East Timor's national literacy campaign and the struggle for a post-conflict democracy

Abstract

In Timor-Leste, the majority of the country's adults have had little or no schooling. The illiteracy rate nationally, according to the 2004 Census, was 46%, and was much higher among older people, women and people in rural areas. The paper analyses the context, origins and achievements of first twelve months of Timor-Leste's national literacy campaign, which was launched in the midst of the 2006 political violence by the previous FRETILIN-led government, supported by a team of Cuban technical advisers. It explores the way the political crisis and the literacy campaign interacted, as powerful forces combined to undermine the radically egalitarian thrust of the campaign. It concludes that, unless the momentum of the campaign is regained by the new AMP government which took power in June 2007, illiteracy will continue to undermine the prospects for Timor-Leste's independent development.