Informal portrait of a Falintil leader wearing a camouflage pattern uniform and a black beret ...

Informal portrait of a Falintil leader wearing a camouflage pattern uniform and a black beret with a badge on it depicting Xanana Gusmao, the East Timorese resistance leader, and a dove. Falintil was originally formed as the military wing of the Fretilin political party and both played a major part in the pro-Independence movement surrounding the referendum held on 30 August 1999 to allow the East Timorese to choose between autonomy within Indonesia or independence. Following the overwhelming vote for independence, the pro-Indonesian militia launched a campaign of destruction, arson and murder, killing approximately 1500 people and forcing 300,000 others into West Timor as refugees.