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East Timor
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Background:
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The Portuguese began
to trade with the island of Timor in the early 16th century and
colonized it in mid-century. Skirmishing with the Dutch in the
region eventually resulted in an 1859 treaty in which Portugal ceded
the western portion of the island. Imperial Japan occupied East
Timor from 1942 to 1945, but Portugal resumed colonial authority
after the Japanese defeat in World War II. East Timor declared
itself independent from Portugal on 28 November 1975 and was invaded
and occupied by Indonesian forces nine days later. It was
incorporated into Indonesia in July 1976 as the province of East
Timor. An unsuccessful campaign of pacification followed over the
next two decades, during which an estimated 100,000 to 250,000
individuals lost their lives. On 30 August 1999, in a UN-supervised
popular referendum, an overwhelming majority of the people of East
Timor voted for independence from Indonesia. Between the referendum
and the arrival of a multinational peacekeeping force in late
September 1999, anti-independence Timorese militias - organized and
supported by the Indonesian military - commenced a large-scale,
scorched-earth campaign of retribution. The militias killed
approximately 1,400 Timorese and forcibly pushed 300,000 people into
West Timor as refugees. The majority of the country's
infrastructure, including homes, irrigation systems, water supply
systems, and schools, and nearly 100% of the country's electrical
grid were destroyed. On 20 September 1999 the Australian-led
peacekeeping troops of the International Force for East Timor (INTERFET)
deployed to the country and brought the violence to an end. On 20
May 2002, East Timor was internationally recognized as an
independent state. |
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Location:
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Southeastern Asia, northwest of
Australia in the Lesser Sunda Islands at the eastern end of the
Indonesian archipelago; note - East Timor includes the eastern half
of the island of Timor, the Oecussi (Ambeno) region on the northwest
portion of the island of Timor, and the islands of Pulau Atauro and
Pulau Jaco |
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Geographic coordinates:
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8 50 S, 125 55 E |
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Area:
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total: 15,007 sq km
land: NA sq km
water: NA sq km |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 228 km
border countries: Indonesia 228 km |
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Coastline:
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706 km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: NA
exclusive economic zone: NA
continental shelf: NA
exclusive fishing zone: NA |
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Climate:
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tropical; hot, humid; distinct rainy
and dry seasons |
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terrain
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mountainous |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Timor Sea, Savu
Sea, and Banda Sea 0 m
highest point: Foho Tatamailau 2,963 m |
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Natural resources:
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gold, petroleum, natural gas,
manganese, marble |
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Land use:
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arable land: 8.2%
permanent crops: 4.57%
other: 87.23% (2005) |
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Irrigated land:
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1,065 sq km (est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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floods and landslides are common;
earthquakes, tsunamis, tropical cyclones |
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Environment - current issues:
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widespread use of slash and burn
agriculture has led to deforestation and soil erosion |
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Geography - note:
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Timor comes from the Malay word for
"East"; the island of Timor is part of the Malay Archipelago and is
the largest and easternmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands |
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Population:
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1,062,777
note: other estimates range as low as 800,000 (July 2006
est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 36.3% (male
196,293/female 189,956)
15-64 years: 60.6% (male 328,111/female 315,401)
65 years and over: 3.1% (male 16,072/female 16,944) (2006
est.) |
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Median age:
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total: 20.8 years
male: 20.8 years
female: 20.7 years (2006 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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2.08% (2006 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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26.99 births/1,000 population (2006
est.) |
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Death rate:
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6.24 deaths/1,000 population (2006
est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.95 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 45.89 deaths/1,000 live
births
male: 52.03 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 39.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 66.26 years
male: 63.96 years
female: 68.67 years (2006 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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3.53 children born/woman (2006 est.)
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Nationality:
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noun: Timorese
adjective: Timorese |
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Ethnic groups:
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Austronesian (Malayo-Polynesian),
Papuan, small Chinese minority |
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Religions:
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Roman Catholic 90%, Muslim 4%,
Protestant 3%, Hindu 0.5%, Buddhist, Animist (1992 est.)
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Languages:
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Tetum (official), Portuguese
(official), Indonesian, English
note: there are about 16 indigenous languages; Tetum, Galole,
Mambae, and Kemak are spoken by significant numbers of people
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can
read and write
total population: 58.6%
male: NA%
female: NA% (2002) |
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Country name:
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conventional long form:
Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
conventional short form: East Timor
local long form: Republika Demokratika Timor Lorosa'e [Tetum];
Republica Democratica de Timor-Leste [Portuguese]
local short form: Timor Lorosa'e [Tetum]; Timor-Leste
[Portuguese]
former: Portuguese Timor |
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Government type:
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Republic |
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Capital:
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Dili |
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Administrative divisions:
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13 administrative districts; Aileu,
Ainaro, Baucau, Bobonaro (Maliana), Cova-Lima (Suai), Dili, Ermera,
Lautem (Los Palos), Liquica, Manatuto, Manufahi (Same), Oecussi (Ambeno),
Viqueque |
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Independence:
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28 November 1975 (date of proclamation
of independence from Portugal); note - 20 May 2002 is the official
date of international recognition of East Timor's independence from
Indonesia |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day, 28 November (1975)
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Constitution:
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22 March 2002 (based on the Portuguese
model) |
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Legal system:
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UN-drafted legal system based on
Indonesian law remains in place but will be replaced by civil and
penal codes based on Portuguese law; these have passed and are
expected to be promulgated in early 2006 |
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Suffrage:
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17 years of age; universal |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral National Parliament (number
of seats can vary, minimum requirement of 52 and a maximum of 65
seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms);
note - for its first term of office, the National Parliament is
comprised of 88 members on an exceptional basis
elections: (next to be held in 2006); direct elections for
national parliament were never held; elected delegates to the
national convention adopted a constitution and named themselves
legislators instead of having elections; hence the exceptional
numbers for this term of the national parliament.
