Ready to vote
IN FRONT of a little white church, perched against a mountain slope, stands a long line of people. Many are dressed in rags. They look thin and tired but chatter gaily. In makeshift tents nearby, groups of young men linger. Most are members of Falantil, a guerrilla army that for a quarter of a century has been fighting the Indonesian annexation of East Timor. They are here to register for the United Nations-sponsored referendum to be held on August 30th, to choose between an Indonesian offer of greater autonomy for the territory and outright independence.
This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “Ready to vote”
From the August 7th 1999 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionDiscover more
Is India’s education system the root of its problems?
A recent comparison with China suggests that may be so
Meet the outspoken maverick who could lead India
Nitin Gadkari, India’s highways minister, talks to The Economist
The Adani scandal takes the shine off Modi’s electoral success
The tycoon’s indictment clouds the prime minister’s prospects
Priyanka Gandhi: dynastic scion, and hope of India’s opposition
Poised to enter parliament, she may have bigger ambitions than that
The Caspian Sea is shrinking rapidly
This has big implications for Russia, which has come to rely on Central Asian ports
Racial tensions boil over in New Zealand
A controversial bill regarding Maori people punctures its relative harmony