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93-494: Wehali ( Wehale , Waihali , Veale ) is the name of a traditional kingdom at the southern coast of Central Timor , now in Indonesia and East Timor . It is often mentioned together with its neighbouring sister kingdom, as Wewiku-Wehali (Waiwiku-Wehale). Wehali held a position of ritual seniority among the many small Timorese kingdoms. Wehali is centred at the village of Laran , (now modern-day Wehali, Indonesia), situated on

186-652: A Great Timor state. However, there is no real evidence that the people of West Timor, most of whom are ethnically Atoni , the traditional enemy of the East Timorese, have any interest in such a union. Furthermore, the current government of East Timor recognizes the existing boundary. UTC+8 : UTC+9 : East Timor%E2%80%93Indonesia border The Municipality of Oecusse forms an exclave of East Timor in Indonesian West Timor (part of East Nusa Tenggara province ). The border starts in

279-556: A 400-strong Dutch-Australian force and large numbers of Timorese volunteers engaged them in a one-year guerrilla campaign . After the allied evacuation in February 1943 the East Timorese continued fighting the Japanese, with comparatively little collaboration with the enemy taking place. This assistance cost the civilian population dearly: Japanese forces burned many villages and seized food supplies. The Japanese occupation resulted in

372-705: A coal station in Portuguese Timor , respectively that the colony would be exchanged for the recognition of Portuguese claims in Africa with Germany, France or England . In fact, on 30 August 1898, Germany and Britain agreed in the Angola Treaty on a joint bond for the heavily indebted Portugal, for which the Portuguese colonies were intended as a pledge. In the event of insolvency, Portuguese Timor would have fallen to Germany. As early as 1899, however,

465-458: A compromise, although Amfo'an was not satisfied with this either. Despite the agreement reached, the signing of the border treaty has now been postponed for further negotiations. Attached to the statement was a satellite image in which Naktuka is even bisected in the centre, with the settlement on the Indonesian side. The arguments, border demarcation and images were referring to the results of

558-487: A fertile plain which is well suited for varied agriculture. It belongs to the South Tetun -speaking area, which is also known as Belu . The southern Tetun have a matrilineal system. At the apex of the political system stood a "great lord" (Nai Bot) who held the title of Maromak Oan ("son of God"). His task was ritually passive, in a symbolic sense "female", and he kept an executive "male" regent or assistant by his side,

651-663: A fifth regency – Malaka – was in 2012 formed from the southern half of Belu Regency. Note that the administrative area has shrunk as Rote Ndao Regency (Rote and Ndoa islands to the southwest) and Sabu Raijua Regency (the Savu Islands further west) were split off in 2002 and 2009 respectively from Kupang Regency. The island accounts for 35.5% of the provincial population. East Timor is divided into thirteen municipalities, which in turn are subdivided into 65 administrative posts, 442 sucos (villages), and 2,225 aldeias (hamlets). Timor and its offshore islands such as Atauro ,

744-484: A former place of exile increasingly known for its beaches and coral , as well as Jaco along with Wetar and the other Barat Daya Islands to the northeast constitute the Timor and Wetar deciduous forests ecoregion . The natural vegetation was tropical dry broadleaf forests with an undergrowth of shrubs and grasses supporting a rich wildlife . However much of the original forest has been cleared for farming, especially on

837-542: A joint solution’. He said he had confidence in the negotiating team led by the Prime Minister. The signing of the border treaty did not take place during Xanana Gusmão's visit to Jakarta following criticism. Gusmão stated on 26 January that he had not yet made a decision on the matter and would travel to Oe-Cusse Ambeno in the next few days to see for himself and talk to the people. In a statement published on Facebook on January 31 by his party, January, his party,

930-531: A local commission again warned against a "Great Timor grouping" in West Timor. However, such a grouping did not appear in the general public and neither the government nor the major parties in East and West Timor pursue such a policy. The current land border between East Timor and Indonesia is 268.8 km long. 149.1 km of this is the border between the main territory of East Timor and its western neighbour,

1023-438: A number of endemic species such as the distinctive Timor shrew and Timor rat . The northern common cuscus , a marsupial of Australasian origin occurs as well, but is thought to be introduced. The island have a great number of birds, mainly of Asian origin with some of Australasian origin. There is a total of 250 species of which twenty four are endemic, due to the relative isolation of Timor, including five threatened species;

