Expanding State, Expectant Citizens : Local Perspectives on Government Responsibility in Timor-Leste
When the prime minister requests further sacrifice to strengthen the 'fragile' state, one might ask how much more determined and tolerant of hardship are the people of Timor-Leste willing to be? Even as the government has been working wit...
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| Format: | Brief |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2012
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2010/02/11976434/expanding-state-expectant-citizens-local-perspectives-government-responsibility-timor-leste http://hdl.handle.net/10986/10940 |
| Summary: | When the prime minister requests further
sacrifice to strengthen the 'fragile' state, one
might ask how much more determined and tolerant of hardship
are the people of Timor-Leste willing to be? Even as the
government has been working with international agencies
towards a more concerted effort of 'participatory
intervention' (Chopra & Hohe 2004), those farmers
and families now urgently needing state support are also
those for whom the sacrifice will be most acute. With this
potentially destabilizing situation in mind, in this
briefing note the report investigate local engagements
between citizens and their state, and sketch out the values,
hopes and expectations that underlie these encounters and
shape rural communities' definition of state
responsibility. At present, Timor-Leste's citizens see
the state as being 'in their debt', and expect it
to repay the suffering endured during their fight for
independence. State initiatives proving long-term commitment
to settling this debt (though they might involve only small,
incremental advances) are regarded positively, as are
programs which make use of local resources and labor. Such
initiatives fit with customary patterns of exchange, and
contribute to strengthening state legitimacy at local levels. |
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