Paper short abstract:

People of East-Timor suffered violent losses during Indonesia occupation that culminated in 1999. People were killed and destruction of property occurred. In this presentation we show how compensation has been achieved through the embellishments of grave sites, and monuments to fallen heroes.

Paper long abstract:

The people of East-Timor suffered a violent occupation by the government of Indonesia that lasted more than 20 years. It culminated in 1999 with a severe attack, in which people directly involved in the resistance were killed and a severe destruction of property occurred. Given the immense role that the deceased tend to play as ancestors in the lives of their relatives, it comes as no surprise that some initiatives have been taken to specifically address the need to pay respect to fallen heroes. In East Timor, family and nation merge in claiming adequate treatment to those deceased whose power to influence the lives of relatives and communities is widely acknowledged. We will address one of the proposals of this panel, namely how families and communities cope with the stress of sudden deaths of family members, loss of housing and property, and the disruption of communities caused by severe disasters. Based on fieldwork we are carrying out in the region of Lautem (East-Timor), in this presentation we argue that in East-Timor emotional and spiritual (religious) dimensions are entangled in the embellishments of grave sites, and in a diversified type of monuments to fallen heroes.