The head of state of the East Timorese republic is the President, who is directly elected by popular vote for a five-year term, and whose executive powers are somewhat limited by the constitution, the president is able to veto legislation, however this action can be overridden by the parliament. Following elections, the president usually appoints the leader of the majority party or majority coalition as the prime minister,. As head of government the prime minister presides over the cabinet.
Legislative branch
The unicameral Timorese National Parliament (Parlamento Nacional) has 65 members elected by proportional representation (d'Hondt method) for a five-year term. The number of seats can vary from a minimum of 52 to a maximum of 65, with the exception of the first parliament, which included 88 members who previously served as the Constitutional Assembly six years rather than five (2001-2007). The longer term was in part due to the constitustion being put in place in 2002.[5]
The East Timorese constitution was modelled after that of Portugal.[6] The country is still in the process of building its administration and governmental institutions.
Political parties and elections
Presidential elections
Parliamentary elections
Recent developments
Francisco Guterres, known as Lú-Olo, of the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (Fretilin) was elected president in 2017 and held the position until May 2022.[9] The Alliance for Change and Progress (AMP), a three-party alliance, attempted to form a coalition with National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction, led by former president Xanana Gusmao, but the talks failed and Fretilin formed a minority government with the Timorese Democratic Party (DP) in September 2017. In October that year, the three opposition parties formed an alliance called Parliamentary Majority Oppositional Alliance (AOMP), and following pressures from this opposition alliance, president Guterres decided to dissolve the parliament in January 2018. This led to the second general election in May 2018.[10] In June 2018, former president Jose Maria de Vasconcelos known as Taur Matan Ruak of the Alliance of Change for Progress (AMP), became the new prime minister.[11]José Ramos-Horta of the centre-left CNRT has served as the president of East Timor since 20 May 2022 after winning the April 2022 presidential election runoff.[12]
In parliamentary elections held on Sunday, May 21, 2023, the opposition party led by Xanana Gusmao won 41% of the vote, making him likely to return as prime minister of the country in a coalition with at least one other party.[13]
Judicial branch
The Supreme Court of Justice has one judge appointed by the National Parliament and the rest appointed by the Superior Council for the Judiciary. As mentioned in a 2010 source, the country was in the process of developing a legal system that includes private practice attorneys.[14]
Administrative divisions
East Timor is divided into fourteen municipalities:
The districts are subdivided into 65 subdistricts, 443 sucos and 2,336 towns, villages and hamlets. "Ministerial Order" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 January 2005. (213 KiB)
Cabinet
Gusmão III (2023–present)
Official Gazette of Announced Council of Ministers
Matan Ruak (2018–2023)[15]
Alkatiri II (2017–2018) [16]
Araújo (2015–2017)[17]
Gusmão II (2012-2015)[18]
Gusmão I (2007-2012)[19]
Alkatiri I (2002-2007)[20]
References
^Shoesmith, Dennis (March–April 2003). "Timor-Leste: Divided Leadership in a Semi-Presidential System". Asian Survey. 43 (2). Berkeley: University of California Press: 231–252. doi:10.1525/as.2003.43.2.231. ISSN 0004-4687. OCLC 905451085. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 7 September 2020. The semi-presidential system in the new state of Timor-Leste has institutionalized a political struggle between the president, Xanana Gusmão, and the prime minister, Mari Alkatiri. This has polarized political alliances and threatens the viability of the new state. This paper explains the ideological divisions and the history of rivalry between these two key political actors. The adoption of Marxism by Fretilin in 1977 led to Gusmão's repudiation of the party in the 1980s and his decision to remove Falintil, the guerrilla movement, from Fretilin control. The power struggle between the two leaders is then examined in the transition to independence. This includes an account of the politicization of the defense and police forces and attempts by Minister of Internal Administration Rogério Lobato to use disaffected Falintil veterans as a counterforce to the Gusmão loyalists in the army. The 4 December 2002, Dili riots are explained in the context of this political struggle.
