Editing History of Timor-Leste (section)

===Role of the Catholic Church===
[[Image:carlosbelo.jpg|upright|thumb|150px|[[Bishop Carlos Belo]], winner of the 1996 [[Nobel Peace Prize]].]]

The [[Roman Catholicism in Timor-Leste|Catholic Church in East Timor]] played an important role in society throughout the Indonesian occupation. While just 20% of East Timorese called themselves Catholics in 1975, the figure surged to reach 95% by the end of the first decade after the invasion. During the occupation, [[Bishop]] [[Carlos Ximenes Belo]] became one of the most prominent advocates for [[human rights]] in East Timor and many priests and nuns risked their lives in defending citizens from military abuses. [[Pope]] [[John Paul II]]'s 1989 visit to East Timor exposed the occupied territory's situation to world media and provided a catalyst for independence activists to seek global support. Officially neutral, the [[Holy See|Vatican]] wished to retain good relations with Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim nation. Upon his arrival in East Timor, the Pope symbolically kissed a cross then pressed it to the ground, alluding to his usual practice of kissing the ground on arrival in a nation, and yet avoiding overtly suggesting East Timor was a sovereign country. He spoke fervently against abuses in his sermon, whilst avoiding naming the Indonesian authorities as responsible.<ref name="news.bbc.co.uk">{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4410917.stm | work=BBC News | first=Jonathan | last=Head | title=East Timor mourns 'catalyst' Pope | date=5 April 2005 | access-date=4 May 2011 | archive-date=19 June 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619191639/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4410917.stm | url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1996, Bishop [[Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo]] and José Ramos-Horta, two leading East Timorese activists for peace and independence, received the [[Nobel Peace Prize]] for "their work towards a just and peaceful solution to the conflict in East Timor".<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Nobel Peace Prize 1996 |url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1996/summary/ |website=The Nobel Prize |access-date=3 May 2020 |archive-date=12 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190512051803/https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1996/summary/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

A number of priests and nuns were murdered in the violence in East Timor that followed the 1999 Independence referendum. The newly independent nation declared three days of national mourning upon the death of Pope John Paul II in 2005.<ref name="news.bbc.co.uk"/>