East Timorese-Portuguese Relations

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
East Timorese-Portuguese Relations
Location of East Timor and Portugal
East TimorEast Timor PortugalPortugal
East Timor Portugal

The East Timorese-Portuguese relations describe the intergovernmental relationship between East Timor and Portugal . The countries have had direct diplomatic relations since 2000.

The bilateral relationship is shaped by the history of East Timor as the Portuguese colony of Portuguese Timor from the 16th century to 1975. The architectural and cultural heritage, but above all the diverse cooperation projects, especially since East Timor's independence in 2002, are the main pillars of East Timorese-Portuguese relations today .

After Australia, Portugal is the second most important donor of development aid to East Timor and the most important cooperation partner in the development of the young country's most important institutions, such as the legal system, public administration, the economy, the education system, as well as general access to information and a free media landscape.

Since 2002, East Timor has been a full member of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries . Portuguese is the official language in East Timor , alongside the local language Tetum .

In 2015, 172 East Timorese citizens were registered in Portugal, and 9,700 people were registered in the Portuguese consulate in East Timor in 2012, 9,487 of them Portuguese citizens.

history

Until 1975

Memorial stone near the Lifau monument erected in 2015 for the first Portuguese landing in Timor in 1515
Pataca note from Portuguese Timor (1910)

In 1512 the Portuguese António de Abreu sighted Timor as the first European. It is not documented whether he entered the island. The arrival of Portuguese Dominicans in Oe-Cusse Ambeno is considered the first landing .

Initially, the Portuguese only settled on the nearby island of Solor and approached the island of Timor at various points, mainly to trade in sandalwood . The first Portuguese foundation on Timor was Lifau in the west of the island in 1556 . From 1586, Portugal took possession of Timor as the Portuguese Timor . The island was sometimes also called Ilha de Santa Cruz (Island of the Holy Cross) in the course of Christianization . Portuguese Timor was de jure under the Portuguese crown, so the Topasse were de facto rulers of the Portuguese territories on Timor.

With the restoration of the independence of the Kingdom of Portugal after the personal union with Spain (1580–1640), Portugal's presence in the region also increased again, but Portugal had to gradually give way to Dutch expansion in the west. In 1756 almost all of West Timor was in Dutch hands. In 1769 the Topasse even drove the Portuguese out of their exclave Lifau for a time, so that Dili became the new capital in the east. The tensions between the Dutch in the west and the Portuguese in the east of Timor were always threatening and prevented pacification and the establishment of permanent boundaries, which was not achieved by a border treaty in 1859. It was not until 1916 that today's borders were established, including the East Timorese exclave Oe-Cusse Ambeno in West Timor.

In the east, too, the colony consisted largely of vassal states that remained internally independent. When the contract between the Portuguese and the local rulers ( Liurai ) was concluded, the Timorese were given a Portuguese flag, among other things . As a symbol of power, these flags became cult objects and are still kept in the holy houses ( Uma Lulik ) today . While maintaining their rule, the Portuguese benefited from headhunting , which meant a permanent state of war between the numerous empires on Timor with changing power constellations. It was only with the suppression of the rebellions in Portuguese Timor (1860–1912) that the Liurais in Portuguese Timor were ousted and colonial administrative structures were established.

Monument to Artur do Canto Resende in Dili (1970)
Swearing-in of Portuguese soldiers in the Marobo training camp (1968)

