Ita Hamutuk, no se la fahe malu. Memories of the international solidarity with Timor-leste

Teresa Cunha Centro de Estudos Sociais - Universidade de Coimbra (CES-UC), PORTUGAL; Centro de Estudos Africanos - Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (CEA-UEM), MOÇAMBIQUE

Since the early 80s the Portuguese organization – Christian Movement for Peace and later Action for Justice and Peace – based in Coimbra, engaged within the international solidarity movement with the liberation struggle in Timor-Leste. For almost two decades we actively participated in multiple political and social initiatives to support the Timorese struggle in exile within the country at governmental and non-governmental institutions, at the European level namely within the Council of Europe political structures, at the United Nations special agencies concerning Human Rights and Peoples Rights among international pacifist social movements. We developed many activities of three main types: (1) initiatives to denounce the violations of the International Law and the Human Rights in Timor-Leste; (2) advocacy for the recognition of the People’s Rights to Self-determination and independency; (3) support of the Timorese student’s community in Coimbra.
In this presentation I aim to make an exercise of memorialization about the main periods of our activism for Timor-Leste liberation, our allies, and how this work impacted in our political vision on the colonial wars in the XXth century and the role of international solidarity to fight against it.