Media Release: Timor-Leste Parliament pushes for anti-corruption watchdog

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN

Media Release
October 1, 2008

Timor-Leste Parliament pushes for anti-corruption watchdog

An alarming increase in government corruption in Timor-Leste has prompted a cross-party push to establish a parliamentary watchdog to fight graft in public administration.

The biggest party in Timor-Leste’s parliament, FRETILIN, announced today it would join with other parties and even some government MPs to support the setting up of a parliamentary commission to tackle corruption.

Parliament debated the issue of worsening government corruption yesterday, following the release of Transparency International's 2008 international Perceived Corruption Index report (see http://www.transparency.org/policy_research/surveys_indices/cpi/2008 )

The index showed Timor-Leste under the leadership of Xanana Gusmao’s ‘Parliamentary Majority Alliance’ (AMP) government registered the most significant deterioration of any country.

Timor-Leste's position fell 22 places from 123rd to 145th – behind Kazakhstan and one place ahead of Bangladesh – for the period August 2007 to August 2008. This was the nation’s second successive year of decline in the index, following a drop from 112th to 123rd place in the corresponding period for 2006-2007 when Dr. Jose Ramos-Horta was Prime Minister.

FRETILIN’s parliamentary leader Aniceto Guterres said today Transparency International's survey followed a steady flow of reports of corruption and maladministration by the AMP government and had ‘caused a raging national debate’ on Timor-Leste's worsening status.

Guterres said representatives of most political parties, many foreign missions and all multilateral partners publicly or privately had expressed concern over worsening corruption.

'Even those who remained quiet and complicit in regard to the stream of allegations are now taking the situation seriously, especially the multilateral agencies and foreign missions. They have finally grasped what FRETILIN, civil society and our media have been warning about,' Guterres said.

He said specific scandals included:

• The Deputy Prime Minister employing his wife (a non-diplomat) at Timor- Leste's New York mission at a salary three times that of a diplomat.

• Prime Minister Gusmao authorising a single source contract worth US$14.4 million for the supply of rice. The contract went to the Tres Amigos ("Three Friends") company headed by Gusmao's friend and fellow party member Germano da Silva.

• The Gusmão administration's awarding of a dubious single source contract for the purchase of patrol boats from a Chinese company closely associated with Gusmao's political ally Abilio Araujo.

• Secretly negotiated and non-transparent agreements between the Gusmão government and foreign companies to give away 100,000 hectares – one quarter of Timor-Leste’s arable land – for bio-fuels crops.

• The Gusmão administration's proposed purchase of 4 Wheel Drive luxury vehicles as a political pay off for MPs.

• Persistent allegations made in the media and from civil society regarding contractors being awarded contracts by ministries where the spouses of the ministers in the very same ministries have an interest in the company supplying the goods and services to that ministry.

Aniceto Guterres pointed to complaints in parliament this week from Mario Carrascalão, the President of the Social Democratic Party, an ally of Gusmão’s AMP, that he was ‘sick of hearing from ambassadors and foreign businessmen about corruption in this government’, and that he was ‘tired of feeling embarrassed every day because of the corruption in this government’.

Guterres said Mr. Carrascalão, representatives of the PUN party and some MPs from Gusmão’s own alliance had also called for a parliamentary commission to inquire into allegations of corruption against the government.

For information contact: José Teixeira MP on +670 728 7080
Nilva Guimarães (media officer) on +670 734 0389

Media Release: Government unable to champion onshore LNG plant from Greater Sunrise – Mari Alkatiri

FRENTE REVOLUCIONARIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

Media Release

September 23, 2008

Government unable to champion onshore LNG plant from Greater Sunrise – Mari Alkatiri

The de facto AMP government lead by Xanana Gusmão is showing itself to be totally incapable to provide the legal, technical and economic arguments that can convince the Greater Sunrise joint venture partners that a pipeline to Timor-Leste and an onshore LNG processing plant is the best and most viable option for the field's development, said the former Timorese Prime Minister Dr Alkatiri today.

Dr Alkatiri negotiated both the Timor Sea treaty and the Certain Maritime Arrangements in the Timor Sea (CMATS) Treaty. He was speaking from Dili today after having met with his parliamentary colleagues to discuss recent developments and media reports that the Greater Sunrise joint venture had decided on Darwin as the location for the LNG plant to process the gas from Greater Sunrise.

"I think that the media reports of a site location decision by the Sunrise joint venture are premature. From recent discussions with Woodside's top executives in charge of the project during a recent visit to Dili, I don't believe the investment decision has been made yet. So the media reports are misleading and mischievous. As far as I can gauge, it is just a lot of noise," Dr Alkatiri said.

"But they are uncomfortable about other noise coming from the Timor-Leste side that may lead them to question whether or not this Timor-Leste government knows the ground rules for the legal and technical process which will guide the discussions on which will be the best and most viable option for developing the Greater Sunrise field. I am worried by statements from people like the de facto Prime Minister and his Secretary of State for Natural Resources that it is a matter for the two governments to discuss. This is just wrong," stressed Dr Alkatiri.

In recent media reports following Mr Gusmão's visit to Australia, where this issue was discussed between Mr Gusmão and Australian Prime Minister Rudd, Mr Gusmão is quoted as having said: "This is an issue for negotiation between the two governments", meaning the governments of Timor-Leste and Australia.

