UPR Sexual Rights Database

National Report:
Para 22) Timor-Leste acknowledges that it has not yet ratified the CRPD, however now it is making preparations for the ratification process. The Ministry of Social Solidarity and Inclusion (MSSI), Ministry of Justice (MoJ) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (MFAC) has established a team to make preparations for ratification.

National Report:
Para 35) The Government of Timor-Leste has adopted many measures to combat violence against women and children. The Government of Timor-Leste through the Secretary of State for Equality and Inclusion has produced a national action plan for gender-based violence 2017-2020, with four important pillars, namely: the prevention of gender-based violence, providing services to victims, access to justice for victims, and coordination, monitoring and assessment of initiatives that have been developed. In 2020 the Government launched a Spotlight Initiative program with the aim of combatting gender-based violence such as violence against women and girls.
Para 70) Legislation in Timor-Leste gives priority to women to participate in political life, therefore there is a special quota for women. The Law on Election to the National Parliament states that the effective and supplementary list of candidates must include at least one woman in every three persons.
Para 71) Law No. 9/2016 on Community Leaders states that the presentation of candidacies for Village Chief and Sub-Village Chief must contain at least one woman and the village council shall comprise one female delegate and one female youth representative, and this law also states that there must be one woman in the electoral team.
Para 72) The participation of women in political life in Timor-Leste continues to change, and in 2017 during the Parliamentary Elections there were 26 female members of the National Parliament, and women were elected as secretary of the chair, and first vice secretary and two deputies.
Para 73) After the General Parliamentary Elections in 2017, in 2018 Timor-Leste held early elections and 22 females were elected as members of the National Parliament and one woman was elected as First Vice-President of the National Parliament, First Secretary to the Chair of the National Parliament and two women as Committee Presidents.
Para 74) Also, in each successive government there has been an increase in women’s participation at the executive level, namely assuming positions as members of government, whereby in the eighth government from 2018-2023 there were seven female members of Government, three Ministers, one Vice Prime Minister, three Vice-Ministers, and one Secretary of State.
Para 75) Women’s participation is not just at the national level but also at the village level, with each successive period showing a significant change in women’s involvement, as 319 women nominated themselves as candidates for Village Chief in 2016 and 21 of them were elected as Village Chief.
Para 76) The State maintained the Dili Declaration to empower women’s economic autonomy, through entrepreneurship, or creation of work for themselves as an essential factor in achieving the sustainable development goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda, especially in reducing poverty through the allocation of a gender sensitive State budget each year. The State continues to develop all efforts to reform and uphold women’s economic rights and equal access to economic resources, so they can have access to property and to promote full employment and dignified work. Starting in 2019 the Secretary of State for Equality and Inclusion (SEI) implemented an economic development program for women to provide support to women’s groups though the public transfers of funds, and 106 women’s groups received publicly transferred funds between 2019-2020. The SEI has continued to promote women’s participation through training and capacity building in important areas such as leadership, management, accountability and finance, and also has created training centres in all municipalities.
Para 77) The Government acknowledges that gender-based violence continues to occur, especially against women, however the Government continues to endeavour to reduce gender-based violence in Timor-Leste.
Para 78) The Government has launched a National Action Plan on Gender Based Violence 2017-2021 as a State commitment to resolve problems to reduce and eradicate gender-based violence that affects women, men and children in the community through coordination and the inclusive participation of all entities.
Para 79) The State has a policy of continuing to promote and protect women and girls so they can enjoy their rights and continues to reduce discrimination in public and private institutions including human trafficking, sexual exploitation, early marriage and forced marriage practices and provides equal opportunities to women to be leaders at the political level.
Para 80) The Government works with non-government organizations and has established safe and protected places for victims and survivors, offering temporary accommodation, including attending to victims and survivors of sexual abuse, domestic violence, the sexual abuse of children, or trafficking. Now there are safe rooms at the national hospital, referral hospitals and health centres in four municipalities and safe room services are provided by PRADET.
Para 81) Also shelters have been established, as part of a collaboration between the Government and civil society organisations. In 2018, there were safe shelters in all of the 13 municipalities that also guarantee the safety of victims of gender-based violence and shelters also provide training on livelihood skills with the aim of reintegrating victims into the community who have the capacity to make a living.
Para 82) To prevent sexual harassment from occurring in the workplace, the Public Service Commission has created a mechanism for reporting sexual harassment, and the Rosa CHATBOT facilitates reporting of gender-based violence in specific cases relating to sexual harassment that is committed by Public Servants in the workplace or in a public place. The Rosa CHATBOT protects the identity of those who make a complaint.