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1116-524: A study by Prof. Indriana Kartini, a researcher at the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) of Indonesia. On 1 February, Xanana Gusmão visited the village of Naktuka. Gusmão explained that in 2014, during his last term as prime minister, he had promised Indonesia that Indonesian farmers who cultivate land in Naktuka would not be evicted. The residents of Naktuka had agreed to this at

1209-646: A subject of the Empire of Lamaquitos in the Portuguese sphere of power and Maucatar would have to fall to Portugal as an enclave according to the previous agreements. On the other hand, the Tahakay Empire ( Tahakai , Tafakay , Takay ) had in the meantime fallen to the Lamaknen Empire. Tahakay, however, belonged to the Portuguese sphere of influence, Lamaknen to the Dutch. Portugal resisted this loss in

1302-463: Is Indonesian , although Uab Meto is the local Atoni language spoken throughout Kupang , South Central Timur and North Central Timur Regencies. Indonesian, a standardized dialect of Malay, is also widely spoken and understood in East Timor. Christianity is the dominant religion throughout the island of Timor, at about 90% of the population. However, it is unequally distributed as West Timor

1395-431: Is divided between the sovereign states of East Timor in the eastern part and Indonesia in the western part. The Indonesian part, known as West Timor , constitutes part of the province of East Nusa Tenggara . Within West Timor lies an exclave of East Timor called Oecusse District . The island covers an area of 30,777 square kilometres (11,883 square miles). The name is a variant of timur , Malay for "east"; it

1488-489: Is 58% Protestant and 37% Catholic, and East Timor is 98% Catholic and 1% Protestant. Islam and animism make up most of the remainder at about 5% each across the island. Timor is located north of Australia and Oceania , and is one of the easternmost Sunda Islands . Together with Sumba , Babar and associated smaller islands, Timor forms the southern outer archipelago of the Lesser Sunda Islands with

1581-458: Is a unique convergent margin where a thick continental margin is forced under thinner oceanic crust. The result is a large accretionary wedge of imbricated thrust sheets composed of Cretaceous and Tertiary distal material of the Australian continental margin thrust on top of Australian continental shelf deposits. Timor is well known for its structural complexity. Debate continues about

1674-525: Is noted for its sandalwood. Later on, in the 14th-century Javanese Nagarakretagama , Canto 14, Timur is identified as an island within Majapahit 's realm. Timor was incorporated into ancient Javanese , Chinese and Indian trading networks of the 14th century as an exporter of aromatic sandalwood , slaves , honey and wax , and was settled by both the Portuguese , in the end of the 16th century, and

1767-669: Is so called because it lies at the eastern end of the Lesser Sunda Islands . Mainland Australia is less than 500 km away, separated by the Timor Sea. Anthropologists identify eleven distinct ethno-linguistic groups in Timor. The largest are the Atoni of western Timor and the Tetum of central and eastern Timor. Most indigenous Timorese languages belong to the Timor–Babar branch of

1860-545: The Austronesian languages spoken throughout the Indonesian archipelago. Although lexical evidence is lacking, the non-Austronesian languages of Timor are thought to be related to languages spoken on Halmahera and in Western New Guinea . Some are so mixed that it is difficult to tell which family they descend from. The official languages of East Timor are Tetum and Portuguese , while in West Timor it

1953-592: The CNRT , stated that while the arbitration award between the Netherlands and Portugal did indeed award Naktuka entirely to Portugal, the historical border between the realms of Amfo'an (on the Dutch side) and Ambeno (on the Portuguese side) was the Noel Besi River , so Naktuka must belong entirely to Indonesia. The negotiators therefore came to the conclusion to divide Naktuka into two halves in order to find

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2046-754: The Dutch , based in Kupang, in the mid-17th century. As the nearest island with a European settlement at the time, Timor was the destination of William Bligh and seamen loyal to him following the infamous Mutiny on the Bounty in 1789. It was also where survivors of the wrecked HMS  Pandora , sent to arrest the Bounty mutineers, landed in 1791 after that ship sank in the Great Barrier Reef . The island has been politically divided in two parts for centuries. The Dutch and Portuguese fought for control of

2139-527: The Liurai ("surpassing the land"). According to oral tradition Wehali was the first land that appeared from the waters which once covered the earth, which made it the centre or origin of the world from a Timorese perspective. Other traditions mention a migration from Sina Mutin Malaka (Chinese White Malacca) in ancient times. The historical background of this is not clear, but the account of Antonio Pigafetta of

