The American University of Phnom Penh (AUPP) proudly announces the conferral of Doctor Honoris Causa to His Excellency Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao, the first elected president of the Democratic Republic of Timor Leste and former leader of its independence movement.
The conferral was made on May 6, 2023, on the occasion of AUPP’s graduation ceremony students.
The independence of Timor Leste is one of the most significant international events of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. It was the conclusion of a 25-year struggle to remove foreign occupation from their land. Due to his leadership position in the freedom movement for Timor Leste, H.E. Xanana Gusmao was arrested, spending seven years in Indonesian prisons.
However, despite his imprisonment, Gusmao pursued a path toward reconciliation with Indonesia and a peaceful resolution for the internationally mediated conflict. After independence, he became the first elected president of Timor Leste, serving between 2002 and 2007, and later as prime minister, between 2007 and 2015.
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