Neo-authoritarian Peace in Timor-Leste

Abstract

The birth of Timor-Leste as a country was midwifed by the ‘executive’ mandate of the UN Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET). This was a ‘hybrid’ form of governance. On the one hand, ‘western’ or ‘liberal’ ideas such as democracy and civil society were brought into the system, on the other, ‘indigenous’ or ‘authoritarian’ forms of governance were kept intact. The UN executive authority allowed little room for local voices. At the same time, Timorese leaders shared ‘indigenous’ authoritarian traits and some maintained a ‘resistance’ mentality. In fact, such traits and mentality were upheld by the very approach used by the neo-trusteeship missions of the UN, as Timorese leaders continued to resist the usurpation of their sovereignty by the UN. In other words, the autocratic methodology of post-conflict international peacebuilding contributed the emergence of a neo-authoritarian regime in Timor-Leste.