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Portal:East Timor

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Welcome to the East Timor portal / Bem-vindo ao portal de Timor-Leste

Map of East Timor

East Timor, also known as Timor-Leste, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-western half, and the minor islands of Atauro and Jaco. The western half of the island of Timor is administered by Indonesia. Australia is the country's southern neighbour, separated by the Timor Sea. The country's size is 14,950 square kilometres (5,770 sq mi). Dili, on the north coast of Timor, is its capital and largest city.

Timor was settled by Papuan and Austronesian peoples, which are reflected in the country's diverse mix of cultures and languages, displaying links to Southeast Asia and Melanesia. East Timor came under Portuguese influence in the sixteenth century, remaining a Portuguese colony until 1975. Internal conflict preceded a unilateral declaration of independence and an Indonesian invasion and annexation. Resistance continued throughout Indonesian rule and in 1999, a United Nations–sponsored act of self-determination led to Indonesia relinquishing control of the territory. On 20 May 2002, as Timor-Leste, it became the first new sovereign state of the 21st century. That same year, relations with Indonesia were established and normalized, with Indonesia also supporting East Timor's accession into ASEAN.

The national government runs on a semi-presidential system, with the popularly elected president sharing power with a prime minister appointed by the National Parliament. Power is centralised under the national government, although many local leaders have informal influence. The country maintains a policy of international cooperation, and is a member of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries, an observer of the Pacific Islands Forum, and an applicant for ASEAN membership. The country remains relatively poor, with an economy that relies heavily on natural resources, especially oil, and foreign aid.

The total population is over 1.34 million at the 2022 census, and is heavily skewed towards young people due to a high fertility rate. Education has led to increasing literacy over the past half-century, especially in the two official languages of Portuguese and Tetum. High ethnic and linguistic diversity is reflected by the 30 indigenous languages spoken in the country. The majority of the population is Catholic, which coexists alongside strong local traditions and beliefs, especially in rural areas. (Full article...)

Mountains in Oecusse in 2015

Oecusse, also known as Oecusse-Ambeno (Portuguese: Oé-Cusse Ambeno; Tetum: Oecussi Ambeno) and formerly just Ambeno, officially the Special Administrative Region Oecusse-Ambeno (Portuguese: Região Administrativa Especial Oé-Cusse Ambeno), is an exclave, municipality (formerly a district) and the only Special Administrative Region (SAR) of East Timor.

Located on the north coast of the western portion of Timor, Oecusse is separated from the rest of East Timor by West Timor, Indonesia, which is part of the province of East Nusa Tenggara. West Timor surrounds Oecusse on all sides except the north, where the exclave faces the Savu Sea. (Full article...)

Selected biography - show another

Avelino Coelho da Silva

Avelino Maria Coelho da Silva (b. Laclubar, Manatuto) was one of the candidates in the Presidential Elections in East Timor in April 2007.

He became involved in the clandestine resistance while he studied International Relations and Law in Jakarta. He is the leader of the Socialist Party of Timor (PST), which had a member in the National Parliament from 2002 to 2007. (Full article...)

The following are images from various East Timor-related articles on Wikipedia.

Religions in East Timor


Southeast Asia


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