Timor-Leste as ASEAN member-state

It is now the ASEAN 11, not just 10 member-nations. They started as five founding members only on August 8, 1967, with the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand meeting and proclaiming the Bangkok Declaration. Then Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, and Brunei joined later. And now comes Timor-Leste.

I just arrived from Timor-Leste as a part of my ASEAN lecture tour on Comparative ASEAN Labor Laws, and I must say we Filipinos need to learn more about our newest fellow ASEAN member-nation. Timor must also learn more about the 10 other members and assimilate immediately.

As we are going to host the ASEAN annual conference this year, we should welcome citizens of Timor as brothers and sisters in ASEAN.

October 26, 2025 is a landmark date. It was the day when all 10 ASEAN members accepted Timor-Leste as a full member-state of the Association of Southeast Nations during the 4th ASEAN Summit held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Immediately after gaining independence from Indonesia in 2002, Timor-Leste was granted observer status by ASEAN. By the year 2007, all the political parties in that young country united themselves in a strategic decision to seek ASEAN membership. In 2011, Timor-Leste filed its formal application for membership. In 2022, the ASEAN approved in principle its application, subject to complete compliance with all requirements.

The ASEAN Charter requires the following as conditions for membership: first, it must be geographically located in Southeast Asia; second, it should enjoy individual recognition by all the ASEAN member states; third, the applicant state should agree to all the provisions of the ASEAN Charter; fourth, the applicant state must be able and willing to carry out all the obligations of the member states, such maintaining embassies in all member states, attending all ministerial meetings and summits, as well as acceding to all the treaties and declarations of ASEAN.

Timor-Leste's entry to ASEAN is bound to benefit its citizens as they can now have access to the markets of 10 countries for both its products and services. This entry shall make this small and relatively poor country a component of a very strong and rich association. ASEAN has a combined population of no less than 600 million people and a combined land area of 4.5 million square kilometers or 1.7 million square miles. ASEAN has a combined purchasing power parity of GDP of $10.2 trillion.

By entering into ASEAN, Timor can benefit from the association's multiple linkages with the UN, APEC, and RCEP, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Pacific Alliance, the Cooperation Council for the Arab Gulf States or the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Mercosur or the Southern Common Market, the CELAC or the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, and the ECO or Economic Cooperation Organization.

Timor-Leste, as a very small and quite underdeveloped and poor country, needs many friends among its neighboring nations and economies. Its land area is only 14,950 square kilometers or 5,770 square miles. Its area is smaller than the combined areas of Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur and Zamboanga Sibugay. The combined areas of the five Davaos (de Oro, del Norte, del Sur, Occidental, and Oriental) is more than 20,000 square kilometers, thus, much bigger than Timor-Leste.

Timor's population is only 1,354,662, which is larger than Brunei's 462,721 but smaller than Singapore's 6,111,200. Timor's nominal GDP is only $2.120 billion s and its nominal per capita is $1,490. More than 40% of its population is living below the poverty line. Malnutrition is common with more than one-half of its population suffering from stunted growth. The country does not produce enough food to sustain its citizens and relies on exported goods.

An estimated 99.53% of its population is Catholic. Its government is a unitary, semi-presidential republic. Its official languages are Portuguese and Tetum. Its president is Jose Ramos-Horta and its prime minister is Xanana Gusmao. Its capital and largest city is Dili, Timor-Leste has no province but only 14 municipalities. Its entry into ASEAN is expected to help the Timorese and give impetus to its struggle for socio-economic development.

The Philippines, as the only fellow Catholic country in ASEAN, is supportive of Timor-Leste's thrust for progress and development. We should visit this country and join a small Filipino community there. More than 95% percent of its people are Catholics and we have a lot in common with the Timorese people.