Luro, officially Luro Administrative Post (, ), is an
administrative post (and was formerly a subdistrict) in
Lautém municipality
Lautém (, ) is one of the municipalities (formerly districts) of East Timor, at the eastern end of the country. It has a population of 64,135 (census 2010) and an area of 1,813 km2. Its capital is Lospalos, which lies 248 km eas ...
,
Timor-Leste
Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...
;
Luro is also the name of two of its towns (Upper and Lower Luro).
The main river of the administrative post is the Adafuro, running between Wairoque and Cotamutu and through Afabubu. Principal crops grown in the subdistrict include corn, rice, coconuts, cassava and other vegetables.
History
In June 2001 there were severe floods in East Timor, which affected the Luro area. At the end of August 2011, four people died in a clash between two martial arts groups in Baricafa. As a result, Prime Minister
Xanana Gusmão
José Alexandre "Xanana" Gusmão (; born 20 June 1946) is an East Timorese politician. He has served as the 6th prime minister of East Timor since 2023, previously serving in that position from 2007 to 2015. A former rebel, he also served as E ...
ordered the closure of the martial arts clubs.
Geography
Luro is situated in eastern East Timor in
Lautém Municipality
Lautém (, ) is one of the municipalities (formerly districts) of East Timor, at the eastern end of the country. It has a population of 64,135 (census 2010) and an area of 1,813 km2. Its capital is Lospalos, which lies 248 km eas ...
. The district covers an area of and as of 2015 it had a population of 7,124 people.
Luro lies in a valley surrounded by hills and smaller mountains. Legumau (Legumaw, Apara) in the Suco of Lacawa is the highest point in the area at (other sources also state 1221 m and 1297 m).
Rivers include the Adafuro, which flows between Wairoque and Cotamutu and through Afabubu, the Bocilliu, which flows through the western part of Afabubu, the Roumoco near the eastern border of Luro, and the Letana in the southern part of Baricata.
Sucos
The area is divided administratively into the following ''sucos''. Population as of 2015 is given:
* Barikafa (Barikafa) (1013)
* Kotamutu (Kotamuto, Kotamuto) (1983)
* Luro (2233)
* Afabubu (Afabubo) (439)
* Lacawa (Lakawa) (645)
* Wairoque (Wairoke, Wairoce, Vairoque) (811)
Economy
The administrative post has around 1000 hectares of arable land where rice and corn are grown. 60% of households in Luro grow corn, 54% rice, 51% coconuts, 51% cassava, 44% vegetables and 6% coffee, though many people are dependent on the yields of their gardens. Livestock include water buffalos, cattle, sheep, goats, pigs and especially chickens. In Upper-Luro there are a large number of ducks.
Politics
The administrator of the Administrative Post is appointed by the central government in
Dili
Dili (Portuguese language, Portuguese and Tetum language, Tetum: ''Díli'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Timor-Leste. It lies on the northern coast of the island of Timor, in a small area of flat land hemmed in by mountai ...
. The politician
Jacob Xavier was administrator for Luros for four years in the 1960s. The last administrator appointed by the Portuguese was
Jaime Camacho Amaral who served from 1974 to 1975. In 2015 Cecílio Soares the administrator of Luros.
References
External links
* – information page on
Ministry of State Administration site
{{Authority control
Administrative posts of Timor-Leste
Lautém Municipality