The National Council of Maubere Resistance (Portuguese: Conselho Nacional da Resistência Maubere, or CNRM) was an umbrella organisation of

East Timor Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...

ese individuals and organisations dedicated to resisting the Indonesian occupation of East Timor that lasted from 1975 to 1999. In March 1986,

FRETILIN The Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (, abbreviated as Fretilin) is a separatist organization turned centre-left political party in Timor-Leste. It presently holds 19 of 65 seats in the National Parliament. Fretilin formed the ...

and the UDT announced the formation of a coalition. In a re-organisation of the resistance structure, resistance leader

Xanana Gusmão José Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmão (; born 20 June 1946) is an East Timorese politician. He has served as the 6th prime minister of East Timor since 2023, previously serving in that position from 2007 to 2015. A former rebel, he also served as E ...

declared the resistance force

Falintil The Armed Forces for the National Liberation of East Timor (, Falintil) 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 Tim ...

to be a non-partisan 'national' army. In 1988, he relinquished membership of FRETILIN, believing the fight for a free East Timor transcended political loyalties. He established the National Council of Maubere Resistance (CNRM) and was declared leader.

José Ramos-Horta José Manuel Ramos-Horta GCL GColIH (; born 26 December 1949) is an East Timorese politician. He has been the president of East Timor since 2022, having previously also held the position from 20 May 2007 to 20 May 2012. Previously he was Mini ...

became external spokesperson. The term ''Maubere'' was coined by Ramos-Horta in the 1970s. Initially used by the Portuguese to describe illiterate members of the

Mambai Mambai may refer to: * Mambai people, a people group also known as Mambae, Manbae or Maubere from Timor-Leste * Mambai language (Timor) Mambai, also called Mambae or Manbae, is a language spoken by the Mambai people, the second largest ethni ...

, one of the largest ethnic groups of East Timor, it was reinvented as a badge of national pride by FRETILIN. In April 1998, all Timorese political parties gathered in

Peniche, Portugal Peniche (), officially the City of Peniche (), is a seaside municipality and a city in the Oeste region, in the historical province of Estremadura, and in the Leiria District. It has 26,431 inhabitants, in an area of 77.55 km2. The city its ...

, and agreed to join the CNRM under a new name. Accordingly, it was renamed the National Council of Timorese Resistance (Portuguese: Conselho Nacional de Resistência Timorense), or CNRT. In May 1998, Indonesian president

Suharto Suharto (8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian Officer (armed forces), military officer and politician, and dictator, who was the second and longest serving president of Indonesia, serving from 1967 to 1998. His 32 years rule, cha ...

stepped down and his successor

B. J. Habibie Bacharuddin Jusuf Habibie (; 25 June 1936 – 11 September 2019) was an Indonesian politician, engineer and scientist who served as the third president of Indonesia from 1998 to 1999. Less than three months after his inauguration as the seventh ...

offered East Timor "special autonomy." The CNRT rejected the proposal on 11 August 1998, calling instead for a referendum on independence and the release of Xanana Gusmão from prison. The

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

agreed to hold a referendum allowing the Timorese to choose autonomy (represented on the ballot paper by the Indonesian flag) or independence (represented on the ballot paper by the CNRT flag). A total of 78.5% opted for independence. After mass violence blamed on pro-Indonesian militias, the UN took over administration and accepted the CNRT as its Timorese counterpart organization.Geoffrey Robinson, If You Leave Us Here We Will Die In 2000, the CNRT held its first congress inside East Timor, in

Dili Dili (Portuguese language, Portuguese and Tetum language, Tetum: ''Díli'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Timor-Leste. It lies on the northern coast of the island of Timor, in a small area of flat land hemmed in by mountai ...

. With independence slated for 2002, the CNRT dissolved in 2001 to allow for a multi-party democracy.

References

Bibliography

* Dunn, James. ''Timor: A People Betrayed''. Sydney:

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

, 1996. . * Gusmao, Xanana ''To Resist is to Win: The Autobiography of Xanana Gusmao, with selected letters & speeches' ' Edited by Sarah Niner, Melbourne: urora Books 2000. . * Separatism in Indonesia Indonesian occupation of East Timor National liberation movements Political organizations based in Timor-Leste Organizations disestablished in 2001 2001 disestablishments in East Timor {{EastTimor-poli-stub