Political developments leading to the referendum

Abstract

‘Political developments leading to the referendum’ deals primarily with the political developments before the referendum and is divided into various parts. The first part highlights political developments in the 1970s and analyses how past and current events have shaped East Timor’s political climate. The second part describes events that took place prior to and after the historic announcement of 27 January 1999. The third part explores political developments after the 5 May Agreement between Indonesia and Portugal as well as developments leading to the ballot day, 30 August 1999. The fourth part examines the development in the aftermath of the ballot announcement and underlines necessary measures to prevent further bloodshed in the future.