Christopher Knaus – Former foreign minister Alexander Downer privately boasted that Timor-Leste was an "open book" to the Australian government in the year 2000, well before the infamous bugging scandal revealed by Witness K, a tribunal has heard.

Christopher Knaus – Newly released cabinet documents reveal Australia was preoccupied with the interests of major oil and gas corporations in the Timor Sea years before it bugged the Timor-Leste government during talks to carve up the crucial underwater resources.

UCA News reporter, Phnom Penh – Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has asked Timor-Leste to buy Cambodian rice and invest in local rice mills and warehousing after backing Dili's bid to join the Association of South East Nations (ASEAN).

Mom Kunthear – Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn and his Timorese counterpart Adaljiza Magno agreed to resume trade activities and accelerate pending agreements on other sectors.

Mom Kunthear – East Timorese foreign minister Adaljiza Magno has requested Prime Minister Hun Sen to help her country become an ASEAN member and for technical support on its preparation to accede to the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

Dili – The cost of recovery from the severe damage caused by Tropical Cyclone Seroja in East Timor in April 2021 could exceed US$420 million, but rebuilding offers the opportunity for strengthening infrastructure and enhancing disaster preparedness, according to a World Bank report released this week.

Michael Rose, ANU – In May 2022, Timor-Leste will mark 20 years of renewed independence.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Six police officers in Timor-Leste have been arrested for allegedly killing a man and injuring two others in a case that has sparked calls for reforms within the country's police force.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Former president and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jose Ramos-Horta has announced his candidacy in Timor-Leste's presidential election, where he has the support of Xanana Gusmao, a fellow key figure in the country's independence struggle.

Dili, Timor Leste – Former Timor Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta on Sunday announced he would run for the top job again in the upcoming election, a decade after the end of his first term.

The 72-year-old was a critical figure in East Timor's independence struggle, winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 1996 along with Carlos Filipe Ximines Belo.

Josh Lewis, Perth – Plans for a giant oilfield redevelopment off the coast of Timor-Leste have taken a huge blow following the disappointing results of a newly drilled appraisal well.

Michael Leach – After two years marked by Covid-19 and floods, Timor-Leste is now gearing up for presidential elections on 19 March. A runoff round for the top two candidates will be held on 19 April if no candidate receives a majority.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor-Leste has recorded a significant increase in dengue fever cases with this year's death toll already touching 14, making it the deadliest year in recent times.

A report by the Ministry of Health published on Jan. 20 confirmed that the 14 deaths recorded so far this year had surpassed the 11 and 10 deaths recorded in 2021 and 2020 respectively.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Former Catholic priest Martinho Germano da Silva Gusmao has officially announced his candidacy for Timor-Leste's presidential elections on March 19.

Pope Francis revoked the priesthood status of the diocesan priest last November, clearing the path for his intended run for president in the Catholic-majority nation.

Christopher Knaus – The federal government has been accused of making a "disgraceful" attempt to cast secrecy over a case relating to Australia's negotiations with Timor-Leste in the years prior to the controversial bugging operation revealed by Witness K and Bernard Collaery.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor-Leste President Francisco "Lu-Olo" Guterres has officially declared that he will be making a bid to retain power at the elections due in March.

Guterres, chairman of the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor Party (Fretilin), announced his candidacy at the historic St. Mary Church in Ermera municipality on Jan. 16.

Annie Sloman – Thursday night, hot, humid and sweaty as the sun sets over the capital of Timor-Leste. On the side of the road a large crowd gathers around a makeshift stage. Beside it are paintings thrown in a pile like junk – powerful art works depicting Timorese veterans, years of guerrilla struggle, heroes of this young nation.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – The main hospital in Catholic-majority Timor-Leste is forcing people to share beds as it battles a significant spike in dengue fever cases that has killed six children over the last month.

Dili – After the dual shocks of COVID-19 and natural disasters, East Timor's economy is showing some signs of recovery and this year's gross domestic product (GD) growth in real terms is expected to improve to 1.9 percent, according to the latest World Bank economic update, 'Timor-Leste Economic Report: Steadying The Ship', released earlier this month by the global lender based in W

Antonio Sampaio in Oecusse, Timor-Leste – Defrocked American priest Richard Daschbach, 82, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for the crimes of sexual abuse of orphaned and vulnerable girls in his care.

He was sentenced on Tuesday for various sexual offences against girls at the Topu Honis orphanage which he controlled.

A court in East Timor has jailed a defrocked American priest for 12 years after he was charged with sexually abusing several orphaned and disadvantaged girls in his care.

The sentencing of Richard Daschbach took place on Tuesday.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – A court in Timor-Leste has sentenced a defrocked American priest to 12 years in prison for sexually abusing young orphaned and underprivileged girls in his care.

Richard Daschbach, 84, was found guilty by Oecusse District Court after becoming the first cleric in the Catholic-majority country to be prosecuted for child sex abuse.

Russell Searancke – Privately-owned operator Timor Resources said it has made an oil and gas discovery in Timor-Leste with the first of two planned onshore exploration wells.

In a brief statement, the operator said the discovery comprised oil and gas, and that Schlumberger had run wireline logs on the well to help measure the amount of oil and gas discovered.

Chris Barrett, Singapore – Jose Ramos-Horta, one of East Timor's historic leaders, is weighing up a bid to return to the presidency of the country in next year's elections.

