Timorese Labor Party

Last updated

Timorese Labour Party
Partido Trabalhista Timorense
AbbreviationPT, PTT
President Maria Angela Freitas [1]
Founders Paulo Freitas da Silva Albano, Domingos da Conceição Pereira and Alpido Abrão Martins
Founded5 September 1974;49 years ago (1974-09-05)
HeadquartersBairo Formosa (Gricenfor), Rua de Bé Fonte, Dili, East Timor
Membership (2001)2,500 members
Ideology Democratic socialism
Eco-socialism
Feminism [2]
Political position Centre-left
International affiliation
Colours  Blue   Gold
Slogan"Service for Development" (Tetum: Servico ba Desenvolvemento)
National Parliament
0 / 65
Website
partidotrabalhista.wordpress.com

The Timorese Labor Party (Portuguese : Partido Trabalhista Timorense, abbreviated as PT), or Trabalhista for short (in other sources also Partido Trabalhista Timorense PTT), is one of the five parties in East Timor founded as early as 1974. The party describes itself as democratic and socialist, comparable to the Australian Labor Party (ALP). [3] It has its headquarters in Dili on Rua de Bé Fonte in Bairo Formosa (Gricenfor).

Contents

History

The party was founded on September 5, 1974, by the now deceased Paulo Freitas da Silva Albano, Domingos da Conceição Pereira and Alpido Abrão Martins. [4] The party favored independence from the then colonial power Portugal, but argued for a gradual disengagement with further ties to Portugal. It saw itself as a representative of the workers and an alternative to the supposedly communist Fretilin. At its founding, the party consisted of only ten members, it remained small and insignificant. The colonial administration even refused to recognize it as a party. [4] [5]

Freitas da Silva wrote to the then Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam asking for troops to help keep peace in the country. The request was declined. [3] Domingos da Conceição Pereira officially signed the Balibo Declaration for Trabalhista, in which all East Timorese parties except Fretilin are said to have demanded an Indonesian invasion of East Timor. However, the declaration, a draft of the Indonesian secret service, was signed in Bali and not in Balibo, possibly under pressure from the Indonesian government. [4] [6]

On March 31, 1986, the Trabalhista, together with the other East Timorese parties, founded the National Timorese Convergence (Convergencia Nacional Timorense CNT) as an umbrella organization for Timorese resistance to Indonesian occupation. [7] This association soon broke up, however. A new attempt was made in 1988 with the Conselho Nacional de Resistência Maubere (CNRM), which was finally renamed the Conselho Nacional de Resistência Timorense (CNRT) in 1998. [7] [8] Like the other members of the CNRT, Trabalhista rejected Indonesia's offer of autonomy and called for a referendum. Trabalhista sees the referendum in August 1999 as a conclusion to the past and a new beginning. [3] Already under the administration of UNTAET, Trabalhista criticized authoritarian tendencies and lack of transparency from the CNRT's leading politicians, Xanana Gusmão and José Ramos-Horta. Trabalhista even demonstrated, although a member himself, against the leadership of the CNRT and later against the installation of the second transitional cabinet. [3]

In the parliamentary elections on August 30, 2001, the party received 0.56% of the vote and thus none of the 88 seats in East Timor's parliament. [9] [10] Trabalhista did not run its own list in the 2007 elections. [11]

In the 2012 parliamentary elections, Trabalhista and Klibur Oan Timor Asuwain (KOTA) formed a joint electoral list named Aliança Democrática. However, it failed to clear the three-percent hurdle with only 2,622 votes (0.56 %). Aliança Democrática achieved its best result in the then municipality of Ainaro with 0.92 % of the vote. [12]

Members

Angela Freitas providing a speech. to her left Aitahan Matak, and other RNDJK leaders (July 17, 2020) 2020-07-17 RNDJK 1.jpg
Angela Freitas providing a speech. to her left Aitahan Matak, and other RNDJK leaders (July 17, 2020)

Trabalhista had about 2500 members in 2001, with associations in all 13 districts of East Timor at the time. About 45 % of the members are women, as are half of the board members. Under the chairman and vice-chairman, there are three secretaries and three treasurers. [3]

Paulo Freitas da Silva was originally the party leader and one of the founders of Trabalhista. During the Indonesian occupation, he sat for five years as a Partai Demokrasi Indonesia (PDI) deputy in Timor Timur's Indonesian parliament and was president of the East Timorese federation of SBSI, the Indonesian Workers Welfare Union. [1] On the CNRT Permanent Council, Freitas da Silva was the Trabalhista representative.

