Timor-Leste (East Timor)

Timor-Leste is a democratic sovereign state in southeast Asia with a population of approximately 1.1 million, of which it is estimated that 97.6% are Catholic (Catholicism was introduced to the country a result of Portuguese colonisation), 1% are Protestant and 0.2% are Muslim. For many East Timorese, animistic traditions coexist with Catholic belief.[ref]https://www.learnreligions.com/east-timor-religion-4766639[/ref] Portugal maintained control over Timor-Leste until 1975; soon after its withdrawal, Indonesia invaded and annexed the country.

Countless well-documented human rights abuses were committed during the Indonesian military occupation. Although the 1999 referendum granted Timor-Leste its independence, Indonesia’s violent withdrawal destroyed 80% of the country’s infrastructure, and 1,400 Timorese were killed by anti-independence militia, with nearly 75% of the population displaced.[ref]https://www.upr-info.org/sites/default/files/document/timor-leste/session_26_-_november_2016/cs_upr26_tls_e_main.pdf[/ref] During the Indonesian occupation, atheism was not recognized and East Timorese had to declare themselves adherent to one of 5 recognized religions —Islam, Catholicism, Protestantism, Buddhism, and Hinduism. Most opted for Catholicism.[ref]https://repositorio.ucp.pt/bitstream/10400.14/19900/1/Thesis_frCancio.pdf[/ref]

The United Nations Transitional Authority in East Timor (UNTAET) acted as de facto administrator for three years after Indonesia’s withdrawal. Its mandate ended in 2002 with the country’s first presidential elections and the adoption of a new Constitution.[ref]https://www.usip.org/sites/default/files/Framing%20the%20State/Chapter9_Framing.pdf[/ref]

Constitution and government Education and children’s rights Family, community, society, religious courts and tribunals Freedom of expression advocacy of humanist values
The dominant influence of religion in public life undermines the right to equality and/or non-discrimination
There is systematic religious privilege
Preferential treatment is given to a religion or religion in general
State-funding of religious institutions or salaries, or discriminatory tax exemptions
Discriminatory prominence is given to religious bodies, traditions or leaders
Some concerns about political or media freedoms, not specific to the non-religious
No formal discrimination in education
Constitution and government
There is systematic religious privilege
Preferential treatment is given to a religion or religion in general
State-funding of religious institutions or salaries, or discriminatory tax exemptions
Education and children’s rights
No formal discrimination in education
Family, community, society, religious courts and tribunals
The dominant influence of religion in public life undermines the right to equality and/or non-discrimination
Discriminatory prominence is given to religious bodies, traditions or leaders
Freedom of expression advocacy of humanist values
Some concerns about political or media freedoms, not specific to the non-religious
Use of Conscientious Objection clauses resulting in the denial of lawful services to women and LGBTI+ people
Religious or ideological instruction is mandatory in all or most state-funded schools with no secular or humanist alternative
Insufficient information or detail not included in this report
Insufficient information or detail not included in this report

Countries: Kazakhstan

The state is secular, with separation of religious and political authorities, not discriminating against any religion or belief
Insufficient information or detail not included in this report
No fundamental restrictions on freedom of expression or advocacy of humanist values
Insufficient information or detail not included in this report

Countries: no countries relate to this boundary condition

No condition holds in this strand
No condition holds in this strand

Countries: Andorra

No condition holds in this strand
Religious courts or tribunals rule directly on some family or ‘moral’ matters; it is legally an opt-in system, but the possibility of social coercion is very clear
No condition holds in this strand

Countries: no countries relate to this boundary condition

Localised or infrequent but recurring and widespread social marginalisation or prejudice against the non-religious

This condition is unusual in that it is applied in cases where there is some social discrimination, but it is not pervasive or nationwide. This condition is applied when there is sufficient background evidence to warrant the assertion that discrimination is not anomalous but widespread, and this condition may be applied for example even where if there is no legislative discrimination or where the non-religious may have legal recourse against such discrimination. However, societal discrimination (i.e. discrimination by peers, as opposed to state or legal discrimination) is not easily measured, and for this reason the Report does not currently have similar more severe boundary conditions to capture higher levels of social discrimination per se. In principle these may be introduced in future. However, we consider that countries with actual higher levels of social discrimination against the non-religious will generally already meet other higher level (more severe) boundary conditions under this thematic strand.

