December 7, 1975 - Indonesia invades East Timor. - a podcast by Stephen Hammond

Indonesia invades East Timor. Portugal settled East Timor in the 1500s and eventually took control of the eastern end of the island in a treaty with the Dutch in 1859. During World War II, about 60,000 East Timorese died helping Australian troops fight thousands of Japanese soldiers. After Portugal became a democracy in 1974, the East Timorese assumed they would soon attain independence, but when internal disputes arose the Indonesian government stepped in. On December 7, 1975, Indonesia invaded East Timor with unexpected brutality, declaring it their 27th province seven months later. The UN and the world (with the exception of Australia) condemned this illegal occupation, and refused to recognize Indonesia’s claim. Many years later, Indonesia finally relented and, with the UN’s help, handed East Timor its independence. The handover, sadly, sparked bloody internal struggles. In April 2002, the country held its first presidential elections and began to restore order, leading the UN to substantially reduce its peacekeeping presence.

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