During the Second World War , Portugal remained neutral under the dictator Salazar , but nevertheless got caught between the fronts in Macau and Timor. At the end of 1941, Allied troops first invaded the colony to build a defense base against the Japanese , and in 1942 the Battle of Timor and the occupation by the Japanese began. Allied units waged a guerrilla war on the island against the Japanese, supported by parts of the local Timorese and Portuguese population, despite Portugal's official neutrality. Above all, exiles from Portugal to the colony like Manuel Viegas Carrascalão stood out. Liurai Aleixo Corte-Real , executed by the Japanese, was later glorified as the colony's folk hero. Manuel Jesus Pires was a Portuguese officer who fought on the side of the Australians. The Japanese protested several times to the Portuguese government, also because of the poorly cooperative Portuguese governor Manuel de Abreu Ferreira de Carvalho . The Portuguese civilian population was eventually interned. Pro-Japanese groups of Timorese, the black pillars ( Portuguese Colunas Negras ), attacked priests and other civilians. A total of 75 Portuguese and between 40,000 and 70,000 Timorese died as a result of the Japanese occupation. Several monuments in East Timor commemorate the victims of the Second World War. On September 26, 1945, the official surrender ceremony of the Japanese took place in Dili and the rule was returned to the Portuguese - despite the resistance of the Australian and Dutch military.

In 1951, East Timor was declared an overseas province of Portugal , which, however, did not in fact represent any significant changes for East Timor's situation as a Portuguese colony . In 1954, the state-owned Transportes Aéreos de Timor (TAT), the colony's first airline, began operations and linked various points in the colony and the neighboring regions. After Portugal had already issued the pataca as a monetary currency in Timor from 1894 , the colonial power introduced the escudo Portuguese-Timor in 1959 , which remained a means of payment here until 1976.

In 1959 there was the Viqueque Rebellion and in 1961 the Bureau de Luta pela Libertação de Timor attempted a final uprising against the colonial rulers.

After the Carnation Revolution in Portugal, Portuguese Timor was also to be prepared for independence, but fueled by Indonesia , a civil war broke out between the two major parties, the conservative UDT and the left-wing FRETILIN , which emerged victorious from the brief conflict. In addition to Timorese from the aristocratic and educated class, Mestiços also played important roles in both parties . They still influence politics in East Timor today. Portugal's last governor, Mário Lemos Pires , withdrew to the island of Atauro off Dili during the fighting in August 1975, together with the Portuguese administration and their families . Pires did not follow FRETILIN's request to return to Dili.

Indonesian occupation of East Timor and independence

May 20, 2012: Opening of the Museum of the Timorese Resistance , a. a. with East Timor’s Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão (2nd from right) and Portuguese President Cavaco Silva (9th from right)

In view of the infiltration of the border areas by Indonesian armed forces, FRETILIN was forced to unilaterally proclaim independence on November 28, 1975. Portugal and most of the international community did not recognize this. Nine days later, Indonesia began openly invading the neighboring country and occupying Dilis. The next day, on December 8th, Pires and the Portuguese community left the colony from Atauro on board two Portuguese warships. The last Portuguese flag was still flying over Atauro until Indonesian troops landed on Atauro on December 30th and ceremonially overtook them. It is now privately owned by Francisco Lopes da Cruz , who worked with the Indonesians.

In 1976, East Timor was officially annexed as the Indonesian province of Timor Timur . This was also not generally recognized internationally. East Timor was now considered "Portuguese territory under Indonesian administration".

While the armed resistance in the guerrilla war against the occupying forces in East Timor, the East Timorese diaspora tried to regain the independence of East Timor through diplomatic and political channels. A large group lived in Portugal, where East Timorese found asylum even after various peaceful embassy occupations in the 1990s. At the National Timorese Congress from April 23 to 27, 1998 in Peniche , Portugal , all major East Timorese political parties were successfully united in the umbrella organization of the Conselho Nacional de Resistência Timorense . Portugal supported the East Timorese through diplomatic channels throughout the occupation. In Portugal itself supported several non-governmental organizations East Timor, the Comissão para os Direitos do Povo Maubere (CDPM) , the Paz e Justiça para Timor Leste , the Associação Portugal Loro Sae , the Espaço Timor and the Centro Internacional da Acção Jovem para a Paz . The Christian A Paz é Possível em Timor-Leste (APPTL) had already existed since 1982 .