Countries: Botswana, Greece, Serbia, United States of America

The dominant influence of religion in public life undermines the right to equality and/or non-discrimination

Applied when the influence of religion on public life undermines others’ rights, such as SRHR, women’s rights, LGBTI+ rights.

May be applied when the influence is overt (i.e. when religious laws are applied to undermine others’ rights) or covert (i.e. where religious pressure groups exert influence to affect policy)

Countries: Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Armenia, Bahamas, Belize, Bolivia, Brunei Darussalam, Congo, Democratic Republic of, Croatia, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Eswatini, Fiji, Gambia, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Hungary, Iran, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Liberia, Lithuania, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Mozambique, Nicaragua, North Macedonia, Oman, Paraguay, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Slovakia, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Timor-Leste (East Timor), Trinidad and Tobago, Ukraine, Zambia

The non-religious are persecuted socially or there are prohibitive social taboos against atheism, humanism or secularism
Complete tyranny precludes all freedoms of expression and thought, religion or belief

Applied when overriding acts of oppression by the State are extreme, to the extent that the question of freedom of thought and expression is almost redundant, because all human rights and freedoms are quashed by authorities.

Countries: North Korea

Expression of core Humanist principles on democracy, freedom and human rights is brutally repressed
Expression of non-religious views is severely persecuted, or is rendered almost impossible by severe social stigma, or is highly likely to be met with hatred or violence
There is significant social marginalisation of the non-religious or stigma associated with expressing atheism, humanism or secularism
Religious or ideological indoctrination is utterly pervasive in schools
There is a nominal state church with few privileges or progress is being made toward disestablishment

Countries: Bulgaria, Norway, Peru, Rwanda

The non-religious are barred from some government offices (including posts reserved for particular religions or sects)
‘Apostasy’ is outlawed and punishable with a prison sentence

Countries: Bahrain, Comoros, Jordan, Kuwait

‘Apostasy’ or conversion from a specific religion is outlawed and punishable by death
Some religious courts rule in civil or family matters on a coercive or discriminatory basis
Religious authorities have supreme authority over the state

Countries: Iran

State legislation is partly derived from religious law or by religious authorities
Preferential treatment is given to a religion or religion in general

This condition is applied where there are miscellaneous indicators that organs of the state offer various forms of support for a religion, or to religion in general over non-religious worldviews, suggesting a preference for those beliefs, or that the organs of that religion are privileged.

Countries: Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Bahamas, Belize, Bhutan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Burundi, Canada, Cape Verde, Chile, Colombia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Finland, Germany, Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Montenegro, Mozambique, Nepal, New Zealand, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Oman, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Rwanda, San Marino, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste (East Timor), Tunisia, Turkey, Tuvalu, United Kingdom, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Zimbabwe

There is a pattern of impunity or collusion in violence by non-state actors against the nonreligious
State-funded schools provide religious education which may be nominally comprehensive but is substantively biased or borderline confessional
Religious or ideological instruction in a significant number of schools is of a coercive fundamentalist or extremist variety

This condition highlights countries where schools subject children to fundamentalist religious instruction with no real opportunity to question fundamentalist tenets, or where lessons routinely encourage hatred (for example religious or ethnic hatred). The wording “significant number of schools” is not given a rigid quantification (sometimes the worst-offending schools are unregistered, illegal, or otherwise uncounted); however the condition is not applied in cases where only a small number of schools meet the description and may be anomalous, as opposed to being indicative of a widespread problem.