2232-601: The Magellan expedition, who visited Timor in 1522, confirms the importance of the Wewiku-Wehali kingdom. In the 17th century the ruler of Wehali was described as "an emperor, whom all the kings on the island adhere to with tribute, as being their sovereign". He entertained friendly contacts with the Muslim kingdom of Makassar , but his power was checked by devastating invasions by the Portuguese in 1642 and 1665. Wehali

2325-522: The Spice Islands of modern Indonesia. The Portuguese first landed on Timor in 1512 and established their first settlement in Lifau in western Timor in 1556. The Dutch followed shortly after, but did not establish themselves in the west of the island until 1640 when the Dutch started to occupy the western half of the island as part of its Dutch East Indies colony. In 1642, the Portuguese conquered

2418-526: The exclave of Oecussi-Ambeno in West Timor. Although Portugal was neutral during World War II , in December 1941, Portuguese Timor was occupied by Australian and Dutch forces, which were expecting a Japanese invasion. This Australian military intervention dragged Portuguese Timor into the Pacific War but it also slowed the Japanese expansion. When the Japanese did occupy Timor, in February 1942,

2511-524: The slaty cuckoo-dove , Wetar ground dove , Timor green pigeon , Timor imperial pigeon , and iris lorikeet . Saltwater crocodiles are found in the wetlands whereas reticulated pythons can be found in forests and grasslands of Timor. However, the population sizes and status are unknown. Frog species in Timor include Duttaphrynus melanostictus , Hoplobatrachus tigerinus , Limnonectes timorensis , Litoria everetti , and Polypedates leucomystax . A new species of microlyhid frog belonging to

2604-602: The 1750s Wehali approached the VOC, and in 1756 the Liurai Jacinto Correia signed a contract with the Dutch diplomat Johannes Andreas Paravicini . According to this contract the Liurai was the overlord over a large number of Timorese kingdoms, including Dirma , Laclo , Luca , Viqueque , Corara and Banibani. The Dutch hoped that the contract would automatically include most of East Timor in their sphere of power, but

2697-438: The 1899 map on the farthest eastern boundary of the then Portuguese claims, which were rejected by the 1904 Agreement. In this respect, a border area going even further east is out of the question. There were numerous areas of the boundary which the two sides were unable to come to agreement on, prompting a further conference held at The Hague in 1902. A treaty was subsequently signed on 1 October 1904 (ratified 1908) which created

2790-577: The Bilomi had changed names in this region. "Yes, the river exists," the Portuguese replied, "but, according to indigenous tradition, it bears the name of the area it is crossing". Finally, the Portuguese delegation added, not very far from the north bank of the Bilomis stands Mount Kinapua. On its opposite slope, the Oè Sunan flows towards the north. It was only necessary to follow this river course, then up

2883-607: The Dilumil-Memo region evenly by the use of a median line and was reclarified in the 2005 agreement. Meanwhile, the proposed border in Sunan-Oben faced staunch opposition from Indonesian locals, who argued that, had it been accepted, most of the land would fall on the East Timorese side of the border. In 2017, Both countries had formed an organization, the Senior Official Consultation (or known as

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2976-581: The Dutch. The border was defined from the confluence of the Noèl Bilomi and Oè Sunan , following the Thalweg path of the Oè Sunan, continuing through Nipani and Kelali ( Keli ) to the source of the Noèl Meto, and following its valley path to its mouth. In addition, the Dutch now secured the right of first refusal for East Timor. Portugal ratified the treaty until 1909, but then a dispute arose over

3069-741: The Island of Timor, ought to be interpreted in conformity with the conclusions of the Royal Government of the Netherlands as to the boundary from the Noèl Bilomi as far as the source of the Noel Meto; consequently there will be a survey of that part of the frontier on the basis of the map at 1/50,000 annexed under No. IV of the first Memorial deposited with the arbitrator by the Dutch Government. A reproduction of this map signed by

3162-460: The Noi Fulan river to its source and finally connect it with the source of the Noèl Meto, which had already been recognised by the joint commission. However, the Dutch felt that there was no point in pursuing the survey of this river, as both Mount Kinapua and the border area that would be created under the Portuguese proposal were outside the territory contested in 1899. Mount Tasonal appears on

