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Timorese Register Land Claims for First Time
FrontLines - May 2009
By Dorelyn Jose
DILI, Timor-Leste—Alberto
da Silva, a retired civil servant
from Aiteas village in the
Manatuto district east of here,
was relieved—he just registered
his claim to the land where his
house has stood for many years.
This is the first time Timorese
have had the opportunity to register
a claim to property since
the country was internationally
recognized as independent in
2002. The country’s history of
successive colonization—first by
Portugal for over four centuries
and then by Indonesia for 24
years—has resulted in overlapping
land claims.
A USAID assessment determined
that conflict over property
contributed to violence in 2006,
especially in the capital of Dili.
Secure land tenure is crucial for
the country’s stability, and insecure
property rights discourage
productive investments in most
sectors of the economy, project
leaders said.
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Retired civil servant Alberto
da Silva and his neighbor are
just some of the Timorese
who have registered
their land claims through
the USAID-supported
Strengthening Property
Rights project implemented
by ARD Inc., ACDI/VOCA ,
Land Equity International,
and the local NGO Blelun.
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As of March, 891 land claims
have been registered through the
USAID-supported Strengthening
Property Rights in Timor-Leste
project—known locally as Ita
Nia Rai or Our Land—working
with the National Directorate for
Land and Property. The team
started registering land claims in
November 2008 in two pilot
areas—Liquica, west of Dili, and
Manatuto, east of Dili.
Twenty-two data collectors
working in teams and trained by
project staff continue to record
land claims in the pilot districts.
“There was originally a
boundary dispute with his [da
Silva’s] neighbor, so he asked us
to give him some time before
registering their land claims,”
said Geraldo Gomes, who is the
field manager for the land claims
project in Manatuto district.
“Through the mediation of local
leaders, he and his neighbor
agreed on a compensation
scheme, and when they were
ready, they called us.”
Da Silva said the first thing he
plans to do with pension money
he expects from Portugal and
Indonesia is to have a good fence
built for his land—something he
could only dream of doing until
now. “I am happy because now
we have peace,” he said.
Transparency is integral to
claims collection. Once all the
claims in a certain area have
been collected, the teams display
maps allowing the community to
scrutinize the results. According
to Gomes, relatively few disputes—
about 5 percent of
recorded claims—have arisen so
far in Manatuto.
“Overall, people are just appreciative
of the opportunity to make
their claim, and they are understanding
that others must also
have the same opportunity,” said
Ita Nia Rai conflict resolution specialist,
David Alves Lopes.
This is only the beginning for
claimants like da Silva who hope
for passage of a land law that
formally recognizes property
rights through land titles. The
Transitional Land Law is expected
to be enacted later this year.
According to Antonio Verdial
de Sousa, the National
Directorate’s director, recording
of land claims will be expanded
soon. “Following the success of
the program in the pilot areas, we
plan to expand the activity in two
new areas—Aileu, south of Dili,
and Baucau, east of Dili …. We
have already consulted with the
local authorities there, trained the
data collectors and field coordinators
for the new areas, and the
communities are ready to welcome
the program,” he said.
To see this project in action,
check out: wwww.youtube.com/watch?v=9xbnxQV1hOw.
★
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by the Bureau for Legislative and Public Affairs
U.S. Agency for International Development
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