Oecussi

Oecussi (Oecusse) is the western exclave of East Timor. If you already have the feeling that in Timor-Leste is one of the most remote places in the world, Oecussi (Oe-Cusse Ambeno) may feel more like the edge of the world. Still, this beautiful region of Earth is filled with mountains, beaches and lots of nature. Oecussi was the first capital of the Portuguese in Timor, and here the topasses had their centre of power.

Since 2015, the ZEESM special zone for a social market economy has been in the planning stage, which will greatly change the appearance of Oecussi. The airfield is being converted into an international airport, hotels, golf courses and companies are to be built as part of this mega project.

Cities

• 1 Pante Macassar
• 2 Pasar Tono
• 3 Citrana
• 4 Nitibe

Understand

Geography

Oecussi covers an area of 815 km² (315 sq mi). The Special Administrative Region is completely surrounded by Indonesian territory except in the north, where it borders the Savu Sea. The coastline is about 50 km long, and the land border is about 300 km. The capital is Pante Macassar (Pante Makasar, Oecussi), 281 km west of Dili.

The main river is the Tono, which dries up outside of the rainy season. Beyond the Tono, the Special Administrative Region consists of a landscape with water-scarce hills ranging from 800 to 900 m in height. The highest mountain in the Special Administrative Region is Pico do Nipane (Nipane Peak) in the Pante Macassar administrative post, with a height of 1,561 m. In the west, there are remnants of rainforest. Hardwood trees such as teak can be found in Bobometo (Oesilo administrative post).

Population

Most of the 81,000 inhabitants (2022) live along the banks of the Tono. Almost all are Catholic Christians. They mostly belong to the Atoni (Dawan, Atoin Meto), the largest ethnic group in West Timor. Within the Special Administrative Region, there is a distinction between the residents of the highlands and the lowlands. The relationship between these groups is usually peaceful, but tensions occasionally arise.

History

Even before the Europeans, Chinese traders conducted business with the inhabitants of Oecussi, with sandalwood being a particularly popular trade item. In 1556, Portuguese Dominicans founded the town of Lifau, 6 km west of present-day Pante Macasar, to secure the sandalwood trade. In 1641, the ruler of Amanubang, the head of Lifau, formed an alliance with Portugal and converted to Christianity. After the large-scale invasion of the Portuguese into the interior of Timor in 1642, the migration of the Topasses (also known as Black Portuguese) to Timor increased. The Topasses were descendants of Portuguese soldiers, sailors, and traders who married women from Solor. They significantly influenced developments in Timor in the 17th and 18th centuries. Lifau became the center of the Topasses, the main base of the Portuguese on Timor. From there, they expanded further inland and established their own kingdoms. Two of these kingdoms controlled the area of the present Special Administrative Region and later became its namesakes: Oe-Cusse (Oecussi) and Ambeno. The name Ambeno is sometimes omitted.

In 1701, Portugal sent António Coelho Guerreiro (1702 to 1705) as a governor to Timor again after two previous governors had failed to regain control. Guerreiro held out until 1705 before being expelled by the Topasses. The Portuguese returned to Lifau, but their power remained limited. The Topasses continued to control the sandalwood trade in the interior. The Topasses tried three times to expel the Dutch from Timor. However, when a 1749 attack by the Portuguese and Topasses on the Dutch stronghold of Kupang ended in disaster despite their numerical superiority, the rule of both in West Timor collapsed. Many regional rulers of West Timor signed treaties with the Dutch East India Company in 1756, cementing the island's political division that remains to this day. In 1769, the Portuguese governor António José de Menezes was forced by the Topasses to leave Lifau. The new capital of the Portuguese on Timor became Dili, which is now the national capital. The Topass rulers of Oecussi formed an alliance again in 1785 with the White Portuguese and their governor in Dili. The final border between the Dutch and the Portuguese was only contractually established in The Hague in 1916. During World War II, the Japanese occupied the entire island between 1942 and 1945. Although the Portuguese landed in this region first on Timor, some remote villages in the mountains of Oecussi were the last on Timor to come into contact with Europeans. Portuguese missionaries did not reach some mountain villages until the 1950s.

In the turmoil of the last months of Portuguese rule over East Timor, Indonesia occupied the then Oecussi-Ambeno on June 6, 1975. The large neighbour invaded the core land of East Timor a few months later and held it until 1999. During this period, Oecussi remained part of the province of East Timor (Indonesian: Timor Timur). Part of the population was forcibly relocated from the mountainous interior, where they traditionally lived due to heat, malaria, and sea raids, to the coast between Citrana and Sacato. The sandalwood stocks, which still existed here in contrast to most other areas on Timor until 1975, mostly disappeared in the early years of the Indonesian occupation. However, the region was spared from the fighting of the independence war.

The Sultanate of Occusi-Ambeno In the 1970s and 1980s, a group around the New Zealand anarchist Bruce Grenville founded a fictional state, the Sultanate of Occusi-Ambeno. They invented a history for the country and began issuing stamps, letterheads, etc. The stamps found buyers worldwide among collectors. Incidentally, Grenville never visited Oe-Cusse Ambeno.

In the independence referendum of 1999, the population of East Timor voted for full independence from Indonesia. This was followed by a final wave of violence by Indonesian security forces and pro-Indonesian militias. Houses were randomly set on fire. The Sakunar militia and the Indonesian army perpetrated several massacres among the population, the most consequential in Tumin and Passabe. 4,500 residents were forcibly deported to Indonesia by truck. 10,000 people fled to the mountains. In total, 164 people in Oe-Cusse Ambeno were murdered by the militias.