3255-417: The Noèl Bilomi and the Oè Sunan. The present commission found two northern tributaries here, but neither of them had the name Oè Sunan. The Dutch explained this by saying that the area between the tributaries was called Sunan and that there was actually no tributary named Oè Sunan, although the confluence was the starting point of the boundary demarcation on the 1899 and 1904 maps. The Portuguese noted that there

3348-471: The Noèl Meto in the north and the course of the Noèl Bilomi in the south was missing. Discrepancies arose first in the north. On the 1904 map ( Annex III ), the name Kelali was found with Keli in brackets. The Dutch assigned this mark to the summit of Mount Kelali. This lies to the west of the Noèl Meto between two pointed rocks and was given by the inhabitants of the Dutch Tumbaba as the border to

3441-522: The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague thus ended a centuries-old dispute in favour of the Netherlands on 26 June 1914. In 1915 various overland sections of the boundary were demarcated on the ground by erecting boundary posts. In 1949, the Dutch possessions on and around Timor became independent as part of Indonesia, while Portuguese Timor initially remained an overseas province. It

3534-533: The Portuguese Ambeno. Instead, the Portuguese asked to follow the valley paths east of it. In the southern part, the commission investigated the demarcation along the course of the Nono Nisi ( Nise ) on 17 June 1909, then further along the course of the Noèl Bilomi, finally arriving at the point where the 1899 expedition had finished its work. The point was marked on the 1904 map as the confluence of

3627-531: The Portuguese colonial towns of Dili the capital, and Baucau in East Timor. Poor roads make transport to inland areas difficult, especially in East Timor. Sources of revenue include gas and oil in the Timor Sea, coffee growing and tourism. Timor is an aerially exposed portion of the Banda Forearc formed by collision of Eurasian oceanic crust and continental crust of the Australian plate . This

3720-533: The SOC), in the task of discussing the technical details of resolving border issues. The SOC team managed to reach an agreement in principle in 2019, including on the Subina-Oben boundaries, the determination of end points and the drawing of new lines for Bidjael Sunan–Oben, and the use of a simple median line to bisect Noel Besi–Citrana. Finally ending the dispute. However, after the East Timor delegation brought home

3813-468: The Treaty of Lisbon in 1859 after new negotiations from 1854. On 20 April 1859 a treaty was signed (ratified 1860) which formally divided the island between the Netherlands and Portugal, with a border based on existing Timorese states which were assigned to either Portugal or the Netherlands. However, the exact course of the border was still unclear, and with Portuguese Noimuti and Dutch Maucatar , there

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3906-470: The achievement of independence for Indonesia in 1949, the traditional forms of governance were phased out, but the traditional elite groups still retain an amount of local importance. Timor Timor ( Portuguese : Ilha de Timor , Tetum : Illa Timór , Indonesian : Pulau Timor ) is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia , in the north of the Timor Sea . The island

3999-418: The arbitrator is appended as annex VII to the present award of which it shall be an integral part. Expenses, fixed at 2,000 francs, have been deducted from the sum of 4,000 francs placed in the hands of the arbitrator in execution of art. 8 of the compromis of April 3, 1913; the remainder, or 2,000 francs, will be remitted in equal shares to the two Parties and against receipt, at the time of the notification of

4092-613: The award. Seal of the Permanent Court of Arbitration Done in triplicate of which one copy shall be delivered, against receipt by the Secretary General of the International Bureau of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague, to His Excellency the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands to serve as notification to the Royal Government of the Netherlands, and of which the second shall be delivered on

4185-546: The cabinets in The Hague and Lisbon. Out of this correspondence came the 1913 Convention, which gave an arbitrator the right to decide, according to the "facts supplied by the two parties" and "on the basis of general fundamental rights, how the boundary from the Noèl Bilomi to the source of the Noèl Metos, in accordance with Article 3, Number 10 of the Den Hagen Agreement of 1 October 1904... should run." As

4278-463: The coasts of Timor and on the smaller islands like Atauro. Apart from one large block in the centre of Timor only patches remain. This ecoregion is part of the Wallacea area with a mixture of plants and animals of Asian and Australasian origin; it lies in the western part of Wallacea, in which Asian species predominate. Many trees are deciduous or partly deciduous, dropping their leaves during

