Custom-made state projects: Tara bandu in the service of governance

Laura S. Meitzner Yoder Wheaton College, USA

This paper examines the similarities and differences in two eras of tara bandu ceremonies in Oecusse-Ambeno: in the early 2000s when it was largely a regional initiative, and in the early 2010s when it was linked to national political authorities and agendas.