Timor&Leste East Timor: Indonesia's invasion and the

long road to independence

The 1999 referendum came after 24 years of occupation by
Indonesian forces

Alison Rourke
Thu 29 Aug 2019 19.00 BST

04:13

East Timor independence: a short history of a long and brutal struggle – video

Why did East Timor hold a referendum in 1999?

The landmark vote in 1999, in which 78.5% of East Timorese chose
independence from Indonesia, was the culmination of 24 years of
occupation by Jakarta and, before that, hundreds of years of colonial rule by
Portugal.

Why did Portugal relinquish its far&flung colony?

In April 1974 a leftwing coup in Lisbon, the Carnation Revolution, led to
Portugal setting its colonial outposts adrift. It withdrew its administrative
and military personnel – including from Mozambique, Angola and what was
then called Portuguese Timor.

What happened once they left?

Local elections were held in East Timor and the two biggest parties – the
Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (Fretilin) and the
Timorese Democratic Union (UDT) – formed a coalition, but it did not last
long. Fighting broke out, there was an attempted coup by UDT, and then
Fretilin unilaterally declared independence on 28 November 1975.

What was Indonesia’s reaction?

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Indonesian forces had already secretly begun attacks across the border from
Indonesian West Timor (on the other side of the island) in October 1975,
where five Australian journalists were killed in the town of Balibo. Jakarta
feared a communist state on its doorstep and that a newly independent
country in its sphere could destabilise the rest of the archipelago. It launched
a full-scale invasion of Timor in December 1975.
Why were the East Timorese so opposed to Indonesian rule?
Portugal’s colonial influence meant the population was culturally very
different from the rest of Indonesia. The vast majority of East Timorese are
devout Catholics and speak their own language (Tetun).
What happened after the invasion?
The Indonesian forces were brutal. As many as 200,000 people are thought
to have perished in fighting, massacres and forced starvation. Fretilin and its
armed wing, Falintil, retreated to the interior of the island with tens of
thousands of civilians. It’s thought 100,000 died in the first few years, as the
armed resistance was largely crushed and Indonesia held civilians in
detention camps where many died in a famine. In July 1976 Indonesia’s
parliament declared East Timor the country’s 27th province.
How did the world react?
Many countries, including Australia, effectively looked the other way,
prepared to appease Indonesia because of its size and power in the region. In
1978 Australia’s prime minister, Malcolm Fraser, was the first to recognise
Jakarta’s de facto annexation. But the UN condemned it and called for an act
of self-determination.
What happened to the Timorese resistance?
In 1992 the head of the resistance, Xanana Gusmão, was captured and
imprisoned in Jakarta. It was an almighty blow. The year before, leaked
footage of the massacre of 100 mourners at a funeral at Santa Cruz cemetery
in Dili had emerged, reminding the world of the brutality of the occupation.
In 1996 the country’s de facto foreign affairs minister, José Ramos-Horta, was
jointly awarded the Nobel Peace prize with Bishop Carlos Belo, the head of
the Catholic church in Timor.
Why did Indonesia change its stance towards East Timor?
In 1998 a political earthquake brought change to

In 1992 the head of the
resistance, Xanana Gusmão, was
captured and imprisoned in
Jakarta. Photograph: Reuters
:
Indonesia. The Asian financial crisis and massive pro-
democracy protests led to the resignation of the
country’s strongman, President Suharto, who had been
in power for more than 30 years and had authorised the
invasion of Timor. Suharto’s successor, President BJ
Habibe, was more open to some form of autonomy for
East Timor, and released Gusmão from prison in Jakarta,
into house arrest. In March 1999 Habibe announced that
if, in a “process of consultation”, the East Timorese
favoured independence over autonomy under Indonesia,
he would grant it.
What happened in the referendum and its aftermath?
An aerial picture of the East Timorese capital of Dili on 9 September 1999 after militias set fire
in the city. Photograph: AP
On 30 August 1999 the UN oversaw an historic ballot, in which 78.5% of East
Timorese rejected autonomy in favour of independence. Celebrations across
the country were short-lived. Indonesian-backed militia groups who had
terrorised the population before the vote stepped up their attacks, aided by
Indonesian security forces. A three-week campaign of violence killed 2,600
people, nearly 30,000 were displaced and as many as 250,000 were forcibly
shipped over the border to Indonesian West Timor after the ballot, in what
amounted to a scorched earth policy.
How did the world respond?
On 20 September 1999 an Australian-led international peacekeeping force,
Interfet, arrived to restore order. But extensive damage had been done.
Towns and villages were decimated and vital infrastructure was ruined.
Gusmão and other exiled leaders returned soon afterwards and the UN ran a
three-year administration in the lead-up to parliamentary and presidential
elections. In May 2002 Gusmão was inducted as president of the newly
named Timor-Leste.
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