Latest news with #EastTimorese
West Australian
29-05-2025
- Business
- West Australian
Estrella makes history with manganese drill program in Timor-Leste
Estrella Resources has officially broken new ground by launching Timor-Leste's first modern metallic mineral exploration program, punching-in the company's maiden diamond drill hole at the highly prospective Ira Miri manganese prospect. In mobilising a man-portable diamond rig from Dili to the Lautem region, Estrella says its joint venture (JV) with the East Timorese Government's Murak Rai Timor and drilling contractor CoreSearch marks the beginning of an intrepid new era for resource development in the South East Asian nation. The inaugural hole is now underway, targeting manganese mineralisation just below an outcropping unit. The company has also started initial trenching to pinpoint the key geological contact within the Noni Formation. The broader campaign will comprise an initial 3000 metres of diamond drilling and 10,000m of reverse circulation drilling, followed by a further 10,000m of reverse circulation drilling in a second phase after results start to roll in. The campaign isn't just a technical achievement. Cultural integration has played a central role, with local elders blessing the site through traditional ceremonies. More than 40 members of the local community were also engaged in hand-clearing tracks to the drill pad. Estrella has reinforced the tracks with machinery to ensure long-term access and erosion control. Follow-up drill sites have already been prepped 100m from the first line. The project sits within Estrella's northernmost Lautem project area and includes multiple drill targets across the Ira Miri, Sica and Lalena prospects. The initial drilling program will zero in on the manganese-rich zones mapped at Ira Miri. Estrella has also set its sights on the region's broader mineral potential, including a large limestone deposit lying above the manganese horizon. Two weeks ago, Estrella unveiled a landmark deal that could see up to 500 million tonnes of premium limestone shipped from Timor-Leste over the next five years, targeting South East Asia's surging industrial minerals demand. The high-grade, coral-rich limestone sits atop the Baucau Formation within Estrella's 195-square-kilometre concession and directly overlies its manganese targets. This makes exploration doubly efficient as both resources can be assessed in tandem during drilling. Recent assays have proved the limestone is a high-purity calcite with few impurities, meaning it could be perfect for use in cement, glass production, agriculture and as a key neutralising agent in nickel processing and environmental remediation. Since drilling at Ira Miri will offer Estrella a first glimpse beneath the surface of Timor-Leste's largely untouched terrain, Estrella plans to release early manganese assays in June at the International Manganese Institute's conference in Tokyo. The company and its government-backed JV partner see the event as a fantastic opportunity to spotlight Timor-Leste's emerging role in the global critical minerals sector. Operations have been fast-tracked under a special approval from the Timorese mining regulator and broader environmental clearances are pending. As the bit bites into fresh Timorese geology, Estrella is officially a first mover to unlock the nation's untapped mineral wealth. With drills spinning, support entrenched and geology onside, the company's Timor-Leste push could soon evolve into a game-changing discovery story. Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact:
Canada Standard
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Canada Standard
Timor-Leste shows us the true spirit of independence
While Timor-Leste flies flags for a freedom it fought for, Australia still hesitates to claim its own, writesGJ Burchall. THE FLAGS were all out and it was a joy to behold. They started to appear about a week ago. Or more. There was already an abundance of flags on permanent display here, on public and private buildings, a-flap from microlet buses and motorbike handlebars. But in the last few days, they have sprouted like roof leaks in the wet season. All the special occasion flags had been plonked out in front of even the smallest of businesses, flying from sturdy, makeshift flagpoles set into concrete-filled black plastic flower pots. Really, they began to emerge right after the week of half-mast mourning ended forPapa Francisco. The flags were out in the lead-up to Timor-Lestes celebration of Independence on 20 May. Sort of. Its complicated. This tiny country has a fraught history of being an uncared-for colony, a target of military invasion, an arena of conflict and the recipient of cruel inaction by its neighbours. As a result, 20 May marks Timor-LestesRestoration of Independence. 'Used to dying' memoir tells brutal history of East Timor The hardships endured by the East Timorese are detailed in a memoir by Dr Vacy Vlazna, both a story of courage and a political analysis. It went like this: following theCarnation Revolutionof 1974, Portugal began to divest itself of its costly colonies. The people of Timor-Leste were happy to shuck almost 300 years of benign neglect and declared themselves an independent democracy on 28 November 1975. It lasted nine days. Indonesia invaded and took occupation. Australia allowed it. Britain merrily sold weapons to the invaders to thwart any resistance. Fast forward to 1999, when Indonesia, finding itself in a similar economic bind to Portugal 25 years earlier, agreed to an UN-sponsored referendum on the future of its erstwhileProvince 27. The Timorese people voted overwhelmingly for independence over any autonomy within the sprawling archipelago nation. The UN administered the half-island for the next three years until nationhood was granted. Thus, the Timorese celebrate three distinct milestones to their independence. Original independence (28 November), Popular Consultation (30 August), and Restoration of Independence (20 May). They deserve each one. No wonder the flower-pot flags come out. No forced patriot-stir dates, these. They are as meaningful as they were hard-won. Of course, the place has problems. But they are their own. These people are so resilient, positive, tolerant and hopeful. There is a whole generation now who have grown up post-independence. They honour the past but embrace