Cemetery of Santa Cruz
Cemetery of Santa Cruz
4
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7 within 6 miles
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
Popular mentions
4.0
134 reviews
Excellent
62
Very good
42
Average
27
Poor
2
Terrible
1
Alex H
Port St. Mary, UK2,591 contributions
Jul 2023 • Friends
A very eerie place to visit and one of absolute significance in Timor Leste regarding the struggle for independence. Visiting here was unnerving given what happened in 1991, but some of the gravestones in the Cemetary are really beautiful in their own way. While there is no real path around, you can meander your way through, but of course try to be as respectful as you can. Recommend coming here AFTER visiting the resistance museum but it’s not essential. All in all, a must see on your Dili itinerary.
Written July 9, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
paul g
Brisbane, Australia808 contributions
Feb 2017 • Friends
This cemetery really tells a story as the tombs of various cultures are there, the tombs of people of various wealth are there and most poignantly the graves of variously aged people are there, many very very young children. It was fascinating to walk through here and reflect and while we were there a few local family groups came to pay their respects in different ways and also to take part in religious traditions.
Written April 22, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lyndall K
14 contributions
Apr 2017 • Friends
Its very moving to visit the cemetery, particularly with our JDN tour guide, Alberto, as he could tell as the story of the cemetery. It is the site of a big massacre that happened during Indonesian Occupation.
Highly recommend the microlet tour
Highly recommend the microlet tour
Written April 26, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Col A
Brisbane Region, Australia489 contributions
Aug 2018 • Friends
Until the filming of the horrific massacre that occurred to the Timorese here was smuggled out, the rest of the world was unaware of the genocide and horror being enacted on the timorese by the Indonesian occupation.
Written July 10, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dave P
Darwin, Australia77 contributions
Aug 2018
We visited this place with a history tour guide- a young woman from JDN - a youth organisation.
Santa Cruz cemetery has much history, but most famous is the massacre of 200 student attending the memorial service for student protester Sebastian Gomes in November 1991. The event brought worldwide attention to the violent occupation of the Indonesian army in East Timor.
Santa Cruz cemetery has much history, but most famous is the massacre of 200 student attending the memorial service for student protester Sebastian Gomes in November 1991. The event brought worldwide attention to the violent occupation of the Indonesian army in East Timor.
Written August 28, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
MikeStan65
Logan City, Australia32 contributions
Aug 2018 • Friends
Interesting Cemetery, this was the place where the massacre, teens and people were buried.
It was an interesting place to visit if not confornting.
It was an interesting place to visit if not confornting.
Written August 24, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Glenda27
Bathurst, Australia38 contributions
Mar 2017 • Solo
A moving experience where hundreds of East Timorese were executed by the Indonesians whilst they were part of a funeral procession. Visit the grave of the young man whose funeral was being celebrated.
Written March 16, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
PORhibido
Krungthep Mahanakorn817 contributions
Sep 2013 • Family
On 12 November 1991, now commemorated as a public holiday in Timor-Leste, Indonesian troops slaughtered 250+ Timorese protestors plus one New Zealand student in cold blood. Although Indonesia described the incident as a misunderstanding, the massacre was videotaped and the footage was smuggled to and televised in Australia, whose government had for years supported Indonesian integrasi. Suddenly political elites in Canberra could no longer ignore the plight and calls for self-determination of their next-door neighbours. Even in Jakarta, pro-democracy groups began to openly discuss not just the Timor issue but also Suharto’s New Order as a whole.
Despite its powerful history, this colourful cemetery is nondescript without official guides available. Many young Timorese cannot recall the exact details of the event; if you choose to walk the grounds by yourself, you’re unlikely to learn much. In that case, you should visit the Xanana Gusmão Reading Room to watch films about one of Timor’s darkest days.
Despite its powerful history, this colourful cemetery is nondescript without official guides available. Many young Timorese cannot recall the exact details of the event; if you choose to walk the grounds by yourself, you’re unlikely to learn much. In that case, you should visit the Xanana Gusmão Reading Room to watch films about one of Timor’s darkest days.
Written October 3, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BannedDE
San Francisco, California6,030 contributions
Jun 2023
You'd never know the historical signifigance of the place unless you read about it in advance. One sign near the entrance that is fallen over mentions the massacre but you have to search it out. Its also in Portugues only. The only other indicator is the recent grave of Max Stahl, the hero who risked his life to film the massacre.
His grave marker is new so not rundown, but the lack of cleaning and upkeep elsewhere is disgraceful.
His grave marker is new so not rundown, but the lack of cleaning and upkeep elsewhere is disgraceful.
Written June 11, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
CKF
CT2,158 contributions
Feb 2020
Any tour of Dili will lead you to Santa Cruz Cemetery, where a horrible massacre of 250 young people occurred in 1991. The stone designs are quite colorful, with a variety of shapes and sizes, very different from the typical American cemetery. A must see during your visit to Dili.
Written March 2, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
I was wondering if there was just a tour for the Santa Cruz Cemetery? Thanks.
Written September 8, 2018
JDN YOUTH development . This amazing youth organisation run 3 hour history tours of 6-8 significant history sites in Dili. $22. Well worth it . Google jdntimorleste
Written September 9, 2018
lo conozco, no es interesante por que es lindo como el cementerio de arlington en washington o el de la recoleta en buenos aires, lo importante es la historia tragica y sangrienta que vivio!
es parte de la historia de pelear contra Suharto que los ensangrento todo lo que pudo y los diezmo, y este cementerio es parte de ese momento en el cual, llevando cadaveres a enterrar, los militares de suharto mataron en el mismo cementerio a muchos de los que homenajeaban a los muertos el dia anterior
Written June 5, 2016
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