Tracing the path, recounting the past: historical perspectives on Timor
James J. Fox[1] This chapter is, in part, based on a paper, 'The Paradox of Powerlessness: Timor in Historical Perspective' which was originally presented at the Nobel Peace Prize Symposium, Focus on Timor, at the University of Oslo (9 December 1996).
[2] Professor Stephen Wurm, who was one of the first linguists to recognise the Trans-New Guinea phylum as a major grouping of languages, is a strong supporter of the view that Trans-New Guinea phylum speakers arrived in Timor after Austronesian speakers. In his view, there is evidence in the languages of Timor (and Alor) of linguistic features that developed in the course of the migration of speakers of these languages from the east of New Guinea westward. Other linguists consider that there has been insufficient research on the Trans-New Guinea phylum as a whole and on the Timor-Alor languages in particular to confirm Wurm's bold hypotheses.
[3] For an interesting account of the history of this fort, see Barnes (1987).
[4] C.R. Boxer has written a great deal about the activities of these Topasses. His brief study, The Topasses of Timor (1947), which relies on both Dutch and Portuguese sources, is a classic study of its kind.
[5] The da Costa family established itself in the Noimuti region; the de Hornay family in Anas.
[6] For a further discussion of this event and its consequences, see Fox (1982).
[7] For a discussion of the early history of the Kupang area, see Fox (1977); for a more popular account of the history of Kupang itself, see Fox (1981).
[8] The text of this contract can be found in Stapel (1955:87-107).
[9] These long, drawn-out negotiations leading to the final border treaty are discussed in detail in Heyman (1895) and Ezerman (1917). The texts of the various Portuguese-Dutch treaties and conventions plus that of the Permanent Court of Arbitration can be found in Krieger (1997:1-17).
[10] I was an international observer in the Suai area at the time of the ballot and chose to begin my official observations at the Camanasa polling station. That evening, I was introduced to the traditional ruler of Camanasa, who was later reported to have been killed in the mayhem that followed the announcement of the results of the ballot.
[11] For a more detailed, ecologically oriented examination of the history of Timor and consequences of European involvement, including the introduction of maize and of firearms, on patterns of Timorese livelihood, see Fox (1988). To gain some idea of the local adaptive capacity of Atoni culture, see Fox (1999).