East Timor

The people of East Timor voted overwhelmingly in August 1999 for independence and an end to Indonesian occupation. In this updated and much expanded edition of Indonesia's Forgotten War: The Hidden History of East Timor (Zed Books, rev ed 1994), John Taylor tells the story of what happened following President Suharto's overthrow. The new government conceded the right of the United Nations to organise the long delayed referendum giving the East Timorese a choice between continued association with Indonesia or independence. At the very moment the historic vote was being counted, armed gangs organised by the Indonesian military plunged the island into an orgy of killing, burning and forced flight. John Taylor analyses the world's reaction to this new genocide of the East Timorese people, the despatch of a peacekeeping force, and the prospects of independence.