4371-405: The colonial authorities before 1898. Brief military clashes took place in 1900 and 1906. The Dutch proceeded to restructure the administrative divisions of Belu in 1915-16, trying to use traditional rulers as zelfbestuurders (rajas under colonial surveillance). The Maromak Oan, Baria Nahak, died in 1925, and the Dutch unsuccessfully tried to use his nephew Seran Nahak as Raja of Belu in 1925-30. After

4464-461: The deaths of 40,000–70,000 Timorese. Following the military coup in Portugal in 1974 the Portuguese began to withdraw from Timor. The subsequent internal unrest and fear of the communist Fretilin party led to an invasion by Indonesia , who opposed the concept of an independent East Timor. In 1975, East Timor was annexed by Indonesia and became known as Timor Timur or 'Tim-Tim' for short. It

4557-495: The demarcation in East Timor's favour. The Prime Minister stated that the border agreement should now be signed in September during the visit of Indonesian President Joko Widodo to East Timor. The inhabitants of Naktuka were invited to send representatives. Border crossings from East Timor's main territory to Indonesia exist at Mota'ain , near the north coast, and Motamasin , on the south coast to Indonesia's West Timor. There

4650-401: The demarcation of the eastern border of Oe-Cusse Ambeno. In 1910, the Netherlands took advantage of the confused situation after the fall of the Portuguese monarchy to seize Lakmaras again with European and Javanese troops. Between 1 and 10 June 1909, a commission carried out a survey of the eastern boundary of Oecussi-Ambeno, but could not agree on the correct course and decided to transfer

4743-478: The demarcation of the land border. The border was last demarcated with poles in the Citrana Triangle between 20 and 27 November. Controversy occurred on 24 January 2024, when FONGTIL , the umbrella organisation of East Timor's non-governmental organisations, called for the signing of the border treaty planned for 26 January to be postponed and called on the national parliament not to ratify the treaty. It

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4836-589: The dry season, there are also evergreen and thorn trees in the woodland. Typical trees of the lowland slopes include Sterculia foetida , Calophyllum teysmannii and Aleurites moluccanus . During the Pleistocene epoch , Timor was the abode of extinct giant monitor lizards similar to the Komodo dragon . Like Flores , Sumba and Sulawesi , Timor was also once a habitat of extinct dwarf stegodonts , relatives of elephants . Fauna of today includes

4929-430: The flag of Portugal, while Wehale itself fell under Dutch rule. The result was a permanent dispute over the boundaries of the spheres of influence of the colonial powers. In 1851, the Portuguese governor José Joaquim Lopes de Lima reached an agreement with the Dutch on the division of the colonies in the Lesser Sunda Islands . However, this was not authorised by Lisbon, which is why the agreements were only confirmed in

5022-418: The genus Kaloula has also recently been discovered in Timor. Late Cretaceous fossils of marine vertebrates are known from East Timor deposits. These include mosasaurs such as Globidens timorensis , lamniforme sharks, coelacanths and the choristodere Champsosaurus . The earliest historical record about Timor island is the 13th-century Chinese Zhu Fan Zhi , where it is called Ti-wu and

5115-464: The governments could not agree, it was decided to refer the matter Permanent Court of Arbitration in 1913. The Portuguese government made the following points: The main arguments of the government of the Netherlands can be summarized as follows: Article 3, number 10, of the Convention concluded at The Hague, October 1, 1904, concerning the delimitation of Dutch and Portuguese possessions in

5208-539: The inner islands of Flores , Alor and Wetar to the north, and beyond them Sulawesi . Timor is the principal island of the Outer Banda Arc , which is being uplifted by arc-continent collision with the Australian continent . Timor consists mostly of rocks from the Australian continental margin that are accreted to the Banda Arc. It occupies a forearc position in front of the active volcanic arc that forms

5301-585: The island include the North and South Laclo Rivers in East Timor. The mountains, which reach up to nearly 3000m elevation are one of the most mature parts of the Banda Range, which stretches from Sumba to Seram. Mutis is the highest mountain in West Timor and Ramelau is the highest mountain in Timor Leste. The largest towns on the island are the provincial capital of Kupang in West Timor, Indonesia and

5394-407: The island until it was divided by treaty in 1859, but they still did not formally resolve the matter of the boundary until 1912. West Timor , was known as Dutch Timor until 1949 when it became Indonesian Timor , a part of the nation of Indonesia which was formed from the old Netherlands East Indies ; while East Timor was known as Portuguese Timor , a Portuguese colony until 1975. It includes

