The 2006 Timor-Leste crisis began as a conflict between elements of the Timor-Leste Defence Force (F-FDTL) over discrimination within the military and expanded to a coup attempt and general violence throughout the country, centred in the capital Dili. The crisis prompted a military intervention by several other countries and led to the resignation of Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri.
Background
A pretext for the crisis came from the management of a dispute within the F-FDTL, when soldiers from the western part of the country claimed that they were being discriminated against, in favour of soldiers from the eastern part of the country. The Loro Sae (Tetum for easterners) formed the largest part of Falintil, the guerrilla resistance movement which had resisted Indonesian authority, and which in turn, after final independence in 2002, formed the largest part of F-FDTL. In contrast the Loro Munu (Tetum for westerners) were less prominent in the resistance, and less favoured in the military structure. There had also been tension between the military and the police force, the latter of which was composed of more westerners and also some former members of the Indonesian military.
404 soldiers, out of the regular strength of about 1500, deserted their barracks on 8 February 2006, joined by 177 more on 25 February. The soldiers were ordered to return in March, but refused, and were relieved of duty. The soldiers were later joined by some members of the police force, and were initially led by Lt. Gastão Salsinha.
The foreign minister, José Ramos-Horta, announced early in April that a panel would be established to hear the complaints of the former soldiers, but added that "They are not going to be brought back into the army, except on a case-by-case basis when we establish the responsibilities of each individual in this whole incident".
There were political motivations behind the attacks on soldiers and the government. Those initiating the violence and killings declared loyalty to the then president Xanana Gusmao, who wanted to replace prime minister and Fretilin leader Mari Alkatiri.
Violence
On 24 April, the former soldiers and their civilian supporters, mostly unemployed youths, marched through the streets of the capital Dili in protest. The initially peaceful march turned violent when the soldiers attacked a market run by people from the east of the country. The protests continued over the next several days, until on 28 April the former soldiers clashed with FDTL forces, who fired on the crowd. In the resultant violence, five people were killed, more than 100 buildings were destroyed and an estimated 21,000 Dili residents fled the city.
On 4 May, Major Alfredo Reinado, along with 20 military police from a platoon under his command and four other riot police defected and joined the rebel soldiers, taking with them two trucks full of weapons and ammunition. After joining the soldiers, Reinado made his base in the town of Aileu in the hills south-west of Dili. There he and the military police guarded the road leading into the mountains.
On the evening of 5 May, the former soldiers under Salsinha's leadership drafted a declaration calling for President Xanana Gusmão to sack the Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri and abolish the FDTL within 48 hours. When Gusmão contacted Salsinha earlier that day in an attempt to prevent the issuing of the declaration, Salsinha told him that it was "too late".
The rebel soldiers remained in the hills above the capital, where they engaged in sporadic combat with FDTL forces over the next several weeks. Violent gangs also roamed the streets of Dili, burning down houses and torching cars. The civilians who fled Dili camped in tent cities nearby or in churches on the outskirts of the capital. One Catholic convent alone was providing Red Cross assistance to up to 7,000 people.
On 8 May a police officer was killed as a crowd of 1000 surrounded a government complex, the office of a regional state secretary, in a town outside Dili. On 9 May, Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri described the violence since 28 April as a coup, with "the aim of blocking the democratic institutions, preventing them to function in a way that the only solution would be for national parliament to be dissolved by the President... which would provoke the fall of the Government." However on 10 May Alkatiri announced that government officials had held negotiations with the rebel soldiers, in which it was agreed that the rebel soldiers would be paid a subsidy equal to their former military wage to assist their families.
The United Nations peacekeeping forces left Timor-Leste on 20 May 2005, and the remaining administrative staff and police at the United Nations Office in Timor Leste (UNOTIL) were scheduled to leave on 20 May 2006, but on 11 May their deadline was extended at least until June. The decision came alongside Foreign Minister Ramos-Horta's request to the UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights to investigate allegations of human rights violations by the Timor-Leste police forces, as alleged by Human Rights Watch and the United States Department of State. On 12 May, Prime Minister of Australia John Howard announced that although there had not been any formal requests for assistance from the Government of Timor-Leste, Australian forces were standing by in readiness to provide assistance, with the amphibious transport ships HMAS Kanimbla and HMAS Manoora moving to northern waters in preparation.
Caicoli massacre
The violence escalated late in May, as one FDTL soldier was killed and five wounded in a skirmish on 23 May. Foreign Minister Ramos-Horta sent out an official request for military assistance on 24 May, to the governments of Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Portugal. On 25 May, as the first international forces were arriving, some renegade soldiers were moving into Dili and engaging in combat with FDTL and police forces, with up to twenty people believed to have been killed. That day, FDTL soldiers acting in disobedience of a ceasefire and safe passage assurance by the Chief of the Armed Forces, General Taur Matan Ruak, massacred 8 to 10 unarmed police officers and wounded 27 others. Among the injured included a Filipino named Edgar Layon and a Pakistani.
Intervention
Operation Astute is the name of the international military response to the crisis. Led by the Australian Defence Force, and commanded by Brigadier Michael Slater of the Australian 3rd Brigade, the operation involves forces from four countries.