election results: percent of vote by party - FRETILIN 57.37%,
PD 8.72%, PSD 8.18%, ASDT 7.84%, UDT 2.36%, PNT 2.21%, KOTA 2.13%,
PPT 2.01%, PDC 1.98%, PST 1.78%, independents/other 5.42%; seats by
party - FRETILIN 55, PD 7, PSD 6, ASDT 6, PDC 2, UDT 2, KOTA 2, PNT
2, PPT 2, UDC/PDC 1, PST 1, PL 1, independent 1 |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme Court of Justice - constitution
calls for one judge to be appointed by National Parliament and rest
appointed by Superior Council for Judiciary; note - until Supreme
Court is established, Court of Appeals is highest court |
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Economy - overview:
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In late 1999, about 70% of the economic
infrastructure of East Timor was laid waste by Indonesian troops and
anti-independence militias, and 300,000 people fled westward. Over
the next three years, however, a massive international program,
manned by 5,000 peacekeepers (8,000 at peak) and 1,300 police
officers, led to substantial reconstruction in both urban and rural
areas. By the end of 2005, all refugees either returned or resettled
in Indonesia. Non-petroleum GDP growth was held back in 2003 by
extensive drought and the gradual winding down of the international
presence but recovered somewhat in 2004. The country faces great
challenges in continuing the rebuilding of infrastructure,
strengthening the infant civil administration, and generating jobs
for young people entering the work force. The development of oil and
gas resources in nearby waters has begun to supplement government
revenues ahead of schedule and above expectations - the result of
high petroleum prices - but the technology-intensive industry does
little to create jobs for the unemployed, because there are no
production facilities in Timor and the gas is piped to Australia.
The parliament in June 2005 unanimously approved the creation of a
Petroleum Fund to serve as a repository for all petroleum revenues
and preserve the value of East Timor's petroleum wealth for future
generations. |
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$370 million (2004 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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1% (2004 est.) |
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GDP - per capita (PPP):
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$400 (2004 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 25.4%
industry: 17.2%
services: 57.4% (2001) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% |
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Unemployment rate:
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50% estimated; note - unemployment in
urban areas reached 20%; data do not include underemployed (2001
est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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42% (2003 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by
percentage share:
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lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Distribution of family income - Gini
index:
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38 (2002 est.) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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1.8% (2004) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $107.7 million
expenditures: $73 million; including capital expenditures of
$NA (2004 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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coffee, rice, corn, cassava, sweet
potatoes, soybeans, cabbage, mangoes, bananas, vanilla |
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Industries:
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printing, soap manufacturing,
handicrafts, woven cloth |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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8.5% |
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Exports:
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$10 million; note - excludes oil (2005
est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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coffee, sandalwood, marble; note -
potential for oil and vanilla exports |
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Exports - partners:
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Indonesia 100% (2004) |
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Imports:
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$202 million (2004 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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food, gasoline, kerosene, machinery
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Debt - external:
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$0 |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$2.2 billion (1999-2002 est.)
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Currency (code):
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US dollar (USD) |
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Fiscal year:
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1 July - 30 June |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA |
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Internet hosts:
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215 (2005) |
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Internet users:
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1,000 (2004) |
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Airports: |
8 (2005) |
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Airports - with paved runways: |
total: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2005) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways: |
total: 5
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 2 (2005) |
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Heliports: |
9 (2005) |
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Roadways: |
total: 5,000 km
paved: 2,500 km
unpaved: 2,500 km (2005) |
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Ports and terminals: |
Dili |
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Military branches:
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East Timor Defense Force (Forcas de
Defesa de Timor-L'este, FDTL): Army, Navy (Armada) (2005)
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Disputes - international:
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UN Mission of
Support in East Timor (UNMISET) has maintained about 1,000
peacekeepers in East Timor since 2002; East Timor-Indonesia Boundary
Committee continues to meet, survey, and delimit the land boundary,
but several sections of the boundary especially around the Oekussi
enclave remain unresolved; Indonesia and East Timor contest the
sovereignty of the uninhabited coral island of Pulau Batek/Fatu
Sinai, which prevents delimitation of the northern maritime
boundaries; many refugees who left East Timor in 2003 still reside
in Indonesia and refuse repatriation; Australia and East Timor
agreed in 2005 to defer the disputed portion of the boundary for 50
years and to split hydrocarbon revenues evenly outside the Joint
Petroleum Development Area covered by the 2002 Timor Sea Treaty;
dispute with Australia has hampered creation of a southern maritime
boundary with Indonesia |
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