Two decades after Timor-Leste gained its independence, the country is a complicated and qualified success story. Poverty and deep economic problems persist, but the country boasts a thriving democracy. Its ascension to the ASEAN regional bloc will come later this month.
As this milestone approaches, however, a senior official with oversight over the national intelligence agency has gone public with explosive claims that Timorese institutions are allegedly being bought by organised crime.
His concerns come after a recent UN report that describes in vivid detail a sophisticated attempt by figures linked to triad gangs in China and Southeast Asia to allegedly establish a base of operations in the Timorese region of Oecusse-Ambeno.