Over 5,000 people gathered under the protection of American pastor Richard Daschbach in a refugee camp in Cutete. On September 23, militiamen attacked the camp, burning down the shelters, shooting two people, and driving the refugees away. The 14-year-old Fredolino José Landos da Cruz Buno Sila (Lafu) then walked from Cutete through Indonesian West Timor to East Timor to inform the UN authorities there about the conditions in Oe-Cusse Ambeno, leading to the deployment of the international intervention force INTERFET to restore peace and order in the enclave as well. From October, INTERFET, on behalf of the United Nations, ensured peace and order. 90% of the houses in Oecussi-Ambeno were destroyed, along with the remaining infrastructure. Since 2002, Oe-Cusse Ambeno has been independent as part of East Timor.

Get in

By ship

A ferry connects Pante Macassar with the national capital, Dili, three times a week (departing for Dili on M, Tu and F at 13:00). The journey takes 13 hours. Passengers can sleep directly on the deck or, for an additional fee, in the "Captain's Cabin" or a four-bed cabin.

By land

From Oe-Cusse Ambeno, there are border crossings to West Timor at Bobometo (Oesilo administrative post), Sacato (Pante Macassar administrative post), and Passabe (Passabe administrative post). However, only Bobometo and Sacato are legal crossings. The roads from Pante Macassar to Dili via the Indonesian towns of Kefamenanu and Atambua are in relatively good condition, so one can expect a travel time of seven hours (with three transfers). Buses from two bus companies operate from Dili to Kefamenanu, with a fare of about 10 US dollars. Minibuses (locally called Bemos or Mikroléts) service the route between Kefamenanu and Pante Macassar. Transit visas are available at the Indonesian embassy in Dili, for which photocopies of passports are required. Buses also run from West Timorese Kupang to Kefamenanu via Soe.

By plane

The airport Aeroporto Internacional de Oe-Cusse Rota do Sândalo is between Lifau and Pante Macassar. The service with the twin-propeller aircraft of ZEESM was discontinued in April 2024. Aero Dili has announced plans to offer a regular service twice a week starting in June 2024.

Get around

Either you have brought your own (rental) car, motorbike or mountain bike, or you have to rely on public transport with Bemos. The journey between Pante Macassar and Bobometo, for example, takes an hour.

Most residents, however, use the simplest means of transport: their own feet!

See

Pante Macassar

The centre of the capital of the Special Administrative Region, Pante Macassar, consists of little more than half a dozen rows of houses, close to a gray beach with crystal-clear water, surrounded by palm trees. Other towns border Pante Macassar directly and line the coast. There is no television, crime is almost unknown. The only radio station operates intermittently, and electricity is available only five hours during the night. Twice a week, a ferry from Dili arrives in Pante Macassar after a twelve-hour journey. There are no spectacular sights, but it is a quiet place to relax.

A market is held on Saturdays. On the city beach, there are a few colonial-era cannons, an Integration Monument at the western end, and a statue of Mary at the eastern end. At the intersection of Rua Frei A Taveiro and Rua Francisco Mousinho, there is a fountain. There is also a post office here. Down the street towards the beach, on the right side of the waterfront promenade, is the former Portuguese Colonial Administration (Portugiese Conselho). Walking from the fountain towards the west on Rua Francisco Mousinho, you will reach a sports field on the left. At the end of the street towards the south, there is a shop and the Lily Restaurant, which also offers rooms for overnight stays (US$7). East of the fountain is the office of Timor Telecom. There is also reportedly a bank in the town, but it is not certain whether it is possible to exchange money or travelers' checks there. The most beautiful beach in the area is in Mahata, about two kilometers east of the town, behind the harbor where the ferry arrives. There is also a reef where you can snorkel and dive. But the beach at Lifau is also worth a visit (see below). Between October and November, whales pass by in the sea.

Other attractions

• In Pasar Tono, north of Baqui, the largest market of Oe-Cusse Ambeno takes place every Tuesday. Several thousand people come together to trade in food, animals, and handicrafts, such as Tais, the typical woven fabrics of Timor.
• At the Beach of Lifau, 6 km (3.7 mi) west of Pante Macassar, you can reminisce about the past. This was the site of the first European settlement on Timor. Originally, only a pillar with Portuguese emblems (Padrão) commemorated the first arrival of the Portuguese. Since 2015, there has been a large monument with a replica of a caravel and several life-size golden figures reenacting the first encounter. It is a popular picnic spot, and you can swim here.
• Walking about 1.5 km (0.93 mi) south from the old cannons on the beach of Pante Macassar, you reach Fatusuba. Here is an old Portuguese fort overlooking the town from a hill. The turret used to serve as a prison. In the old kitchen, you can still see the oven. By the fountain in the courtyard, there is a small grotto with a statue of Mary. Behind the fort are some old graves.
• Topu Honis Kutet, the refuge of Father Richard Daschbach, is a three-hour walk from Buneu (Suco Costa, Pante Macassar).
• The Spring of Oe-Cusse Ambeno is 3 km (1.9 mi) from Pante Macassar, near Aldeia Santa Rosa.
• The ruins of the Portuguese mission in Nunuhenu (Suco Cunha, Pante Macassar) are the meeting point for the traditional rulers of Oe-Cusse Ambeno for negotiations.
• Passabe is an isolated town in the mountains in the island's interior. It is significantly cooler here, and clouds sometimes drift between the peaks.
• Fatsuba (Suco Malelat): Old fort with a Marian shrine in the courtyard.

Eat

In Oecussi, there is an unusual widespread taboo against certain foods. This can be seafood, coconuts or even eggs. These can vary by clan affiliation (or kanaf). This is one of the reasons why fishing is poorly developed here.

Pante Macassar has a few small restaurants.

Stay safe

Pante Macassar has a police station and a hospital, near a monument.