Countries: Bangladesh, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia

State legislation is largely or entirely derived from religious law or by religious authorities
Anomalous discrimination by local or provincial authorities, or overseas territories
Religious or ideological instruction is mandatory in at least some public schools (without secular or humanist alternatives)
‘Blasphemy’ or criticism of religion is outlawed and punishable by death
Government figures or state agencies openly marginalize, harass, or incite hatred or violence against the non-religious
Government authorities push a socially conservative, religiously or ideologically inspired agenda, without regard to the rights of those with progressive views
It is illegal to advocate secularism or church-state separation, or such advocacy is suppressed
Prohibitive interreligious social control (including interreligious marriage bans)
Quasi-divine veneration of a ruling elite is enforced, or a single-party regime holds uncontested power, subject to severe punishment
Legal or constitutional provisions exclude non-religious views from freedom of belief
It is illegal to register an explicitly Humanist, atheist, secularist or other non-religious NGO or other human rights organization, or such groups are persecuted by authorities
There is a religious tax or tithing which is compulsory, or which is state-administered and discriminates by precluding non-religious groups
The non-religious are barred from holding government office
Some concerns about children's right to specifically religious freedom

This condition may apply if specifically religious education, religious materials, or specific religious denominations are so tightly controlled that children are in fact over-protected from exposure to religion and are likely unable to explore or construct their own worldview in accordance with their evolving capacities. This condition helps us to classify states (perhaps with secular constitutions) which have criminalized specifically religious beliefs or practices. This condition is not applied if the restricted beliefs or practices are found to be outlawed due to their being of an extremist variety. While this condition does not directly reflect discrimination against non-religious persons or non-religious ideas, it does represent an overall threat to freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief; such restrictions could spill over to affect non-religious beliefs later; and they pose a risk of backlash against over-zealous secular authorities or even against non-religious individuals by association.

Countries: China, Congo, Democratic Republic of, Cuba, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Guyana, Italy, Kazakhstan, Laos, Madagascar, Mexico, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Tajikistan, Togo, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Zimbabwe

It is illegal or unrecognised to identify as an atheist or as non-religious
It is made difficult to register or operate an explicitly Humanist, atheist, secularist or other non-religious NGO or other human rights organization
Legend
 
Severe Discrimination
Systemic Discrimination
Mostly Satisfactory
Free and Equal
More information about rating table

Constitution and government

The Constitution and other laws and policies protect freedom of thought, conscience and religion, as well as freedom of expression, assembly and association. By law, the country is secular. Although there is therefore no official state religion, the Roman Catholic Church remains prominent in the political life of the country. The preamble to the Constitution recognizes the role of the Catholic Church in “taking on the suffering of all the People with dignity, placing itself [at] their side in the defense of their most elementary rights.”[ref]https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/East_Timor_2002.pdf?lang=en[/ref]

The preamble to the Constitution affirms the determination to “fight all forms of […] religious domination and segregation.” Section 12(1) claims that “the state shall recognise and respect the different religious denominations, which are free in their organization and in the exercise of their own activities”.

Catholic privilege and religious discrimination

A concordat signed in 2015 with the Holy See grants the Catholic Church certain privileges, including providing “spiritual assistance in prisons, hospitals, clinics and orphanages, performing works of charity, establishing schools at every level and assisting Catholic parents in the education of their children in their own faith.”[ref]https://www.ucanews.com/news/vatican-timor-leste-sign-bilateral-agreement/74081[/ref]

As part of the concordat arrangement, the Office of the Prime Minister provides a budget allocation of five million USD to the Catholic Episcopal Conference for distribution among the country’s three Catholic dioceses. A separate government fund is also available for civil society organizations, to which religious and belief groups (including the Catholic Church) are able to apply on an annual basis.[ref]https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/240282-TIMOR-LESTE-2020-INTERNATIONAL-RELIGIOUS-FREEDOM-REPORT.pdf[/ref]