Especially after the Santa Cruz massacre in 1991, the international protests against the Indonesian rulers and for an independent East Timor increased sharply. In addition to Australia, there were large protests and solidarity demonstrations, especially in Portugal , which put Portuguese politics under pressure and called for Portuguese responsibility for the former colony. The East Timor question became a national question and a symbol of the younger generation in Portugal. There was a fundamentally romantic idea of ​​Timor. Portuguese musicians recorded songs on the subject, and calls for boycotts against Indonesia were numerous . Portuguese music groups avoided Indonesian restaurants on their foreign tours in a publicly effective way and drew attention to the situation in comments on the stages, such as Madredeus . Portuguese authors, some of them with East Timorese roots, campaigned for the former colony. In March, with the support of the Portuguese government, activists tried to take the Lusitânia Expresso ferry to East Timor. The aim of this mission "Peace in Timor" was stated to be the laying of a wreath for the victims of the massacre at the Santa Cruz cemetery . The ship was stopped by the Indonesian Navy, but its real destination was achieved. Worldwide attention.

After the end of the Indonesian dictatorship in 1998, negotiations between Portugal, Indonesia and the United Nations were able to agree on an independence referendum in East Timor for August 30th. The vote brought a clear result for the complete independence of East Timor from Indonesia, but Indonesian security forces and pro-Indonesian militias struck the country with a final wave of violence. The United Nations then dispatched the international intervention force INTERFET under Australian leadership, which pacified the country again. East Timor then came under UN administration until 2002 . Portugal was always involved in the various UN missions up to 2012, partly through soldiers and partly through police forces. East Timorese-Portuguese relations increased significantly during this phase.

On May 20, 2002, East Timor was given independence again. The constitution was based in part on the Portuguese constitution. On the same day, the Democratic Republic of East Timor and the Portuguese Republic signed a comprehensive cooperation agreement that provides for cooperation and support in a wide range of areas (including the economy, justice, internal security, military, culture and language, health and social security, public administration, copyright, Youth exchanges and sport), but also regular state visits and consultations, mutual visa exemption and simplified entry and consular regulations and other things.

East Timor received the first boats for its navy from Portugal. Two speed boats of Albatross class were transferred in December 2001 and the names Oecusse District (P101) and Atauro baptized (P102). The officers were trained by Portugal in Metinaro. In 2008 the two boats were overhauled in Indonesia. Portuguese judges were active in the East Timorese judiciary until 2014 to remedy the shortage of lawyers in the country.

Since then, a number of new agreements have been concluded and existing collaborations updated, for example in 2012 for the East Timorese information and media landscape, in 2014 in the field of defense and in 2016 in the judiciary.

diplomacy

The embassy of East Timor in the Belém district of Lisbon

The Portuguese representation in the capital Dili opened on June 4, 2000 , and Pedro Moutinho de Almeida became the first head of mission on June 5 . The Portuguese embassy has been located in a new building on Avenida Marginal since 2017, in front of it in the former ACAIT building ( Edifício ACAIT ) in Rua 30 de Agosto , house number 2.

There are no Portuguese consulates outside the embassy in East Timor.

The East Timorese embassy in the Portuguese capital Lisbon is located at Largo dos Jerónimos No. 3, not far from the famous world cultural heritage site Mosteiro dos Jerónimos . It was the first embassy in the world to open independent East Timor. The first ambassador was Pascoela Barreto .

There is also an East Timorese honorary consulate in Porto .

City friendships

Municipalities in both countries are linked by friendship between cities and municipalities . Even before the full independence of East Timor, Portuguese cities and municipalities entered into partnerships with places in East Timor, on May 6, 2000 the places Baucau and Seixal were the first . By 2014, eleven East Timorese-Portuguese community friendships had been established.

economy

Branch of the Portuguese savings bank Caixa Geral de Depósitos in Dili

The bilateral economic relations are still at a low level, but are steadily increasing.

The Portuguese Chamber of Commerce AICEP has an office at the Portuguese Embassy in Dili.