Maria Angela Freitas took over in 2007 from her late father Paulo Freitas da Silva the party chairmanship (as of the end of 2011). [1] She had previously been vice president and a member of the National Council. She withdrew her candidacy for the presidential elections in 2007 due to the "poor and unstable situation" that would not allow for correct elections. [13] On January 11, 2012, Angela Freitas announced her candidacy in the 2012 presidential elections in East Timor. However, she was not admitted due to lack of sufficient supporting signatures. [14] In 2017, she announced her candidacy again. [15]

Dr. Nélson Martins was Secretary General of Trabalhista from March 2000 to July 2007. The doctor received his training in Bandung, Indonesia and Australia. Between 1995 and 1998, he worked against child labor in Indonesia. From August 2007 to 2012, Martins was Minister of Health in the government of Xanana Gusmão. [16]

Politics

The party advocates a democratic socialization of industry, the markets, commodity production, and property distribution to the extent necessary to end exploitation and other antisocial activities. [17] All members of society should be able to share in political and economic power and control the institutions of the state. Job creation and the interests of trade unions are among Trabalhista's main points. The party planned to join the Socialist International in 2001. [3] The education system and health care should be freely accessible to everyone. Traditions are to be protected. Trabalhista called for Tetum and English as official languages in 2001. Human rights, and especially women's rights, are a focal point in the party as the basis for tolerance and a multicultural society. Child labor is to be combated. [3] [10] [17]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xanana Gusmão</span> 3rd president and 5th prime minister of East Timor

José Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmão is an East Timorese politician who has served as the prime minister of East Timor since 2023, previously serving in that position from 2007 to 2015. A former rebel, he also served as East Timor's first president since its re-establishment of independence, from 20 May 2002 to 20 May 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Social Democratic Party (East Timor)</span> Political party in East Timor

The Social Democratic Party is an East Timorese party founded on 20 September 2000. Despite its name, the party, like its Portuguese model, is usually categorised as centre-right in the political spectrum. It describes itself as being in the middle between left and right (centrist). The aim of the party's founders was to offer voters a moderate alternative to Fretilin and UDT. In 2002, the party had 8,000 members. Since then, the PSD has lost its importance. The PSD did not contest the 2023 parliamentary elections in East Timor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timorese Democratic Union</span> Conservative political party in East Timor

The Timorese Democratic Union is a conservative political party in East Timor. It was the first party to be established in the country on May 11, 1974, following the Carnation Revolution in Portugal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timorese Nationalist Party</span> Political party in East Timor

The Timorese Nationalist Party is a political party in East Timor. Founder and President is Abílio Araújo, who was FRETILIN representative overseas during the Indonesian occupation until his dismissal in 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Association of Timorese Heroes</span> Political party in East Timor

The Association of Timorese Heroes, sometimes known as Sons of the Mountain Warriors, is a culturally conservative political party in East Timor. In 2007, KOTA said it had 30,000 members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">People's Party of Timor</span> Political party in East Timor

The People's Party of Timor is a conservative political party in East Timor. Its predecessor was the Movimento do Povo de Timor-Leste MPTL. The PPT is described as a conservative, backward-looking traditional party with utopian ideas and monarchist and religious tendencies.

The Christian Democratic Union of Timor UDC was a centre-right, Christian democratic political party in East Timor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Falintil</span> East Timor pro-independence armed force

The Armed Forces for the National Liberation of East Timor originally began as the military wing of the Fretilin party of East Timor. It was established on 20 August 1975 in response to Fretilin's political conflict with the Timorese Democratic Union (UDT).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francisco Guterres</span> Former President of East Timor

Francisco Guterres, popularly known as Lú-Olo, is an East Timorese politician who served as 6th president of East Timor from 2017 to 2022. He is also the president of the political party Fretilin, and he was the first president of the National Parliament of East Timor from 2002 to 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Council of Maubere Resistance</span> 1988–2001 East Timorese anti-occupation organisation

The National Council of Maubere Resistance was an umbrella organisation of East Timorese individuals and organisations dedicated to resisting the Indonesian occupation of 1975–1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012 East Timorese presidential election</span>

Presidential elections were held in East Timor on 17 March 2012, with a second round on 16 April. Incumbent president José Ramos-Horta, who was eligible for a second and final term as president, announced that he would seek nomination to be a candidate in the election. The election was seen as a test for the "young democracy" in seeking to take control of its own security. Former military commander Taur Matan Ruak provisionally beat Francisco Guterres in a second round runoff.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 East Timorese parliamentary election</span>

Parliamentary elections were held in East Timor on 22 July 2017. Fretilin narrowly emerged as the largest party in the National Parliament, winning 23 seats to the 22 won by the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction, which had been the largest party in the outgoing Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ángela Freitas</span> East Timorese politician