UN Compilation:
Para 9) The Committee against Torture commended Timor-Leste for its initiatives to amend its policies and procedures in order to afford greater protection of human rights and to apply the Convention against Torture, in particular the adoption of the second National Action Plan on Gender-based Violence (2017–2021);
Para 27) The Special Rapporteur noted that, in terms of access to justice and compliance with human rights standards, there were shortcomings in both the formal justice system and the customary justice system. In the customary justice system, hearings were commonly conducted in public, which was clearly unsuitable for crimes relating to emotionally vulnerable victims of domestic violence and child abuse. Some customary justice practices might entail physical punishments, in contravention of international human rights law.
Para 49) The United Nations country team also noted that gender-based violence was recognized as one of the most pervasive and widespread human rights concerns in TimorLeste, with three in five (59 per cent) ever-partnered women (aged 15–49 years) having experienced physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence in their lifetime. Of these, 86 per cent had not sought assistance from formal agencies, services or other authorities. Women and girls with disabilities, as well as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex persons, were at an even higher risk of violence, often perpetrated by family members.
Para 50) The Committee against Torture expressed concern about the reluctance of TimorLeste to criminalize marital rape and incest as distinct crimes, and expressed regret at the lack of information provided on the number of complaints, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and sentences imposed in cases of gender-based violence against women.
Para 51) The United Nations country team noted that in the 2017 elections, 49 per cent of voters had been women. In 2020, women had held 38 per cent of National Parliament seats, above the regional average (19 per cent) and the global average (26 per cent). However, women were still underrepresented in other key decision-making positions.
Para 52) It also noted that there had been an increase in women’s participation in the formal labour force but that gender disparities remained. Despite the fact that by 2019, 45.7 per cent of the total labour force had constituted women, there was a gender pay gap of 16 per cent in formal employment.

Stakeholder Summary:
Para 11) PDHJ highlighted that the formal judicial process did not provide for an accessible, fast and coherent result that ensured victims of domestic violence safety and livelihood. This caused those victims to turn to traditional justice mechanisms and remedies that might not integrate a human rights perspective.
Para 64) JAI stated that restrictive gender roles, de facto discrimination, and violence against women were still serious problems in Timor-Leste. It also noted that Timor-Leste had responded to recent criticisms of de facto discrimination against women by affirming its ongoing commitment to ending gender discrimination, promulgating laws to require female representation at the local government level, and approving a new National Action Plan on Gender-based Violence aimed at preventing violence and increasing women’s access to support services and the justice system.
Para 65) AI noted that reports of gender based violence remained high in Timor-Leste, with the last reliable data source being a baseline survey (2015) showing that 59 per cent of women experienced some physical or sexual violence. Accessing justice through the courts system, judicial officers providing lenient sentences and a lack of suitable remedies were cited as ongoing and systemic challenges.

National Report:
Para 8) The State of Timor-Leste is carrying out efforts to comply with its commitment to international human rights instruments as stated in its national reports and is currently preparing resources (human and financial) and is endeavoring to increase their institutional capacity to ensure that these international instruments are implemented in the future when the CRPD and its Optional Protocol is signed and ratified, as recommended by the United Nations Human Rights Council

Para 9) Based on the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (C-RDTL) Article 95.3 (f) on ratification, it is the competence of the National Parliament, to approve and denounce agreements and ratify international treaties and conventions. A concrete example relates to the ratification of the Convention on Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol as recommended by the Committee and UN Human Rights Council, whereby the National Parliament is waiting for a proposal from the Government, because the Government has a policy of creating favorable conditions and examining and considering all of the circumstances relating to human rights, including the financial impact and the contents of the conventions that are to be ratified, to see if they are going to be ratified partially or fully, depending on the policy and capacity of the Government to sign and ratify these conventions and to assume all of the consequences and responsibilities and to comply with its implementation obligations

UN Compilation:
Para 1) The United Nations country team in Timor-Leste noted that, during the first universal periodic review, Timor-Leste had indicated that it planned to ratify CRPD, but that it had not yet done so.

National Report:
Para 68) Timor-Leste’s penal code penalizes any person who causes a pregnant mother to have an abortion, and any pregnant mother who consents to an abortion by a third party, or by her actions or those of a third party, causes an abortion. A pregnant mother who has an abortion will not be punished when based on medical knowledge and experience, it is necessary to save the life of the pregnant mother or foetus, by terminating the pregnancy to remove the pregnant woman from danger of death, provided that there is medical authorization and is performed by a medical practitioner or other health professional in a public health institution that is officially recognized, and with the consent of the pregnant woman.

UN Compilation:
Para 44) The Committee against Torture expressed particular concern that, pursuant to a 2009 amendment to the Criminal Code, abortion was a criminal offence in all cases except where necessary to protect the life of the mother and that the Code did not provide exceptions to that rule in cases in which compelling a woman to continue a pregnancy could result in her experiencing severe pain and suffering, particularly in cases of rape, incest or severe fetal impairment.

