CONCEPTUAL ANALYSIS article

Front. Polit. Sci.

Sec. Peace and Democracy

Volume 7 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpos.2025.1439480

This article is part of the Research TopicPeace and Democracy: Views from the Global SouthView all 5 articles

Path to peace and democracy: the case of Timor-Leste

Provisionally accepted
JOSE CORNELIO GUTERRESJOSE CORNELIO GUTERRES1,2*
  • 1National Institute of Science and Technology, Dili, Timor-Leste
  • 2National Centre for Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology (Morocco), Rabat, Morocco

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This study explores the development and challenges of democracy in Timor-Leste, one of the youngest democracies globally, following its independence in 2002. It examines how historical legacies of Portuguese colonialism and Indonesian occupation, combined with international interventions, have shaped the country's democratic evolution in the context of peace and statebuilding. The analysis is based on a comprehensive literature review, and considers key factors influencing democratic consolidation. We highlight that Timor-Leste has reached significant milestones in the field of democracy -such as free and fair elections, constitutional safeguards, and active civil society -and represents a successful case of democratization in the context of peacebuilding. That said, further progress is pending on: a better integration between formal and informal governance structures, overcoming political patronage, and on better results in terms of social and economic inclusion, especially vis-à-vis the youth and rural population.

Keywords: Timor-Leste, Democracy, Civil society, State-building, governance

Received: 28 May 2024; Accepted: 05 Jun 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 CORNELIO GUTERRES. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: JOSE CORNELIO GUTERRES, National Institute of Science and Technology, Dili, Timor-Leste

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