ABSTRACT
The period from 2007-12 saw the East Timorese state under a new government, and attempting to repair the nation-building fault lines that had emerged after independence. It was also a time of bitter divisions within Timor-Leste’s political elite, reinforced by the regionalised voting patterns that emerged in the 2007 national elections. This chapter examines nation-building in this era of East Timorese politics, with a focus on themes of recognition and identity in the 2007 election campaigns. It then examines two policy areas that highlighted competing conceptions of the nation: the Mother Tongue education pilot program, and the evolving balance between traditional and modern authority in local government.