5487-456: The island's spiritual centre at Wehale , after which most Timorese rulers ( Liurai ) recognised Portugal's dominance. Thus, Portugal started to occupy the eastern half of Timor and declared the creation of Portuguese Timor . In 1656, the Dutch conquered the Portuguese base at Kupang . In 1749, an attempted reconquest by the Portuguese failed at the Battle of Penfui , whereupon most rulers in

5580-602: The islands in the Flores region to the north. The orientation of the main axis of the island also differs from its neighbors. These features have been explained as the result of being on the northern edge of the Indo-Australian Plate as it meets the Eurasian Plate and pushes into Southeast Asia . The climate includes a long dry season (April-November) with hot winds blowing over from Australia. Rivers on

5673-506: The local population since the end of 2009. On 21 June 2013, the dispute over the area near Dilumil/Memo was settled. The claims to the island of Batek Island had allegedly been abandoned by East Timor at this point. The two territories on the border of the Oe-Cusse Ambeno exclave remained as points of contention. On 23 July 2019, following a meeting between East Timor's chief negotiator Xanana Gusmão and Wiranto , Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, it

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5766-437: The modern boundary, removing a number of enclaves whilst leaving the exclave of Oecusse as part of Portuguese Timor. However, whilst demarcating the boundary on the ground in 1909, the two sides were unable to agree to the alignment of the eastern section of the Oecusse boundary. The Joint Commission interrupted its work here and the question, meanwhile taken over by the diplomatic services, caused endless correspondence between

5859-418: The nature of deformation of continental crust. Some researchers advocate shallow thin-skinned deformation, while others favor shallow thin-skinned with some basement deformation. Timor also has potential for significant petroleum development. Onshore and offshore exploration efforts have been attempted with varying success. Timor host dozens of natural oil and gas seeps with most exploration concentrated on

5952-418: The negotiations and therefore now demanded the entire Dutch territories in central Timor. A compromise was reached with the Hague Convention of 1 October 1904. Portugal was to receive the Dutch enclave of Maucatar in exchange for the Portuguese enclave of Noimuti and the border areas of Tahakay, Tamira Ailala ( Tamiru Ailala ) and Lamaknen. The disputed territories in the east of Oe-Cusse Ambeno were granted to

6045-418: The neighbouring Indonesian village of Oepoli (Kupang government district). The opposition in parliament immediately took up the criticism of the government of Xanana Gusmão, who has been Prime Minister of East Timor again since 2023. East Timor's President José Ramos-Horta stated that there were ‘still reasons’ to continue the discussion on the land border with Indonesia and expressed ‘optimism with regard to

6138-406: The north at the Savu Sea coast, and proceeds south and then east via the Talu river. It then turns south along the Malibacu river, and then west along the Tafara river, then south along the Massin river down to the coast at the Timor Sea . The division of the island of Timor dates to the colonial period. During the 15th–16th centuries both the Netherlands and Portugal began taking an interest in

6231-482: The north end of the Island where oil seeps are prevalent. Carbon rich shales from the island have been found with TOC up to 23%. Such shales buried deep in the subsurface could act as high-quality source rocks . Jurassic marine shoreface and turbidite sands of the Plover and Militia Formations are proven reservoirs in the North Australian Shelf. Over pressured Upper Jurassic silt and mudstones shales may also provide adequate seals for hydrocarbons. Research focusing on

6324-414: The offer of autonomy within Indonesia. The UN then temporarily governed East Timor until it became independent as Timor-Leste in 2002 under the presidency of Falintil leader Xanana Gusmão . Political strife continued, as the new nation coped with poverty. Nevertheless, the UN presence was much reduced. A group of people on the Indonesian side of Timor have been reported active since 2001 trying to establish

6417-514: The official government of Timor-Leste since 2002 through the Joint Border Committee (JBC). The initial result was the 2005 Interim Agreement, which established a land boundary between Indonesia and Timor-Leste of 268.8 kilometers with 907 coordinate points. However, the agreement had only resolved about 96% of the land border issues. The remaining 4% covering the Noel Besi-Citrana, Bidjael Sunan-Oben, and Dilumil-Memo areas had formerly not been agreed upon due to differences in border interpretation between

6510-401: The open questions back to their governments. The commission had started surveying in the north on the coast and followed the course of the Noèl Meto southwards. Its source served as a measuring point. However, the way to the source was blocked by steep cliffs that could not be overcome, so the surveyors decided to survey only the areas to the north and south. Thus, an area between the source of