Australia
The Prime Minister of Australia John Howard announced on 24 May that Australian forces would be deployed to Timor-Leste, with the composition of the force and the terms of engagement to be negotiated over the next few days. Australia initially offered between 1,000 and 1,300 infantry, three Royal Australian Navy ships (HMAS Manoora and HMAS Kanimbla already stationed nearby, and HMAS Tobruk) along with other support capabilities. The first unit sent in was the 4th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment 'Commando'.
On the afternoon of 25 May, four Black Hawk helicopters and a C-130 Hercules transport plane landed at Dili airport with the first wave of Australian forces. By 26 May it was expected that all Australian forces would have arrived in Timor-Leste by 27 May, a full day earlier than expected.
The deployment to Timor-Leste coincided with the withdrawal of about 260 of the 400 Australian soldiers deployed to the Solomon Islands. The 140 remaining would be supported by New Zealand and Fijian forces. However, Defence Minister Brendan Nelson said that the deployment to Timor-Leste would not overextend the Defence Force, saying that "we have much more in our back pocket".
Malaysia
Malaysia responded by deploying Malaysian troops, initially consisted of 219 army paratroopers and commandos. The soldiers were drawn from the 10th Brigade Paratroopers based in Camp Terendak, Malacca (Malaysia), and a unit of the army special force from Mersing Camp, Johor (Malaysia), headed by Col Ismeth Nayan Ismail. These formed part of the group of 275 military and 200 police personnel who have been put on alert for possible deployment. Malaysia had planned to send in a total of 500 personnel earlier. By 23 June, there were already 333 Malaysian personnel from both the police and military forces stationed in Dili.
Two Royal Malaysian Navy vessels—KD Mahawangsa and KD Sri Indera Sakti—ferried the equipment of the Malaysian troops, including armoured carriers, to Dili, arriving on 3 June. The troops had been taught the basics of the Tetum language, the spoken language of the locals, to introduce themselves as peacekeepers.
Upon arrival, Malaysian forces secured embassies, port, power stations, oil depot and hospitals in Timor-Leste. The diplomatic enclaves' security was given priority. Earlier, Timor-Leste President Xanana Gusmão had requested Malaysia guard the Timor-Leste-Indonesia border to prevent civilians from fleeing the country. Malaysia, however, refused to do so.
By mid-June, Malaysia announced a plan to send 250 police officers to Timor-Leste. The Malaysian police had trained the local police force four years previously. According to Radio Televisyen Malaysia, the 250-strong police force would leave for Timor-Leste at the end of June.
New Zealand
On 25 May 2006, Prime Minister of New Zealand Helen Clark requested more information as to exactly what support Timor-Leste would require from New Zealand, before committing any forces. She said that "It's very important not to walk into what is a factional dispute in some respects and be seen to be taking sides," and "It's also important to be mindful that the Security Council is having consultations as we speak."
On 26 May, New Zealand deployed 42 troops, with a second contingent of 120 troops leaving Christchurch on 27 May, en route to Townsville, Queensland before being sent to Timor-Leste. Prime Minister Clark said that the forces would be deployed where needed by the Australian command.
Portugal
The Portuguese Foreign Minister Freitas do Amaral announced an initial deployment of 120 Republican Guards on 24 May. They joined a group of eight high level officers from the Special Operations Group of the Portuguese Polícia de Segurança Pública. The Portuguese Air Force evacuated more than 600 Portuguese citizens residing in Timor.
The President of the Republic, Aníbal Cavaco Silva, as well as Prime Minister José Sócrates, called for an end to the violence. In a meeting with the Foreign Ministers of the European Union, the Foreign Minister also called for members of the EU to denounce the violent acts of the rebels.
United Nations and other bodies
On 25 May, UNOTIL opened a refugee camp outside Dili expected to house up to 1000 people. However, on 27 May as the violence escalated, the UN announced that they planned to withdraw the majority of their staff from the country.
The chief executive of World Vision Australia, Reverend Tim Costello, announced on 27 May that he would travel to Dili to assess the situation, to help displaced civilians. He also expressed concern over reports that one World Vision worker had been killed.
Continuing violence
Despite hopes that the presence of international troops would quell the unrest, violence continued throughout Dili and other parts of Timor-Leste.
On 27 May, gangs from different parts of the country fought in the streets of Dili, destroying cars and houses and fighting with knives, machetes and slingshots leaving at least three East Timorese hacked to death. Dili residents continued to flee the city, with some seeking refuge at the Australian embassy and some going to the airport. A UN official expressed concerns that the regionally based conflict in the military was igniting wider regional conflict in the civilian population, saying "It's basically payback time between the different groups." A Catholic priest similarly described the street violence as "...east against west, soldiers against soldiers, police against soldiers, everyone against everyone... It's total madness."
The media were targeted for the first time when an AFP car, with two reporters and one photographer inside, also containing an AP photographer was attacked after one easterner forced his way into the vehicle and another jumped on the roof while attempting to escape a pursuing mob of westerners.