East Timor or the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste is a country in Southeast Asia. It is on the eastern side of the island of Timor. It also includes the smaller islands of Atauro and Jaco Island, and a small area, named Oecusse, inside the west side of Timor. Oecusse is an exclave, which means it is separated from the main part of the country by part of another country. That other country is Indonesia.
For a long time, Portugal controlled the East Timor and called it the Colony of Portuguese Timor. In 1975, the Portuguese army left, and East Timor was invaded (taken over) by the Indonesian army in 1975. The invasion was very violent. The army stayed there until 1999, when they gave up control of the territory with the help of the United Nations.
At the time, the United States government said it did not know Indonesia was going to invade East Timor. But secret documents, released from 2002 to 2005, show that Henry Kissinger, the Secretary of State of the United States, did know, and supported the invasion.
When it got its independence on 20 May 2002, it became the first country to become independent in the twenty-first century (since the year 2001). In 2006, when Montenegro became independent, East Timor was no longer the newest one.
Since then, East Timor has not been given much attention in the news. Recently, the Colombian music artist Shakira made a song named "Timor", which talks about the country. The attention is because there has been fighting in East Timor between gangs (groups of criminals with guns), security forces (the country's army). Australia, a large nearby country, sent troops in to make peace.
East Timor is a small country located between Australia and Indonesia, 3,000 years ago, East Timor was a mountainous island composed of migrant indigenous people from New Guinea, Australia and Melanesia.
There were some migrants from Austronesia searching for a new life on this island. Some of the people arrived from South China and North Indochina looking for trade because East Timor had resources which could be exported, like sandalwood, honey, slaves and wax.
During the Second World War, the Japanese occupied the region, encountered strong resistance to their attempts to force the population to grow foods for their troops and export. At the time 30% of the population died.
On 25 April 1974, the Portuguese Armed Forces headed by General António de Spínola organized a Military Coup against Salazar’s regime called the Revolution of Carnations. After this revolution, Portugal decided to give freedom to the colonized countries.
The country has many mountains. Its highest point is Tatamailau (also known as Mount Ramelau) at 2,963 metres (9,721ft). The climate is tropical and generally hot and humid.
East Timor is divided into 13 municipalites. These were formerly named districts. The municipalities are divided into administrative posts (former subdistricts), and further subdivided into sucos. The 13 municipalities are:
↑Shoesmith, Dennis (2003). "Timor-Leste: Divided Leadership in a Semi-Presidential System". Asian Survey. 43 (2): 231–252. doi:10.1525/as.2003.43.2.231. ISSN0004-4687. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2020. The semi-presidential system in the new state of Timor-Leste has institutionalized a political struggle between the president, Xanana Gusmão, and the prime minister, Mari Alkatiri. This has polarized political alliances and threatens the viability of the new state. This paper explains the ideological divisions and the history of rivalry between these two key political actors. The adoption of Marxism by Fretilin in 1977 led to Gusmão's repudiation of the party in the 1980s and his decision to remove Falintil, the guerrilla movement, from Fretilin control. The power struggle between the two leaders is then examined in the transition to independence. This includes an account of the politicization of the defense and police forces and attempts by Minister of Internal Administration Rogério Lobato to use disaffected Falintil veterans as a counterforce to the Gusmão loyalists in the army. The December 4, 2002, Dili riots are explained in the context of this political struggle.
↑Data from 2004 census and official 2008 estimates from the Direcção Nacional de Estatística, Timor-Leste: District Priority TablesArchived 2007-09-29 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved on 28 January 2008
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