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Constitution |
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The political system in East Timor is a unitary semi-presidential representative democratic republic,[1][2][3] whereby the Prime Minister of East Timor is the head of government and the President of East Timor functions as head of state. East Timor has a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the president and the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the National Parliament. The Judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The East Timorese constitution was modelled on that of Portugal, with lesser power given to the president.[2] The country is still in the process of building its administration and governmental institutions. The Economist Intelligence Unit rated East Timor a "flawed democracy" in 2022.[4][needs update]
The semi-presidential system in the new state of Timor-Leste has institutionalized a political struggle between the president, Xanana Gusmão, and the prime minister, Mari Alkatiri. This has polarized political alliances and threatens the viability of the new state. This paper explains the ideological divisions and the history of rivalry between these two key political actors. The adoption of Marxism by Fretilin in 1977 led to Gusmão's repudiation of the party in the 1980s and his decision to remove Falintil, the guerrilla movement, from Fretilin control. The power struggle between the two leaders is then examined in the transition to independence. This includes an account of the politicization of the defense and police forces and attempts by Minister of Internal Administration Rogério Lobato to use disaffected Falintil veterans as a counterforce to the Gusmão loyalists in the army. The 4 December 2002, Dili riots are explained in the context of this political struggle.