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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Main Author: Butterworth, David
Format: Brief
Language:English
Published: World Bank, Washington, DC 2012
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
id okr-10986-10940
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spelling okr-10986-109402021-04-23T14:02:53Z Expanding State, Expectant Citizens : Local Perspectives on Government Responsibility in Timor-Leste Butterworth, David 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. 2012-08-13T13:38:06Z 2012-08-13T13:38:06Z 2010-02 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 English Justice for the Poor Briefing Note; Volume 4, Issue No. 2 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/ World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research :: Brief Publications & Research East Asia and Pacific
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Foreign Institution
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collection World Bank
language English
geographic_facet East Asia and Pacific
relation Justice for the Poor Briefing Note; Volume 4, Issue No. 2
description 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.
format Publications & Research :: Brief
author Butterworth, David
spellingShingle Butterworth, David
Expanding State, Expectant Citizens : Local Perspectives on Government Responsibility in Timor-Leste
author_facet Butterworth, David
author_sort Butterworth, David
title Expanding State, Expectant Citizens : Local Perspectives on Government Responsibility in Timor-Leste
title_short Expanding State, Expectant Citizens : Local Perspectives on Government Responsibility in Timor-Leste
title_full Expanding State, Expectant Citizens : Local Perspectives on Government Responsibility in Timor-Leste
title_fullStr Expanding State, Expectant Citizens : Local Perspectives on Government Responsibility in Timor-Leste
title_full_unstemmed Expanding State, Expectant Citizens : Local Perspectives on Government Responsibility in Timor-Leste
title_sort expanding state, expectant citizens : local perspectives on government responsibility in timor-leste
publisher World Bank, Washington, DC
publishDate 2012
url 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
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