01 June 2013

The Asia Foundation to present research results on Tara Bandu & Conflict Prevention

ETLJB 01 June 2013 - Belun and The Asia Foundation are calling on people to join them next week to discuss the results of their research into tara bandu’s ability to prevent conflict in Timor-Leste.

After eight months of research, next Tuesday the results and preliminary recommendations will be discussed at a roundtable meeting, before the final document is released shortly after. Interested parties are invited to listen, discuss and contribute to the final product.

Monitoring through Timor-Leste’s Early Warning, Early Response (EWER) program revealed the trend in recent years of local and international organizations supporting tara bandu in communities as a means of strengthening natural resource management systems and addressing identified conflict drivers in communities.

Through this Policy Brief, Belun and The Asia Foundation have considered various factors that can influence how effectively this Timorese customary practice can be used to prevent conflict in Timor-Leste.

The paper draws on interviews with key government and non-governmental personnel, as well as focus group discussions in eight target sub-districts. All three categories of tara bandu (regulating people to people relations; regulating people to animal relations; and regulating people’s relationship to the environment), are examined for their strengths and weaknesses when being applied in a varying situations, with specific comparisons between urban and rural  communities.

Date: Tuesday 4 June, 2013
Location: ETDA (near Landmark supermarket), Dili
Time: 0900-1200

To register your attendance and receive an advance copy of the report, please RSVP to costa.belun@gmail.com or meta.belun@gmail.com (77336665) Reported by Warren L. Wright

See also
Tara Bandu: The Adat Concept of the Environment in East Timor on the East Timor Law Journal
Keeping the Peace in Timor-Leste
Water buffalo justice reigns in East Timor
President proposes reactivation of traditional law in Timor-Leste
Distortions and misrepresentations by The Asia Foundation in Timor-Leste

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