IOM this week launched Historia ba Dame (History for Peace) - a
five-part radio documentary broadcast on national and local radio
documenting the country's 2006 civil unrest and its aftermath.

Historia relates the experiences of a broad range of Timorese,
including internally displaced persons (IDPs), returnees, members
of host communities, civil servants participating in the
humanitarian response and international humanitarian actors.

The series, which is part of IOM's continuing efforts to
maximize the sustainability of the return and reintegration process
of displaced Timorese, addresses a wide variety of issues resulting
from the crisis, including internal displacement, return,
reintegration and humanitarian assistance.

"The different stories presented in Historia will allow people
who might otherwise only see the conflict and its effects from
their point of view to begin to understand the profoundly different
effects it has had on other communities," says IOM Chief of Mission
Luiz Vieira.

"We hope that the broad range of perspectives presented in the
programme will allow even very different communities to empathize
with each other, thereby contributing to the process of dialogue
and reconciliation that is underway around the country," he
adds.

Historia, which was made in close cooperation with the European
Commission's Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO), will air over a
five-week period.

The civil unrest that began in April 2006 led to the internal
displacement of approximately 150,000 people, most of whom have now
returned to their homes. IOM is now working with returnees and host
communities to ensure that their reintegration is sustainable.

For more information, please contact:

Brad Mellicker

IOM Dili

Tel. +670.735.1998

E-mail: "mailto:bmellicker@iom.int">bmellicker@iom.int