6603-484: The province of Timor Timur (which uses the same border prior to the invasion without any changes). The following 24 years of occupation and guerrilla warfare cost the lives of nearly 200,000 people. Finally, in 1999, under pressure from the international community, a referendum was held in which the population had the choice between independence and belonging to Indonesia as an autonomous province. 78.5% opted for independence. East Timor came under UN administration and

6696-536: The rest is the border around the East Timorese exclave of Oe-Cusse Ambeno. In order to agree on the course of the border, the Dutch-Portuguese border demarcation was used as a guideline, in accordance with the legal principle " Uti possidetis ". Border negotiations have been conducted by Indonesia since 2001 with the UN-formed transitional government in East Timor (UNTAET), before being continued with

6789-540: The results of the agreement, there was rejection from parliament, especially regarding the land boundary of the Noel Besi-Citrana region, also known as Naktuka. This then resulted in the Naktuka controversy. Nakuta is located in Noel Besi-Citrana, between Kupang Regency and Oecusse District consisting of 1,069 hectares of land. In 2023, a joint technical team led by chief negotiators Roberto Soares (East Timor) and Abdul Kadir Jailani (Indonesia) finalised

6882-457: The ritual rather than executive authority of Wehali was insufficient for this. In effect, Wehali vacillated between the Dutch and Portuguese sides for the next century. A colonial borderline on Timor was finally agreed on in 1859, which left Wehali's ruling center on the Dutch side. A Dutch official was posted in Atapupu on the north coast of Belu in 1862, but the south coast was not surveyed by

6975-615: The river median of the Mathiaca (Malibaca) over a length of 2.2 km and areas around the exclave of Oe-Cusse Ambeno ( Área Cruz with 142.7 hectares in Passabe , Citrana triangle in Nitibe ) as well as the exact modalities of a corridor from Oe-Cusse Ambeno to the main state territory. Since 2010, there has been a special pass for traffic in the border area. In Naktuka , however, there have been repeated attacks by Indonesian soldiers on

7068-676: The same day and in the same manner to His Excellency the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the Portuguese Republic to H.M. the Queen of the Netherlands, to serve as notification to the Government of the Portuguese Republic. The third shall be deposited in the archives of the International Bureau of the Permanent Court of Arbitration. Paris, June 25, 1914. The Swiss judge Charles Édouard Lardy of

7161-626: The structure of deformed basement rocks provides insight into possible onshore and offshore structural and stratigraphic traps for future petroleum development. West Timor is part of the East Nusa Tenggara province. It was formerly split into the City of Kupang (a kabupaten or regency-level administrative area) and four regencies (kabupaten); from west to east these are: Kupang , Timor Tengah Selatan (South Central Timor), Timor Tengah Utara (North Central Timor) and Belu . However,

7254-475: The time. However, an East Timorese official from the Ministry of Agriculture who has been working in Naktuka since 1996 said that he had never seen Indonesians farming there. Gusmão and negotiator Roberto Soares explained that the poles that had been placed did not represent a new boundary line, but rather marked reference points for the negotiations. The existing border points from the colonial era would support

7347-540: The treaty was undermined by the extension of the British guarantee of protection for Portugal and all its possessions. In 1897, fighting broke out over Lamaknen between Lamaquitos , which was under Portuguese sovereignty, and Dutch-dominated Lakmaras. In Lakmaras itself, skirmishes between the two colonial forces resulted in casualties. Between 23 June and 3 July 1902, there was another conference in The Hague . It

7440-475: The two countries. Since 8 April 2005, 97% of the border had been defined with 907 coordinate points. Still in dispute was the affiliation of the small uninhabited island of Batek Island ( Fatu Sinai ), 37 hectares between the East Timorese village of Memo ( Suco Tapo / Memo ) and the Indonesian Dilumil ( Lamaknen district, Belu Regency ), where it was not possible to agree on the location of

7533-573: The west at the coast of the Savu Sea , proceeding overland to the south to the Noel Besi River , which it then follows south, then east, then south. The border then turns east overland briefly, before turning to the north, utilising various rivers such as the Ekan, Sonau and Bilomi, before proceeding northwards overland to the Savu coast. The border between Indonesia and the main part of East Timor starts in