In 2016, Portugal exported goods and services worth 21.7 million euros to East Timor (2015: 22.0 million; 2014: 17.2 million; 2013: 14.2 million; 2012: 14.8 million .). 34.4% of the goods were machinery and equipment, 22.3% food, 9.9% paper and cellulose and 8.2% agricultural products.

In the same period, East Timor delivered goods and services worth EUR 4.7 million to Portugal (2015: 6.0 million; 2014: 4.1 million; 2013: 3.9 million; 2012: 3.8 million .). 97.9% of the goods were agricultural products, 1.2% textiles, 0.8% machines and devices and 0.1% chemical-pharmaceutical products.

In 2016, East Timor was 105th as a buyer and 139th as a supplier for Portuguese foreign trade in goods. For East Timor's foreign trade in goods, Portugal was in 6th place among buyers and 8th among suppliers.

In 2018, the East Timor’s Statistical Office registered imports from Portugal amounting to 5,775,000 US dollars, placing Portugal in 13th place among the countries of origin. East Timor exported 499,200 kg of coffee valued at 959,616 US dollars to Portugal. Portugal came in 7th place of all destination countries for East Timorese exports and 6th place for coffee buyers. There were also re- exports from East Timor to Portugal totaling 71,000 US dollars (9th place).

Entry requirements

Citizens of East Timor are exempt from the visa requirement for the Schengen states . Portuguese citizens also enjoy visa-free travel in East Timor.

Culture

Institutions

The National University in Dili , cooperation partner of the Instituto Camões

Since 2009 the National Library of East Timor has been built, u. a. with the help of the Portuguese Imprensa Nacional-Casa da Moeda and the Portuguese National Library . Its inventory is still small (2014: 2,500 volumes, donated by Imprensa Nacional), but will be expanded further. The national library is to become the supreme institution of all public libraries in East Timor and to receive the right to deposit copies .

The Portuguese cultural institute Instituto Camões is represented with a language center and a lecturer at the Universidade Nacional de Timor-Leste and a lecturer at the National Parliament of East Timor in Dili.

literature

East Timorese writers such as Fernando Sylvan (1917–1993) or Luís Cardoso (* 1958) often lived and worked in Portuguese exile, where they were usually relocated. Sylvan was also president of the Instituto Camoes.

Some East Timorese politicians are also writers, including the first President of East Timor, Xanana Gusmão , or Domingos Francisco de Sousa . They are also often of Portuguese descent and write in both Portuguese and Tetum.

The Portuguese school Escola Portuguesa Ruy Cinatti in Dili is named after the Portuguese writer Ruy Cinatti (1915–1986), who often dealt with East Timor in his work and who lived here for a while.

music

Rui Veloso

Especially after the Santa Cruz massacre in 1991, the increasing public protest in Portugal against the Indonesian occupation of East Timor was also expressed in a series of songs that Portuguese pop and rock musicians dedicated to the East Timorese resistance or in which they spoke about the suffering of the people in the previous Portuguese colony sang.

Among the still popular pieces of the hymn were Timor folk-pop band Trovante and of Heróis-do-Mar written -Musikern and the successful 1992 supergroup Resistência popularized Timor .

Special distribution also found the single Maubere of Rui Veloso , which he in 1992 together u. a. with Carlos Paredes (old master of the Portuguese guitar ), Nuno Bettencourt (guitarist of the internationally popular US band Extreme ) and the world music and folk musician Rão Kyao and on which he recorded with English-Portuguese text and the images in the video clip The situation in East Timor.

The East Timorese singer Marvi won the sixth edition of the talent show The Voice Portugal in 2018 .

architecture

In East Timor there are numerous legacies of the Portuguese colonial rule, and not just in the state capital. In addition to fortresses, these are representative buildings such as the East Timorese government palace , churches, schools ( Liceu Dr. Francisco Machado , Pinto Correia schools ) and others.

Cheers in East Timor over Portugal 's 2016 European Championship win

Sports

Football is the most popular sport in both countries. The East Timorese national football team and the Portuguese national team have not yet played against each other (as of April 2018). In 2019, the Portuguese Fabiano Flora became national coach for East Timor.