National Report:
Para 35) The Government of Timor-Leste has adopted many measures to combat violence against women and children. The Government of Timor-Leste through the Secretary of State for Equality and Inclusion has produced a national action plan for gender-based violence 2017-2020, with four important pillars, namely: the prevention of gender-based violence, providing services to victims, access to justice for victims, and coordination, monitoring and assessment of initiatives that have been developed. In 2020 the Government launched a Spotlight Initiative program with the aim of combatting gender-based violence such as violence against women and girls.
Para 67) The Government has taken all steps to establish the principle of equality without discrimination and equal treatment for all people, to ensure that women and men have the same rights to immovable property, to protect and promote the right to equality in all circumstances. The provisions on equality are set out in Law No. 3/2017 Against Human Trafficking, Law No. 12/2016 on the Creation of a Contributory Regime for Security Social and Law No. 13/2017 Special Regime on the Definition of Ownership of Real Estate.
Para 77) The Government acknowledges that gender-based violence continues to occur, especially against women, however the Government continues to endeavour to reduce gender-based violence in Timor-Leste.
Para 78) The Government has launched a National Action Plan on Gender Based Violence 2017-2021 as a State commitment to resolve problems to reduce and eradicate gender-based violence that affects women, men and children in the community through coordination and the inclusive participation of all entities.
Para 79) The State has a policy of continuing to promote and protect women and girls so they can enjoy their rights and continues to reduce discrimination in public and private institutions including human trafficking, sexual exploitation, early marriage and forced marriage practices and provides equal opportunities to women to be leaders at the political level.
Para 80) The Government works with non-government organizations and has established safe and protected places for victims and survivors, offering temporary accommodation, including attending to victims and survivors of sexual abuse, domestic violence, the sexual abuse of children, or trafficking. Now there are safe rooms at the national hospital, referral hospitals and health centres in four municipalities and safe room services are provided by PRADET.
Para 81) Also shelters have been established, as part of a collaboration between the Government and civil society organisations. In 2018, there were safe shelters in all of the 13 municipalities that also guarantee the safety of victims of gender-based violence and shelters also provide training on livelihood skills with the aim of reintegrating victims into the community who have the capacity to make a living.
Para 82) To prevent sexual harassment from occurring in the workplace, the Public Service Commission has created a mechanism for reporting sexual harassment, and the Rosa CHATBOT facilitates reporting of gender-based violence in specific cases relating to sexual harassment that is committed by Public Servants in the workplace or in a public place. The Rosa CHATBOT protects the identity of those who make a complaint.

UN Compilation:
Para 9) The Committee against Torture commended Timor-Leste for its initiatives to amend its policies and procedures in order to afford greater protection of human rights and to apply the Convention against Torture, in particular the adoption of the second National Action Plan on Gender-based Violence (2017–2021);
Para 27) The Special Rapporteur noted that, in terms of access to justice and compliance with human rights standards, there were shortcomings in both the formal justice system and the customary justice system. In the customary justice system, hearings were commonly conducted in public, which was clearly unsuitable for crimes relating to emotionally vulnerable victims of domestic violence and child abuse. Some customary justice practices might entail physical punishments, in contravention of international human rights law.
Para 48) The United Nations country team stated that despite advances to protect and promote women’s rights, the integration of women’s human rights into legislation still lacked a systematic and comprehensive approach, rendering many laws gender-blind or noncompliant with international gender commitments. Women were often reluctant to claim their rights, and in cases in which they did, customary norms could guide the process. For example, customary norms in accessing and inheriting land were deeply gendered and did not reflect women’s rights under the new Land Law (2017).
Para 49) The United Nations country team also noted that gender-based violence was recognized as one of the most pervasive and widespread human rights concerns in Timor-Leste, with three in five (59 per cent) ever-partnered women (aged 15–49 years) having experienced physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence in their lifetime. Of these, 86 per cent had not sought assistance from formal agencies, services or other authorities. Women and girls with disabilities, as well as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and intersex persons, were at an even higher risk of violence, often perpetrated by family members.
Para 50) The Committee against Torture expressed concern about the reluctance of TimorLeste to criminalize marital rape and incest as distinct crimes, and expressed regret at the lack of information provided on the number of complaints, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and sentences imposed in cases of gender-based violence against women.

Stakeholder Summary:
Para 10) PDHJ noted that women’s inheritance rights and rights to property and land upon divorce remained an issue, due to the patrilineal systems that dominated in traditional law that ensured in most parts of the country only men inherited/possessed the land and property of the family or couple. Lack of marriage registration in public register also contributed to the perpetuation of the patriarchal system.
Para 11) PDHJ highlighted that the formal judicial process did not provide for an accessible, fast and coherent result that ensured victims of domestic violence safety and livelihood. This caused those victims to turn to traditional justice mechanisms and remedies that might not integrate a human rights perspective.
Para 64) JAI stated that restrictive gender roles, de facto discrimination, and violence against women were still serious problems in Timor-Leste. It also noted that Timor-Leste had responded to recent criticisms of de facto discrimination against women by affirming its ongoing commitment to ending gender discrimination, promulgating laws to require female representation at the local government level, and approving a new National Action Plan on Gender-based Violence aimed at preventing violence and increasing women’s access to support services and the justice system.
Para 65) AI noted that reports of gender based violence remained high in Timor-Leste, with the last reliable data source being a baseline survey (2015) showing that 59 per cent of women experienced some physical or sexual violence. Accessing justice through the courts system, judicial officers providing lenient sentences and a lack of suitable remedies were cited as ongoing and systemic challenges.