Chega! Exhibition (Balide Comarca)

The Chega! Exhibition occupies the Balide Comarca, the colonial-era prison that Indonesian forces used as a detention and torture site during the occupation. The name means "Enough!" in Portuguese — the title of the truth commission report that documented atrocities between 1974 and 1999.

The exhibition is hard going. You walk through the actual cells, read testimony from survivors, and see the methods used in clinical detail. There is nothing sensationalised; the power is in the restraint. The site sits about 1.5 km south of the cathedral, in the Balide neighbourhood, and entry is free.

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A story
The Portuguese-built prison was used by Indonesia's secret police throughout the occupation. After independence, survivors insisted that the cells, the courtyard, and the interrogation rooms be preserved exactly as they had been, with the original graffiti scratched into the walls.

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