Since 1999 East Timor has been an independent country in south East Asia, but for centuries it was a Dutch colony and when it gained its independence from The Netherlands in 1975, within days it was invaded by neighbouring Indonesia and re-colonised. There then ensued a 24 year struggle and the estimated deaths of around 102,000 of the island’s population due to conflict, neglect or starvation to regain their independence. In 1996 The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded jointly to Carlos Felipe Ximenes Belo and Jose Ramos-Horta “for their work towards a just and peaceful solution to the conflict”. There was also an international campaign by Amnesty International and other humanitarian organisations to raise awareness of the plight of the East Timorese people. Norwegian singer Morten Harket, who is a UNICEF ambassador composed and recorded this song as part of the campaign, which he sang at the Nobel award ceremony in 1996, accompanied by East Timorese musicians and dancers.