East Timor as a Colony

East Timor is located towards the east end of the Indonesian chain of islands, comprising the east half of the island of Timor. Portugal set up a colonial administration in Timor in the early 16th century, but as a result of conflict with the Netherlands the island was divided in the mid-19th century. West Timor was controlled by the Dutch, and East Timor was retained by the Portugese. The two halves of the island have therefore different languages and religions. The border partition was decided by the colonial administrations. Timor was occupied by the Japanese army for three and a half years during World War Two. After the war, as all former Dutch colonies were ceded to Indonesia, West Timor became part of Indonesia. East Timor reverted to Portuguese rule.

Indonesian Invasion

After the collapse of Portugal's dictatorship in 1974, a strong movement for independence emerged in East Timor, and FRETILIN was founded. Following an attempted coup-d'etat in August 1975 FRETILIN took charge, bringing the confusion under control and in fact taking charge of the whole country. Indonesian troops continued to attack the borders, and FRETILIN, suffering seriously from these attacks, on November 28th declared the independence of the Democratic Republic of East Timor, and appealed for international recognition and support.

In December, Indonesia stepped up its aggression, and in July 1976 invaded and annexed East Timor. Indonesia continued to bomb the FRETILIN forces in the mountains. By the end of 1978 Indonesia had established full military control. According to many sources, one third of East Timor's population (200,000) had been killed. Ten thousand Indonesian troops occupied East Timor, with enormous infringements of the human rights of the Timorese. Many massacres, assaults, violence and torture by Indonesian forces were reported, culminating in the Santa Cruz Massacre, in which over 100 unarmed citizens were killed, and which remains a recent memory.

Response of International Community and Japanese Policy

In 1975, when Indonesia invaded, both the United NationsGeneral Assembly and Security Council criticized Indonesia and called for self-determination for East Timor; from 1976 to 1982 the United Nations' General Assembly reiterated this call each year. Japan, which formerly occupied East Timor, also a great supporter of Indonesia, voted against this resolution. Japan's support for Indonesia's aggression should be pointed out.

FRETILIN accuses Japan of supporting a genocidal policy for 30 years, a policy which in fact originated during Japan's World War II occupation of East Timor.

Present and Future of East Timor

With the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Jose Ramos-Horta and Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo, international attention was immediately focused on East Timor. In 1998, with the ending of Indonesian President Suharto's presidency, some progress has been seen in Indonesian democracy, and partial withdrawal of troops from East Timor has commenced. New political status has been suggested for East Timor, a special autonomy with democratic empowerment of the Timorese people, though Ramos-Horta and Bishop Belo insist on the necessity of a referendum on independence.