Revolutionary Front For An Independent East Timor - History Since Independence

History Since Independence

In the first elections, held in 2001, the year before independence, FRETILIN polled 57.4% of the vote and took 55 seats in the 88-seat Assembly. While this gave the party a working majority, it fell short of the two-thirds majority it had hoped for in order to dictate the drafting of a national constitution.

In the June 2007 parliamentary election, FRETILIN again took first place, but with a greatly reduced 29% of the vote and 21 seats. In the election it faced a challenge from the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT), led by former president Xanana Gusmão, which placed second. Although FRETILIN did not win a majority of seats, its Secretary-General, Mari Alkatiri, spoke of forming a minority government. The party formed a national unity government which included the CNRT, a collaboration that they had previously rejected.

However, subsequent talks between the parties were unsuccessful in reaching an agreement on a government. After weeks of dispute between the CNRT-led coalition and FRETILIN over who should form the government, José Ramos-Horta announced on August 6 that the CNRT-led coalition would form the government and that Gusmão would become Prime Minister. FRETILIN denounced Ramos Horta's decision as unconstitutional, and angry FRETILIN supporters in Dili immediately reacted to Ramos-Horta's announcement with violent protests. Alkatiri said that the party would fight the decision through legal means and would encourage people to protest and practice civil disobedience. A few days later, FRETILIN Vice-President Arsénio Bano said that the party would not challenge the government in court, and expressed a desire for a "political solution" leading to the creation of a national unity government.