Twelve months ago there was great fanfare when East Timor was declared the world's newest nation.

Jill Jolliffe, Dili – On May 20 last year the Democratic Republic of East Timor became the first new nation of the second millennium.

Maumeta – Cancio dos Santos readily admits he joined pro-Jakarta militias and torched three homes in East Timor when it voted for independence from Indonesia in 1999.

Michael Casey, Dili – A year after independence, dozens of burned-out buildings dot East Timor's capital – haunting reminders of the country's bloody history.

As popular discontent continues to fester over unmet economic expectations in East Timor, Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri has rejected criticism that his Fretilin government is too central

Jill Jolliffe, Dili – The prime minister of the Democratic Republic of East Timor, which celebrates one year of independence next Tuesday, has said he is determined to bring to justice

John Martinkus – General Taur Matan Ruak, the former guerilla leader who now heads East Timor's defence forces, has called on residents of the world's newest nation to ignore rumours th

Dili – As Indonesia marks five years as a democracy, its former territory of East Timor is celebrating its own landmark: one year as an independent nation.

Canberra – Aid funding will increase but assistance for East Timor will be slashed under the Budget released tonight.

Joe Cochrane – When Indonesia and Australia agreed in 1989 to jointly exploit East Timor's offshore oil and gas fields, the countries' foreign ministers sealed the pact by sipping champ

Oscar Jukes, Darwin – East Timor's parliament is discussing a new law that would allow the interior ministry to deport any foreigner who engages in political activity or even attends a

Tony Stephens – Teresinha Maia's grandfather, Loloulo, helped Australian commandos fight the Japanese in Timor during World War II.

Jill Jolliffe, Dili – An Indonesian official has described the former East Timor governor Mario Carrascalao as unstable, following his allegations that the Indonesian Army systematicall

Nigel Wilson – Negotiations are going ahead on the terms that will secure long-term gas supplies for Bayu Undan's $1.8 billion liquefied natural gas plant planned for Darwin.

East Timor's Serious Crimes Unit is losing its high profile chief – Siri Frigaard. She completes her mission this week, raising concerns about the unit's long term future.

New York – The United Nations Security Council has approved a one-year extension of the UN mission in East Timor, while diplomatic sources caution that the new nation could experience m

Guido Guilart, Dili – The Indonesian military systematically forced dozens of East Timorese women to become sex slaves for officers during its 24-year occupation of the half-island, a f

Yemris Fointuna, Kupang – More than 500 East Timorese people still taking refuge in West Timor held a protest recently in front of the East Nusa Tenggara provincial legislative council,

For the first time, the East Timorese Government has begun taking control from the United Nations over its border with Indonesia.

New York – The UN Security Council is scheduled to meet Monday to discuss a one-year extension of the UN mission in East Timor, a recommendation by Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

Jakarta – Two international human rights groups have strongly criticised a United Nations commission, saying it failed to demand justice for victims of atrocities in East Timor.

Dili – A moral and spiritual "darkness" still haunts East Timor's Catholics, the bishop of Dili said at the Easter Vigil service.

The East Timor Action Network (ETAN) strongly criticized the UN Commission on Human Rights for turning its back on the East Timorese people and jeopardizing current and future UN missio

The Catholic Institute for International Relations (CIIR) and TAPOL, the Indonesia Human Rights Campaign, have condemned the UN Commission on Human Rights for failing to ensure that the

Dili – The head of the United Nations' civil police department urged East Timor Thursday to rapidly draft and approve legislation for its police forces.

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – Activists have urged the international community to ensure that justice is served against all perpetrators of the gross human rights violations in East

In East Timor, continuing militia infilitration has put a spotlight on the United Nations failure to properly secure the border.

Jakarta – People in the East Timor regency of Belu expressed disappointment over the country's recent ruling to impose a US$25 visa on visitors from Indonesia, which it borders.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – Despite the decision of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) to drop from its agenda human rights abuses in East Timor, the opportunity to reopen

Next month – our northern neighbour is celebrating it's first birthday as a free country. But while there's much to celebrate – the country's justice system is struggling.

Dili – The Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation in East Timor (CAVR) has already heard over 2,000 statements on human rights violations committed during the 25-year indepe

Megan Saunders – Ami is only six, but she knows her family is at crisis point.

Tiarma Siboro, Jakarta – The chance to bring justice to the victims of the 1999 human rights violations in East Timor has vanished, after the United Nations High Commissioner for Human

The head of Indonesia's Supreme Court has hit out at Amnesty International for describing trials of suspects in the 1999 East Timor violence as "not honest, truthful or fair." "That gro

Elcid Li, Kupang – The reunion took place in no-man's-land.

Three and half years after East Timor voted for independence, 1500 East Timorese asylum seekers are still in Australia.

An investigation into allegations of unlawful killing and brutality by Australian special forces in East Timor led to a soldier being charged with kicking a militiaman's corpse after an

Mari Alkatiri – As the world watched events unfold in the Middle East, we heard talk of the territorial integrity of the nation of Iraq.

Amnesty International slammed Indonesia's trials of suspects in the 1999 East Timor violence as "not honest, truthful or fair" and urged the United Nations to consider setting up a trib

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, Jakarta – A human rights activist has expressed doubts that Indonesia and East Timor are serious about resolving the question of human rights abuses in the former

Jakarta – Indonesian prosecutors yesterday demanded that a former military chief in East Timor be jailed for 10 years for failing to stop violence leading up to the territory's vote to

Megan Saunders – Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock has rejected a plea by the East Timor President, Xanana Gusmao, to allow up to 1600 temporary visa holders to remain in Australia be

Dili – Police in East Timor have launched a crackdown on prostitution, raiding two massage parlors in the past month and arresting four people, an officer said Friday.

The Federal Government has been accused of leaving East Timorese asylum seekers to starve by cutting off their welfare payments while they wait to hear if they are allowed to stay in Au

Dili (Agencies) – Prosecutors in East Timor said on Wednesday they have indicted 16 people including eight Indonesian army officers for crimes against humanity before and after the terr

Human rights activists and legal experts in East Timor have condemned proposed moves to limit the freedom of foreigners.

William Birnbauer – A benign attitude to his country's tormentors is not widely understood, but East Timor's "Mandela" wants to move on. William Birnbauer reports.

As East Timor prepares to mark its first anniversary of independence, the nation's opposition parties have united to present a strong alternative to the government.

Cynthia Banham – Refugee groups are claiming the Federal Government is close to making a decision on the fate of East Timorese asylum seekers that would prolong their limbo status for t

Dili – Most of East Timor's opposition parties signed a so-called "national unity platform" Monday, bitterly criticizing Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri's cabinet and demanding the formati