Ángela Freitas is an East Timorese politician, who is the leader of the Timorese Labor Party and ran in the 2017 East Timorese presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 East Timorese parliamentary election</span>

Early parliamentary elections were held in East Timor on 12 May 2018 after the National Parliament was dissolved by President Francisco Guterres on 26 January 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Resistance of East Timorese Students</span>

The National Resistance of East Timorese Students was a resistance movement of students from East Timor against the Indonesian occupation between 1975 and 1999. RENETIL was established on June 20, 1988, in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia, by ten East Timorese students. with the leadership of Fernando de Araújo as General Secretary. This organization was later extended to other cities in Indonesia with East Timorese students.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ilda Conceição</span>

Ilda Maria da Conceição, whose resistance names were Lalo Imin and Wairaha Gae Imin, is a politician from East Timor. She is a member of the FRETILIN party.

<i>Ágio</i> Pereira East Timorese politician

Hermenegildo Augusto "Ágio" Cabral Pereira Alves is an East Timorese politician, and a member of the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dionísio Babo Soares</span> East Timorese politician

Dionísio da Costa Babo Soares is an East Timorese politician, and a member of the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT). From June 2018 to May 2020, he was the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, under the VIII Constitutional Government of East Timor; he had earlier served as Minister of State, Coordinator of State Administration Affairs and Justice, Minister of State Administration, and Minister of Justice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2023 East Timorese parliamentary election</span>

Parliamentary elections were held in East Timor on 21 May 2023. The governing coalition going into the election was a four-party government of Fretilin, the People's Liberation Party (PLP), Kmanek Haburas Unidade Nasional Timor Oan (KHUNTO) and the Democratic Party (PD), whilst the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT) was in opposition but held the presidency.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "History | Partido Trabalhista Timor Leste". 4 January 2016. Archived from the original on 4 January 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  2. ↑ partidotrabalhista. "Partido Trabalhista Timor Leste". Partido Trabalhista Timor Leste. Retrieved 26 September 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Walsh, Pat (2001). "East Timor's Political Parties and Groupings Briefing Notes, Australian Council for Overseas Aid 2001" (MS Word). The Australian Council for Overseas Aid – via Victoria University Research Repository.
  4. 1 2 3 Hicks, David (2014). Rhetoric and the decolonization and recolonization of East Timor. London. ISBN   978-1-138-02107-5. OCLC   908424999.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  5. ↑ Brilliantoro Yusuf Ervanda, Akhmad Fakhrurroji and Zulkarnain: The Role of Indonesian National Air Force (TNI-AU) in Seroja Operation in East Timor (1975-1979), S. 45, International Journal of Culture and History, Vol. 3, No. 1, March 2017, Retrieved at 14 December 2022.
  6. ↑ Chega! : the final report of the Timor-Leste Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation (CAVR). Verdade, e Reconciliac̦ão Timor Leste Comissão de Acolhimento. Jakarta. 2013. ISBN   978-979-9106-43-8. OCLC   906165552.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) CS1 maint: others (link)
  7. 1 2 J. Fox, James; Dionísio Babo Soares, eds. (2003). Out of the Ashes: Destruction and Reconstruction of East Timor. ANU Press. ISBN   978-0-9751229-1-4. JSTOR   j.ctt2jbjgr.
  8. ↑ Soares, Dionisio Babo (November 2003), "Political developments leading to the referendum", Out of the Ashes: Destruction and Reconstruction of East Timor, ANU Press, doi: 10.22459/oa.11.2003.04 , ISBN   9780975122914
  9. ↑ Knezevic, Neven (2007). Ba ne'bé: where are you going? the changing nature of United Nations peacekeeping in Timor Leste (phd thesis). Victoria University.
  10. 1 2 Silva-Carneiro de SOUSA, Lurdes (16 October 2013). "Some Facts and Comments on the East Timor 2001 Constituent Assembly Election". Archived from the original on 16 October 2013. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  11. ↑ "NDI Election watch" (PDF). National Democratic Institute . March 2007.
  12. ↑ STAE at archive.today (archived 2012-12-05), Retrieved on 14 December 2022
  13. ↑ Di'ak Ka Lae: Angela Freitas first female candidate.
  14. ↑ "Angela: I may have lost this battle but the "War" is far from over". Centru Jornalista Investigativu Timor Leste. 24 February 2012. Archived from the original on 24 February 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  15. ↑ Sapo: Líder do Partido Trabalhista timorense anuncia candidatura a Presidente da República, 1. Februar 2017, Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  16. ↑ "IV Constitutional Government « Government of Timor-Leste". timor-leste.gov.tl. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  17. 1 2 "Platform". Partido Trabalhista Timor Leste. 3 August 2011. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.