"I have been approached and lobbied by many thousands of people around the country pleading with me to run again," he told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Catholic-majority Timor-Leste is paying a special tribute to the late journalist Max Stahl in recognition of his exemplary work and contribution to the independence of the nation.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor-Leste has inaugurated its first Catholic university, dedicated to St. John Paul II who is considered to have inspired the country's struggle for independence.

The Catholic University of St. John Paul II was inaugurated on Dec. 8 by Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak and Archbishop Dom Virgilio Do Carmo da Silva of Dili.

Russell Searancke – Timor-Leste's national oil company Timor Gap has been awarded a new production sharing contract for an onshore exploration block in its home country.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – A legal advocacy group in Timor-Leste has called on people in the Catholic-majority country to show respect for the alleged sex abuse victims of former priest Richard Daschbach.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Following the detection of the new Omicron Covid variant in several countries, including neighboring Australia, Catholic-majority Timor-Leste is on the alert while continuing to boost its vaccination program.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – The sex abuse trial of Richard Daschbach, a former priest and missionary from the Society of the Divine Word (SVD) in Timor-Leste, has entered the final stage after a series of hearings ended last week.

Prosecutor Matias Soares confirmed to UCA News that the verdict will be read on Dec. 21 after the trial ended on Nov. 25.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Former Timor-Leste president and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jose Ramos-Horta has called on the government to adopt a document on human fraternity endorsed by Pope Francis.

Ivo Mateus Goncalves – On 12 November, 1991 the Indonesian military, fully equipped with automatic rifles, shot demonstrators randomly at close range in the public cemetery of Santa Cruz. This later became known as the Santa Cruz Massacre, which drew international attention after the video footage produced by the late Max Stahl was broadcast abroad.

Avelino Dos Santos Da Costa – Since the restoration of its independence in 2002, Timor-Leste has made tremendous progress in social capital (education and health), infrastructure (electricity and telecommunication), and in institutional frameworks such as security, defense and foreign affairs.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Pope Francis has revoked the priesthood status of a diocesan priest in Timor-Leste who aims to run for president in the Catholic-majority nation.

The revocation was made public in a communique addressed to Catholics on Nov. 21 in Baucau Diocese, to which Martinho Germano da Silva Gusmao belongs.

Felicity James – Maria Jose was at the Santa Cruz cemetery in Timor-Leste 30 years ago when Indonesian soldiers opened fire.

"I was young at the time, very excited to go along with the crowd and with my friends, we all walked together," Ms Jose said.

"We thought we were going to have a peaceful demonstration, to tell the world what Timorese want."

Joao da Cruz Cardoso – After two decades of independence, development in Timor-Leste is exemplified by growing economic activity in Dili, the country's capital city.

Mark Bowling, Brisbane – British journalist and filmmaker Max Stahl has been honoured at a funeral Mass in St Stephen's Cathedral in Brisbane – 30 years after he filmed a massacre in East Timor – an action that helped the tiny nation on its path to independence.

Today marks the 30th anniversary of the Santa Cruz massacre in East Timor, when Indonesian troops armed with U.S. M16s fired on a peaceful memorial procession in the Santa Cruz cemetery in Dili, killing more than 270 East Timorese.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Young people in Timor-Leste were urged to learn from the sacrifices of the freedom fighters on the 30th anniversary of the Santa Cruz massacre on Nov. 12.

Dili – Prioritizing and improving the quality of public spending and increasing domestic revenue is crucial to promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth in East Timor, according to a new World Bank report released this week.

On the 30th anniversary of the Santa Cruz massacre, the East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) urges the international community to end impunity for the human rights crimes committed during the occupation of Timor-Leste.

Christopher Knaus – The federal government is attempting to introduce new "super-secret" evidence against Bernard Collaery in the Timor-Leste spying case, prompting fury from Collaery and warnings from a supreme court judge that it may cause a "perpetual vortex" of delay and secrecy.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor-Leste's President Francisco Guterres has awarded the country's highest honor to the late Bishop Basilio do Nascimento Martins of Baucau, who died last week.

He said the Order of Timor-Leste was being given to the bishop "for his dedication to humanity and his courage," especially during the country's struggle for independence.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor-Leste is mourning Bishop Basilio do Nascimento Martins of Baucau, who made an important contribution to its struggle for independence.

The local Church's most senior bishop was 71 and died at the Guido Valadares National Hospital in capital Dili on Oct. 30.

Antonio Sampaio, Dili – Filmmaker and journalist Max Stahl, 66, has died almost 30 years after capturing images of the Indonesian massacre at Santa Cruz cemetery in the Timor-Leste capital Dili, which helped accelerate the country's struggle for independence.

Antonio Sampaio, Dili – Former Timor-Leste President Xanana Gusmao today lamented the death of journalist and filmmaker Max Stahl, recalling that his work had "changed the fate of the nation".

Ryan Dagur – A Catholic school run by the Canossian Sisters in Timor-Leste has launched a green school initiative aimed at, among other things, reducing single-use plastic waste that is inundating the Southeast Asian nation.

Charles Scheiner – The young nation of Timor-Leste has been blessed with $US23 billion ($F47.71b) in oil and gas revenues over the past 15 years, which has paid for 86 per cent of state activities.

But that era is almost over, and exporting the remaining oil and gas can probably finance the government for only a year or two more.