring in the middle of the century. In 1859, the western portion of the island was
ceded to the Dutch. During World War II, Japan occupied Timor-Leste from 1942 to 1945. Portugal
resumed colonial authority after the Japanese defeat.
The country declared independence from Portuguese rule on November 28, 1975, but was
invaded and occupied by Indonesian forces just nine days later on December 7, 1975. It was
incorporated into Indonesia in July 1976 as a province known as Timor-Timur. Between 1974 and
1999, there were an estimated 102,800 conflict-related deaths (approximately 18,600 killings and
84,200 “excess” deaths from hunger and illness), the majority of which occurred during the
Indonesian occupation (UNESCO, 2009).
On August 30, 1999, in a UN-sponsored referendum, an overwhelming majority of the
Timorese people voted for independence from Indonesia. Immediately following the referendum,
however, anti-independence Timorese militias organized with support from the Indonesian military
and began a punitive “scorched-earth” campaign. The majority of the country’s infrastructure was
destroyed, including homes, irrigation and water supply systems, schools, and nearly all of the
country’s electrical grid. The militias killed approximately 1,400 Timorese and forcibly pushed
300,000 people into West Timor as refugees (CIA, 2010). On September 20, 1999, the International
Force for East Timor (INTERFET) began deploying to the country and brought the violence to an
end. Following a transitional period administered by the United Nations under the United Nations
administration in East Timor (UNTAET), Timor-Leste was internationally recognized as an
independent country on May 20, 2002. The country became officially known as the Democratic
Republic of Timor-Leste. Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão became the first president, and Mari Alkatiri
assumed the role of first prime minister.
The relationship between the armed forces and the police remained fragile, while the authority
of the state faced multiple challenges. In early 2006, following claims of discrimination within the
military of Timor-Leste, nearly 600 military personnel deserted their barracks and were eventually
relieved of duty. In April, riots broke out in Dili among rival groups within the military and police.
Renewed fighting between the pro-government troops and disaffected Falentil troops broke out in
May 2006 and resulted in further destruction of property. Forty people were reported as killed, and
more than 20,000 residents fled their homes to internally displaced persons camps outside of the city
(Head, 2006). In July 2006, after calls for his resignation, Prime Minister Alkatiri stepped down and
was replaced by Jose Ramos-Horta. Following the most recent presidential elections held in April
2007, Jose Ramos-Horta became the president on May 20, 2007 and Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão was
sworn in as the Prime Minister on August 8, 2007 (Wikipedia, 2010).
Introduction | 1