7626-569: The west signed treaties with the Dutch East India Company. Among them was a certain Jacinto Correa, King of Wewiku-Wehale and Grand Prince of Belu , who also signed the dubious Treaty of Paravicini on behalf of many territories in central Timor. Fortunately for the Portuguese, Wehale was no longer powerful enough to draw the local rulers to the side of the Dutch. Thus the eastern former vassals of Wehale remained under

7719-407: Was a river further east called Oè Sunan or Oil Sunan, which was not a tributary of the Noèl Bilomi, but whose source was in the "very close to the Noèl Bilomi". Finally, the commission agreed that there is no tributary called Oè Sunan on the Noèl Bilomi, but that the river changes its name. The Portuguese stressed that this meant that the Noèl Bilomi still existed. The Dutch delegation explained that

7812-474: Was also one enclave each of the colonial power without access to the sea on the side of the competitor. On 10 June 1893, An additional treaty, the Lisbon Convention, was then signed between the governments, with the intention of creating favourable conditions "for the development of civilisation and trade" and for the dissolution of the still existing enclaves (ratified 1894). A commission of experts

7905-400: Was argued whether Oe-Cusse Ambeno was part of the Lisbon Convention on the exchange of enclaves or not. Portugal objected, saying that the area had a coastal course and therefore did not fall under the definition of an enclave. The Dutch claim to Maucatar had previously been based on their suzerainty over Lakmaras, which created a link to Maucatar. In the meantime, however, Lakmaras had become

7998-494: Was finally granted independence on 20 May 2002. As late as 2001, members of the Indonesian military warned that East Timor's independence could cause secessionist movements in West Timor. East Timorese separatists and irredentists have received local support in West Timor, including from the local Catholic diocese of Atambua . The aim is to unite the two parts of the island into an independent " Greater Timor ". In 2005,

8091-410: Was not involved in the demarcation of the border. The inhabitants of Naktuka explained that the territory had been part of Portugal in colonial times and had belonged to Timor Timur during the Indonesian occupation. Indonesian officials from the province of East Nusa Tenggara later confirmed the claims of the East Timorese. FONGTIL therefore also feared an escalation of the conflict between Naktuka and

8184-483: Was now brought inside the Portuguese sphere of power but appears to have had limited contact with its colonial suzerain. The Portuguese grip over western Timor receded greatly after the 1749 Battle of Penfui , and the Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie or VOC), which had hitherto been confined to Kupang , expanded its sphere of power over large parts of the island. During

8277-668: Was only after the Carnation Revolution of 1974, which removed the dictatorship of Marcello Caetano , that Portugal began to decolonise its possessions. In East Timor, a civil war broke out between the two largest parties, which Indonesia used to occupy the border area. Under the threat of total invasion, the victorious FRETILIN declared the independence of the Democratic Republic of East Timor on 28 November 1975, but only nine days later Indonesia openly began to annex and occupy East Timor, reforming it under

8370-486: Was recommended that a new commission be formed to examine the conformity of the agreements with the decision of the International Court of Arbitration of 1914. The 76 poles with the new border demarcation in the Citrana Triangle cut off 270 hectares of agricultural land around the village of Naktuka , which had been cultivated by its inhabitants for decades, and allocated it to Indonesia. The local population

8463-525: Was regarded by Indonesia as the country's 27th province, but this was never recognised by the United Nations (UN) or Portugal . The people of East Timor, through Falintil the military wing of Fretilin, resisted 35,000 Indonesian troops in a prolonged guerrilla campaign, but the whole island remained under Indonesian control until a referendum held in 1999 under a UN-sponsored agreement between Indonesia and Portugal in which its people rejected

8556-677: Was stated that agreement had now been reached on the course of the country's border. Negotiations on maritime borders, which had been ongoing since 2015, continued. On 21 January 2022, Gusmão reported to the Foreign Affairs, Defence and Security Commission of the National Parliament on the status of the negotiations. Now Naktuka and Batek Island were again part of the negotiations. Negotiations on maritime borders from Batugade to Atauro and from Atauro to Jaco were also ongoing. In 2013, Indonesia and East Timor agreed to divide

8649-475: Was to be convened for the new demarcation of borders. If difficulties arose, a mediator was to be called in. The commission visited Timor and came to an agreement on most of the border between 1898 and 1899. The problem with the enclaves of Noimuti and Maucatar remained unresolved. The original reason of the Dutch for this round of negotiations was the desire for a right of first refusal for East Timor. There were rumours that Russia and Germany wanted to establish

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