The island of Timor is divided into an independent sovereign state of Timor-Leste and West Timor, which is part of Indonesia. Timor-Leste’s complex history includes a period of Indonesian occupation from 1975 to 1999.

In this two-part program, UCLA professor of history Geoffrey Robinson discusses the recent political history of Timor-Leste and its efforts to achieve justice and reconciliation since independence.

Following Robinson’s talk, independent scholar and contributor to the Textiles of Timor exhibition catalogue Jill Forshee delves into the political stories of the Timorese weavers’ experiences during the occupation and into current times—highlighting their textiles as personal registers of life histories.

The program is introduced by the Fowler’s senior curator of Asian and Pacific collections and Textiles of Timor exhibition co-curator Roy Hamilton.