Athletes from East Timor and Portugal have so far met at all games in the Portuguese-speaking area, the Jogos da Lusofonia .

literature

Web links

Commons : East Timorese-Portuguese Relations  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Comprehensive report and evaluation of Portuguese-East Timorese development cooperation (port.), PDF available on the OECD website , accessed on March 27, 2017
  2. ↑ Sums of the number of East Timorese in the official immigration statistics by district , Portuguese immigration and border authority SEF, accessed on March 25, 2017
  3. ↑ Website on East Timorese-Portuguese migration (Table A.3) at the Portuguese Scientific Observatório da Emigração , accessed on March 25, 2017
  4. ^ ETAN: List of East Timor Support and Solidarity Groups Worldwide , accessed January 24, 2018.
  5. ^ University of Coimbra: A Paz é Possível em Timor Leste , accessed on October 23, 2019.
  6. ↑ Marinús Pires de Lima & Nuno Filipe Pombo Nunes: MOVIMENTOS SOCIAIS EM TIMOR , accessed on September 20, 2019.
  7. ↑ PDF download of the agreement (port.), Documentation and legal archive of the Portuguese Public Prosecutor's Office, accessed on March 27, 2017.
  8. ↑ Stephen Saunders: "Jane's Fighting Ships 2007-2008", Vol. 110, Coulsdon 2007.
  9. ↑ Timor-Leste e Portugal assinam Acordo de Cooperação para a Comunicação Social ["East Timor and Portugal Sign Cooperation Agreement for Communication Studies and Media"], article from August 29, 2012 on the East Timorese government website, accessed on March 27, 2017.
  10. ↑ Portugal e Timor-Leste assinam novo Programa de Cooperação Técnico-militar ["Portugal and East Timor sign new program of military-technical cooperation"], article of February 10, 2014 on the information website of the Portuguese Ministry of Defense, accessed on March 27, 2017
  11. ↑ Portugal e Timor-Leste assinam protocolo para a justiça ["Portugal and East Timor sign protocol for the judiciary"], article from 25 February 2016 on the website of the Portuguese Ministry of Justice, accessed on 27 March 2017.
  12. ↑ Overview of diplomatic relations with East Timor at the Portuguese Foreign Ministry, accessed on February 26, 2017
  13. ^ Dili's Architectural Heritage of Portuguese Origins , p. 117, accessed November 4, 2016.
  14. ^ Website of the Portuguese Embassy in East Timor , accessed on February 26, 2017
  15. ↑ Publico: Primeira embaixada de Timor-Leste abre hoje em Lisboa , July 5, 2002 , accessed on April 23, 2016.
  16. ^ List of the East Timorese-Portuguese town twinning at the Association of Portuguese Administrative Districts (ANMP), accessed on May 12, 2020
  17. ↑ Overview of the AICEP presence in East Timor of the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce AICEP, accessed on March 6, 2017
  18. ↑ a b c Bilateral economic relations between Portugal and East Timor , Excel file retrieval from the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce AICEP, accessed on March 6, 2017
  19. ↑ Direcção-Geral de Estatística: External Trade Statistics Annual Reports 2018 , accessed on April 17, 2019.
  20. ↑ Introduced with Regulation (EU) No. 509/2014 (PDF) of May 15, 2014, which came into force on June 9 , 2014.
  21. ↑ Overview of the activities in East Timor , Portuguese cultural institute Instituto Camões , accessed on February 25, 2017.
  22. ↑ Recording of a live version of Timor by the band Trovante u. a. Before President Jorge Sampaio (4:10 and 4:50), video clip on YouTube , accessed on March 27, 2017.
  23. ↑ A live version of Timor by the band Resistência , video clip on YouTube, accessed on March 27, 2017.
  24. ↑ Video clip of Mauchte by Rui Veloso on YouTube , accessed on March 27, 2017.