^ a bNeto, Octávio Amorim; Lobo, Marina Costa (2010). "Between Constitutional Diffusion and Local Politics: Semi-Presidentialism in Portuguese-Speaking Countries" (PDF). APSA 2010 Annual Meeting Paper. Social Science Research Network. SSRN 1644026. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
^Beuman, Lydia M. (2016). Political Institutions in East Timor: Semi-Presidentialism and Democratisation. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. ISBN 978-1317362128. LCCN 2015036590. OCLC 983148216. Archived from the original on 27 March 2023. Retrieved 18 August 2017 – via Google Books.
^Democracy Index 2023: Age of Conflict (PDF). Economist Intelligence Unit (Report). 2024. Archived (PDF) from the original on 9 June 2024. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
^"Timor-Leste passes bill to protect constitution". UCA News. 17 May 2022.
^"Timor-Leste (formerly East Timor)". US department of state.
^"Apuramento Eleisaun Presidente Repúblika 2022 (1st round)". Archived from the original on 15 April 2022.
^"Apuramento Eleisaun Presidente Repúblika 2022 (2nd round)". Archived from the original on 6 June 2022.
^"East Timor profile - Timeline". BBC News. 26 February 2018. Archived from the original on 31 May 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
^"East Timor votes in second general election in 10 months". Archived from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
^Cruz, Nelson de la (22 June 2018). "New East Timor PM pledges to bring unity after political deadlock". Reuters. Archived from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
^"Timor-Leste presidential election: José Ramos-Horta wins in landslide". the Guardian. Agence France-Presse. 20 April 2022. Archived from the original on 21 April 2022. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
^"East Timor's opposition party wins most seats in parliamentary election". AP News. 23 May 2023. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
^"Setór Justisa Planu Estratéjiku ba Timor-Leste 2011-2030" (PDF). Republica Democratica de Timor-Leste. 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
^"Ruak". Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2018.
^"Alkatiri II". Archived from the original on 17 September 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
^[1] Archived 16 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine Araújo
^[2] Archived 20 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine Gusmão II
^[3] Archived 27 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine Gusmão I
^[4] Archived 20 February 2015 at the Wayback Machine Alkatiri
Further reading
Berlie, Jean A, ed. (2018). East Timor's Independence, Indonesia and ASEAN. London: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 9783319626291.
Beuman, Lydia (2016). Political Institutions in East Timor: Semi-Presidentialism and Democratisation. Routledge Contemporary Southeast Asia Series. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. ISBN 9781138950337. Archived from the original on 27 March 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
Devereux, Annemarie (28 May 2015). Timor-Leste's Bill of Rights: A Preliminary History. ANU Press. ISBN 9781925022391. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
Hicks, David (15 September 2014). Rhetoric and the Decolonization and Recolonization of East Timor. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-69534-9.
Ingram, Sue; Kent, Lia; McWilliam, Andrew, eds. (2015). A New Era?: Timor-Leste after the UN. State, Society and Governance in Melanesia series. Acton, ACT: ANU Press. ISBN 9781925022513. JSTOR j.ctt183q3gn.
Leach, Michael; Kingsbury, Damien, eds. (2013). The Politics of Timor-Leste: Democratic Consolidation After Intervention (PDF). Studies on Southeast Asia, no. 59. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University, Southeast Asia Program Publications. ISBN 9780877277897. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 December 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
Nixon, Rod (2011). Justice and Governance in East Timor: Indigenous Approaches and the 'New Subsistence State'. Routledge Contemporary Southeast Asia Series. London; New York: Routledge. ISBN 9781912483594.
Novak, Parker (29 November 2023). "Timor-Leste's uncertain future". Lowy Institute. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
Strating, Rebecca (2016). Social Democracy in East Timor. Routledge Contemporary Southeast Asia Series. London; New York: Routledge. ISBN 9781138885325.
External links
Official website
"Law and Justice in Timor-Leste: A Survey of Citizen Awareness and Attitudes Regarding Law and Justice" (PDF). The Asia Foundation. 2008.