In 1999, Nairn was detained briefly by the Indonesian Army in East Timor, where he had chosen to remain after most other media had evacuated following East Timor's independence referendum.
Pada tahun 1999, Nairn ditahan sebentar oleh tentara Indonesia di Timor Timur, di mana ia telah memilih untuk menetap setelah sebagian media lain sudah dievakuasi menyusul referendum kemerdekaan Timor Timur.