Education and children’s rights

Religious education has been an elective subject in state schools since 2005. Prior to that, it was a compulsory class in the core curriculum. The government’s decision to end compulsory religious education was met with mass protests, organized by the Catholic Church leaders.[ref]https://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2005/s1349881.htm[/ref]

According to the 2020 Report on International Religious Freedom by the US State Department:

“While most schools are public, the Catholic Church also operates private schools, which may be attended by Catholic and non-Catholic students. Religious studies is mandatory in private Catholic schools.”[ref]https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-report-on-international-religious-freedom/timor-leste/[/ref]

Family, community and society

Whilst Minority religious groups have generally reported religious tolerance in the country, according to the 2020 Report on International Religious Freedom by the US State Department, “some minority groups said strong societal pressure to remain in the Catholic Church, particularly from family or community members, continued.”[ref]https://www.state.gov/reports/2020-report-on-international-religious-freedom/timor-leste/[/ref]

Sexual and reproductive health and rights

The Timorese Catholic Church intervenes in reproductive health and rights decision-making at all levels of society, from influencing policy by the Ministry of Health to intervening in the reproductive decisions made by individuals.[ref]https://www.researchgate.net/publication/267739702_The_Catholic_Church_and_reproductive_health_and_rights_in_Timor-Leste_contestation_negotiation_and_cooperation[/ref] In doing so it contributes to significant social stigma around contraception and sexual health. Reproductive health clinics set up by the Church encourage only ‘natural’ forms of contraception, which are primarily abstinence based.[ref]https://www.researchgate.net/publication/267739702_The_Catholic_Church_and_reproductive_health_and_rights_in_Timor-Leste_contestation_negotiation_and_cooperation[/ref]

The Church opposes any relaxation of the country’s exceptionally restrictive abortion law, which imposes a ban on abortion in almost all cases apart from those where a woman’s life is endangered (and in such cases, consent from three physicians is still required).[ref]https://www.refworld.org/docid/49c370921e.html[/ref] All other abortions are criminalized under the Penal Code (Article 141). A person who performs an illegal abortion, as well as the pregnant individual, can face up to three years of imprisonment for breach of this provision.[ref]https://antislaverylaw.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Timor-Leste-Penal-Code.pdf[/ref]

Harmful traditional practices

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Descrimination against Women reports that certain traditional customs, such as the payment of bride-price (barlake) by husbands to the families of their wives, child and/or forced marriage and polygamy, are still prevalent in Timor-Leste.[ref]CEDAW/C/TLS/CO/2-3[/ref]

Freedom of expression, advocacy of humanist values

Freedom of expression is guaranteed under the Constitution. In 2018, the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) noted the country’s positive progress on media development.[ref]https://www.ifj.org/fr/salle-de-presse/nouvelles/detail/category/press-releases/article/underneath-the-autocrats-first-ifj-south-east-asia-media-report-launched.html[/ref]

However, there have been some attempts to curtail freedom and independence of the media. In 2020, Reporters Without Borders reported that journalists “came under attack from the Catholic clergy, which is very powerful in Timor-Leste. A bishop inveighed against two media outlets that published an investigative article about a US priest accused of a sexual attack on a minor.”[ref]https://rsf.org/en/timor-leste[/ref] Also in 2020, a proposed anti-defamation law purported to criminalize statements offending the “honour, good name and reputation” of any current or previous member of government, or member of the Church, with up to three years in prison. Civil society resistance resulted in the proposal being shelved; however, with no guarantee that the bill will not return in future.[ref]https://www.ifj.org/media-centre/news/detail/category/press-releases/article/timor-leste-proposed-defamation-law-petitioned-by-media-rights-groups.html[/ref]

Freedoms of association and assembly are constitutionally guaranteed and NGOs can generally operate without interference. However, a 2004 law regulates political gatherings and prohibits demonstrations aimed at “questioning constitutional order” or disparaging the reputations of the head of state and other government officials. The law requires that demonstrations and public protests be authorized in advance.[ref]https://freedomhouse.org/country/timor-leste/freedom-world/2020[/ref]