the future. No flag flies in cynicism. Australias appalling Timor legacy and why it matters May 20 will mark 20 years of independence for Australias near neighbour, the nation of Timor-Leste. You cannot help but compare this to Australias lame national day. What was 26 January? The (second) attempt to pitch camp for displaced prisoners, gaolers and bureaucrats after an abandoned Botany Bay foray. Pitch camp on private property. At least New Zealand also still under thrall to the British hasWaitangi Day, when a treaty was signed between coloniser and land-owner. Australia is indeed a most fortunate nation, never having suffered major wars civil or uncivil and not having a shared border. It is now far too multicultural to be declared British to its bootstraps. The royals dont care if Australia becomes a republic; they probably wonder why it isnt already. In contrast, Timor-Leste is so proud of its culture and its emergence from many dark years of oppression, aggression and desperation. Hence the flags: from the hanky-sized ones on sticks waved by kids, to the bold, beach-towel-breadth banners outside the humblest home. Australia will never have a truly relevant, inclusive national day until it becomes a republic, until it reconciles with an Indigenous past, present and future. TheVoice to Parliamentshamefully failed recently. But now the Government has a clear mandate to put an Indigenous treaty and an Australian republic back onto the agenda. Even Barbados took the step and became a parliamentary republic in 2021. And Canada got its own distinctive flag, back in 1965 one without the conquerors brutal jack in the hoist quadrant. Have some pride, Australia. Lets debate a governance model and speed the republic. Then everyone can proudly plant a flag in a flowerpot. A new flag, that is. GJ Burchallis a journalist, scriptwriter and educator who was born and bred in Melbourne and lives in the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste. Related Articles Democracy takes poll position in Timor-Leste Australias appalling Timor legacy and why it matters
The Citizen
29-04-2025
- Politics
- The Citizen
24 hours in pictures, 29 April 2025
Through the lens: The Citizen's Picture Editors select the best news photographs from South Africa and around the world. An aerial picture shows Santa Cruz Cemetery in Dili, East Timor, on April 28, 2025. On November 12, 1991, Indonesian troops opened fire on peaceful East Timorese demonstrators marching to Santa Cruz Cemetery for a memorial for Sebastiao Gomes, a pro-independence activist shot dead outside Motael Church two weeks earlier. The shooting began on the street outside the cemetery and continued inside, killing an estimated 200 civilians in what became known as the Santa Cruz Massacre, a turning point in East Timor's independence struggle. (Photo by VALENTINO DARIELL DE SOUSA / AFP)
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
East Timor faithful, ex-rebels see hope after Pope Francis
Brandishing his government-gifted medals near a statue of the Virgin Mary in East Timor's capital, ex-rebel Crisanto de Jesus Alves da Costa says Pope Francis's message of hope on a rare visit last year offered a bright path for Asia's youngest nation. The Argentine pontiff, who died on Monday, was the first to visit the Catholic-majority country after it won independence from Indonesia in 2002 after years of bloody conflict. Francis had touted reconciliation and equality in East Timor, as part of a gruelling four-nation tour in the region last year. "He led the world to the East Timorese. He spoke up for poor people and for all types of people. He didn't see differences between them," the 56-year-old veteran told AFP in Dili. "The new pope, I want the same." As a 10-year-old, da Costa says he would climb trees and hilltops to identify enemy positions, giving guerillas key information in the asymmetric battle against the occupying Indonesian military. Now, as conflicts rage in Gaza and Ukraine, he wants the next pope to follow Francis's lead and offer a stance of non-violence. "We need good cooperation and reconciliation," he told AFP. "That's a good message because the pope knows that the world's people need unity, need amity with other countries." With a seven-day mourning period underway in the former Portuguese colony, other Timorese recalled the influence of Francis on their nation. At Dili's biggest Catholic seminary, which is preparing 250 male students to be ordained, rector Miguel Arcanjo da Costa said Francis made the Timorese believe in their own progress as a country. Pope John Paul II visited East Timor in 1989 when it was under Indonesian occupation, giving them a boost in their battle for independence, but Francis spoke to a free East Timor about its modern challenges. "The second visit for the Holy See, Pope Francis, it makes us have motivation to cultivate our identity, our culture, our struggle in the independence era," the rector said. "He is a diamond for us. We hope that the next pope is like him." - 'Open-minded' - Many Timorese have laid flowers, held prayers and lit candles in honour of Francis since his death, with flags flying at half-mast in the coastal city and his visit still fresh in locals' memory. Authorities said nearly half of the country's 1.3 million people turned out to see Francis speak on the outskirts of Dili in September. A huge mass is planned at the same location on Saturday which will coincide with the pope's funeral at the Vatican. Some have begun to look ahead towards Francis's successor. "I pray and I invite all people to pray that the Holy Spirit will choose the right man or right person for the Church in this global era," said Sister Guilhermina Marcal, 66, at a Dili convent. "It is in need of people that are open-minded to embrace everyone." She said Francis had led the way, and she was particularly happy with how he promoted women to senior Vatican positions. In February, Francis appointed Italian nun Sister Raffaella Petrini as president of the Vatican City State. "He embraced everyone without any distinction. No religion, no race, no position," Marcal told AFP. The nun added that she would be proud if the next pope -- chosen in a secret and lengthy process by cardinals -- were Asian. "Let us see. We have to be open to accept whoever will be chosen to be pope," she said. "But God will let it be done." jfx/sco
