Pre-Colonial and
Colonial History
East
Timor Under Indonesian Control
U.N.
Intervention and Independence
Pre-Colonial
and Colonial History
Since archeological evidence is sparse, very
little is known about the pre-colonial history of East Timor.
It is believed that the island was populated by successive waves
of migration from surrounding archipelagos, but the timing of
these migrations is unknown. Chinese and Javanese records note
that trade in sandalwood and beeswax was conducted as early as
the 13th century.
In the late 15th century Spanish, Dutch and Portuguese
navigation technology improved, thus expanding the scope of their
global travels. The discovery of spices and other valuable commodities
in the Indonesian islands greatly increased the amount of ship
traffic in the archipelago. In 1509, the first Portuguese explorers
set foot on the island of Timor. However, it wasn't until 1556
that a community of Dominican priests from Portugal established
the first European outpost on the island. Due to the competing
colonial interests of the Dutch and Portuguese, the two countries
signed the Treaty of Lisbon in 1559. This treaty split control
over the island of Timor; the eastern half of the island was placed
under Portuguese jurisdiction, while the western half was controlled
by the Dutch. The 1559 Treaty of Lisbon continues to shape Timor's
political landscape; today, East Timor is an independent nation,
while West Timor is a province of Indonesia.
Political maps in the wake of Treaty of Lisbon
indicated that the Portuguese controlled East Timor. However,
aside from a few coastal outposts manned primarily by missionaries,
Portuguese control of the colony was nominal. Tribal groups continued
to exercise a great deal of autonomy in their daily affairs. The
Portuguese made no real attempt to administer East Timor's interior
regions until the 1920's. While colonial administrative control
during this period was weak, the religious influence of Portuguese
priests was significant. Located in a predominantly Muslim region,
90% of East Timor's population is Catholic.
Governed by a quasi-fascist dictatorship, Portugal
maintained political neutrality during World War II. Despite East
Timor's official status as a neutral Portuguese colony, the political
and military whirlwinds sweeping the region drew East Timor into
the war. Japanese forces swept into British and Dutch possessions
in the archipelago. Realizing that Timor was an ideal base the
Japanese could use to mount an invasion of Australia, several
hundred Australian and British guerrilla fighters formed resistance
groups that harassed the 20,000 Japanese troops stationed on the
island. It is estimated that 60,000 East Timorese lost their lives
during this period of anti-Japanese insurgency. At the conclusion
of the World War II, nationalist forces in surrounding Dutch Indonesia
declared independence; the Dutch officially acknowledged Indonesian
independence in 1949. East Timor, however, returned to its pre-war
status as a Portuguese colony.
East Timor Under
Indonesian Control
In 1974-75, East Timor seemed to be making strides
towards independence. When a military coup led to the overthrow
of Portugal's dictatorship in 1974, the Portuguese governor of
East Timor allowed the colony's various political factions to
form political parties. In late 1975, a leftist pro-independence
group seized power and declared East Timor's independence. However,
fighting between rival political factions created a political
vacuum; after only nine days of independence, the Indonesian military
launched a full-scale invasion of East Timor in December of 1975.
President Suharto, Indonesia's right-wing dictator, claimed that
this invasion was necessary to avoid a communist takeover of the
territory. In July of 1976, Indonesia officially claimed East
Timor as the country's twenty-seventh province. However, fierce
guerrilla resistance to Indonesian occupation continued for the
next two decades. Estimates suggest that more than 200,000 East
Timorese died between 1975 and 1999 as a result of periodic famines
and frequent military clashes between separatist groups and Indonesian
military forces.
During Indonesia's occupation of East Timor, most
of the world turned a blind eye to the territory's plight. In
response to the chaos that engulfed the region, the United Nations
passed a resolution calling for East Timor's independence in 1981.
However, without substantive support from any of the countries
with political and strategic interests in the region, the U.N.'s
resolution went unnoticed. In 1996, exiled resistance leader Jose
Ramos Horta, and East Timorese Catholic bishop Carlos Belo received
the Nobel Peace Prize, thus directing the world's attention towards
the plight of East Timor. The following year, the Asian economic
crisis hit Indonesia especially hard; in 1998, economic and political
instability toppled the dictatorship of Indonesian President Suharto
after 32 years. While East Timor also suffered severe economic
hardship in the wake of the Asian economic crisis, there were
rays of political hope on the horizon.
U.N. Intervention
and Independence
In January of 1999, the U.N. brokered an agreement
with Indonesia's new president, B.J. Habibie, which cleared the
way for a referendum allowing the East Timorese to decide their
political status. However, pro-Jakarta militias backed by the
Indonesian military twice forced the U.N. to postpone the referendum.
On August 30, 1999, 98.6% of East Timor's registered voters finally
got a chance to cast their ballots; 78.5% of the voters chose
independence. Despite this positive outcome, more tragedy followed
the election. The pro-Indonesian militias that had created so
much havoc before the elections unleashed a savage series of attacks
when the results of the election were announced. A series of riots
broke out in Dili, East Timor's capital, and in other cities and
villages. As many as 1000 people died during the militia attacks,
while some 250,000 people fled to West Timor. In addition, 80%
of East Timor's buildings were damaged or destroyed. While East
Timor had voiced its wish for independence, the physical and social
dislocation caused by post-election violence greatly jeopardized
the country's economic and political security as it set out on
the path of independence.
In September of 1999, the U.N. dispatched an Australian-led
security force that finally restored order in East Timor; in the
following months, 200,000 refugees who had fled the violence were
able to return to East Timor. For the next two years, the U.N.
Transitional Authority in East Timor worked to help rebuild the
country's infrastructure and trained East Timorese to play an
effective role in establishing self-government. On August 30,
2001, East Timor held its first parliamentary elections; in April
of 2002, Xanana Gusmao, an independence leader who spent nearly
a decade in an Indonesian prison, was elected the first president
of East Timor.
At the stroke of midnight on May 20, 2002, over
100,000 East Timorese gathered in Dili to celebrate the moment
the country officially became independent. After centuries as
a Portuguese colony, and more than two decades of harsh Indonesian
rule, East Timor became the world's newest nation. While East
Timor still struggles with widespread poverty, potentially lucrative
oil leases that the country's leaders have negotiated with Australian
companies provide hope for East Timor's future.
