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 – 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.

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 – 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".

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.

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.

Developments in the oil sector and Covid-19 vaccine aid from China and Japan will improve Timor-Leste's economic prospects, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

Sonali Paul and Joyce Lee, Melbourne/Seoul – East Timor wants to press ahead with plans for a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project in a depleted oil and gas field off its coast as it races to fill a multi-billion dollar revenue hole starting in late 2023 when the field dries up.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – A senior apostolic nunciature official has welcomed attempts by Timor-Leste's government to vaccinate a skeptical population against Covid-19, saying a touted papal visit to the Catholic-majority country next year depends on it.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor-Leste has officially launched a travel association bringing together all religions to promote religious tourism, a sector that the Catholic-majority country is seeking to develop to diversify its economy.

Christopher Knaus – Former Timor-Leste president Xanana Gusmao says the continuing prosecution of Bernard Collaery is an "insult" to his country and has urged Australia to drop the case in the wake of this week's decision to overturn a secrecy order.

Kieran Pender – The sorry saga of the prosecution of Bernard Collaery, an eminent Canberra lawyer, has seen a number of unhappy chapters. His prosecution, for Collaery's alleged role in exposing Australia's espionage against friendly neighbours Timor-Leste, is profoundly unjust.

The ACT Court of Appeal has struck an important blow for transparency and the public's right to know in a judgment on Tuesday in the case of Bernard Collaery, the lawyer who blew the whistle on Australia's illegal spying operation against East Timor.

Anthony Galloway – Sensitive details surrounding Australia's alleged bugging operation of East Timor will be heard in public after the ACT Court of Appeal ruled that requiring large parts of the case against Bernard Collaery to be held behind closed doors created a real risk of damaging public confidence in the legal system.

Bernard Keane – In a significant defeat for the federal government and former attorney-general Christian Porter, the Supreme Court of the ACT has overturned secrecy orders demanded by Porter in his prosecution of Bernard Collaery, which would have ensured much of the trial was conducted in complete secrecy and evidence would have been hidden not merely from the public but from Colla

Christopher Knaus – Former Witness K lawyer Bernard Collaery says a ruling that lifts secrecy over significant parts of his trial is a "victory for justice" and a testament to the legal profession, which has banded together to support him through his prosecution.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor-Leste's cabinet ministers are personally spearheading a renewed mass vaccination campaign targeting more than 80 percent of the population in a bid to overcome widespread doubts over vaccines.

Joshua Kurlantzick – On the face of it, East Timor would not seem like the most natural place to have built a democracy ranked by Freedom House, in its 2021 edition of Freedom in the World, as "Free." In fact, this ranking makes East Timor the only country in Southeast Asia, where democracy has been regressing for over a decade, to be ranked "Free" by Freedom House.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – The United Nations and a Catholic charity group have teamed up with religious institutions in Timor-Leste to tackle domestic violence.

UN Women and Catholic Relief Service (CRS) hosted a forum involving representatives from Catholic, Protestant and Muslim groups on Sept. 30, with the theme "Stop Violence, Strengthens Healthy Relationships."

Nick Toscano – Australian energy giant Santos has signed a deal with Timor-Leste authorities to advance a project designed to bury carbon dioxide beneath ageing gas fields in the Timor Sea.

Lisa Palmer – The 1999 withdrawal of Indonesia and its military from East Timor eventually ushered in a Timorese – and United Nations – mandated truth and reconciliation process.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor-Leste will compensate people in the rare event they may be badly affected by adverse reactions to Covid-19 vaccinations, the government says.

The move is aimed at encouraging more people to get inoculated as the number of new cases and deaths continues to rise.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor Leste's Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak has tested positive for Covid-19 amid a surge in new cases in the Catholic-majority country, a senior government official announced on Sept. 1.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – A diocese in Catholic-majority Timor-Leste has officially suspended from priestly duties a cleric who intends to run for president next year.

Bishop Dom Basilio do Nascimento of Baucau announced in a letter released on Aug. 30 that he had terminated all sacramental services of diocesan priest Father Martinho Germano da Silva Gusmao.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – A defrocked American priest on trial in Timor-Leste for allegedly sexually abusing minors is also facing legal proceedings in his home country.

Joao da Cruz Cardoso – On June 18 of this year, Timor-Leste abstained from a resolution in the United Nations General Assembly condemning the military regime in Myanmar.

Aila Slisco – A former Catholic priest was indicted this week by a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C., for the alleged sexual abuse of children at a "shelter home" he founded abroad.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – The health system in Catholic-majority Timor-Leste is "in danger of collapsing" following a recent spike in Covid-19 cases, while many health workers have also been infected, the government says.

Ryan Dagur – A Society of the Divine Word (SVD) official has denied allegations of "conspiracy" and "false accusations" against Richard Daschbach, who was dismissed from the priesthood for sexual abuse committed in Timor-Leste.

Ryan Dagur – The archbishop of Dili hopes that Timor-Leste's first Catholic university will open this year after he met with Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak.

Salesian Archbishop Dom Virgilio do Carmo da Silva of Dili met Ruak on Aug. 13, a month after the archdiocese formally applied for permission to start the Catholic University of Timor in the Catholic-majority country.

Chris Barrett and Karuni Rompies, Singapore – The awarding of one of Indonesia's highest honours to a former militia leader indicted for crimes against humanity has been labelled an insult to both East Timor and Australia.

Christopher Knaus – The government will be forced to defend its decision to withhold long-secret cabinet documents about negotiations with Timor-Leste in the years prior to the controversial bugging operation revealed by Witness K and Bernard Collaery.