"This is wrong because the Treaty documents set out the criteria, the process and the mechanism for joint decision making. The developers of Greater Sunrise will present a proposal to the Sunrise Treaty Commission which will decide whether or not the development plan meets the technical and economic criteria set out by the treaty. Its not for the two government's to negotiated as this de facto government thinks," added Dr Alkatiri.

"Then you add the suspicion arising from the government's signing of hitherto secret agreements with international oil companies who have no legal stake in the Greater Sunrise field. According to the explanation given by the Secretary of State during recent parliamentary hearings, this secret agreement purports to give them rights to market the gas from the field which they do not have, but in fact rests with the downstream contractors. I think we have a very volatile mix that will place in jeopardy Timor-Leste's chances of getting a pipeline and LNG plant on our shores. This is a goal we all share and we support any government that tries to achieve that. But we have an obligation to speak out when we see actions that could jeopardize our chances," Dr Alkatiri stressed.

Dr Alkatiri repeated his offer that FRETILIN have always been ready, willing and able to contribute with their extensive experience in negotiating these resource-related matters, through an appropriate inclusive and consultative body established for this specific purpose.

"That is how we were able to negotiate the outcomes we did during our government against the odds. We included everyone, civil society, opposition in parliament, the president, everyone," he said in closing.

Komunikadu Imprensa - GOVERNU LA KONSEGUE ARGUMENTA ATU LORI KANU GAZ NIAN HOSI GREATER SUNRISE MAI TIMOR-LESTE – Mari Alkatiri

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

KOMUNIKADU IMPRENSA
23 Setembru 2008

GOVERNU LA KONSEGUE ARGUMENTA ATU LORI KANU GAZ NIAN HOSI GREATER SUNRISE MAI TIMOR-LESTE – Mari Alkatiri

Governu defaktu AMP nian ne'ebé lidera hosi Xanana Gusmão hatudu ona katak sira la iha liu kapasidade atu ható argumentu legal, tékniku no ekonómiku ne'ebé bele konvense parseirus esplorasaun Greater Sunrise nian atu dada kanu no hari estasaun prosesamentu gaz nian iha Timor-Leste nia rai laran, maske opsaun ida ne'e mak diak liu ba dezenvolve kampu ne'e, Eis-Primeiru-Ministru Mari Alkatiri dehan ohin.

Dr Alkatiri mak halao negosiasaun ba Tratadu Tasi Timor nian no Tratadu kona ba akordu balu ne'ebé halo ba Tasi Timor nian (CMATS). Nia koalia kona ba Greater Sunrise iha Dili hafoin hetan malu ho deputadus FRETILIN nian hodi diskuti akontesimentus ikus liu kona ba kampu ne'e tamba rona foin dadauk ne'e hosi media katak parseirus sira seluk hakarak halo prosesamentu gaz hosi Greater Sunrise iha Darwin.

"Hau hanoin katak media halo espekulasaun notísia barak liu no kolian la los kona ba kompañia sira foti desizaun fatin prosesamentu gáz hosi Greater Sunrise ba Australia. Foin lalais ne'e hau hetan malu iha Dili ho ezekutivu Woodside nian, ema ne'ebé kaer projetu ne'e. Sira hatete mai hau no hau fiar katak sira seidauk hola desizaun kona ba investimentu ida ne'e. 

Notisia hosi media halo ema hanoin sala no ida ne'e ladiak. Hau hanoin katak media sira halo deit estrondu bo'ot, " Alkatiri hatete.

"Maibé sira nia laran la metin hela tamba bele iha mo'os estrondu seluk mosu sai iha Timor-Leste. Balu bele litik Governu Timor-Leste, sé hatene duni ka lae, oinsá atu diskute kona ba aspetu legal no tékniku atu haré opsaun ida ne'ebé mak diak liu ba dezenvolve Greater Sunrise. 

Hau preokupa bainhira rona deklarasaun hosi ema balu, hanesan Primeiru-Ministru defaktu no ninia Sekretáriu de Estadu Rekursus Naturais nian katak governu rua mak tenke diskuti kona ba fatin prosesamentu gáz nian. Ne'e kolian sala ona," Dr. Alkatiru haforsa.

Hafoin Sr Gusmão halao visita ba Austrália no diskute asuntu ne'e ho Sr. Rudd, Primeiru-Ministru Austrália nian, media tatoli katak Sr Gusmão hatete: " Ida ne'e assuntu ida ba governu rua atu halo negosiasaun ", governu Timor-Leste no Austrália nian.

"Ida ne'e sala tamba Tratadu ne'ebé ita asina iha dokumentus ne'ebé defini kritérius, iha prosesu no mekanismu ba ita halo desizaun hamutuk. Partes ne'ebé atu dezenvolve Greater Sunrise tenki aprezenta proposta ida ba Komisaun Tratadu Greater Sunrise nian no komisaun ne'e mak sei haré sé planu dezenvolvimentu tuir ka la tuir Tratadu ninia kritérius legais, téknikus no ekonómikus. Ida ne'e la'os asuntu ba Governu rua atu halo negosiasaun hanesan Governu de faktu hatete", Dr. Alkatiri hatutan.

" Iha mo'os suspeita kona ba akordu sekretu ne'ebé governu halo ho kompañia internasional minarai nian, kompañia ne'ebé la iha kbi'it legal ba halo parte explorasaun kampu Greater Sunrise nian. Tuir explikasaun ne'ebé Sekretáriu Estadu ható foin lalais ne'e ba Parlamentu Nasional, akordu sekretu ne'e sei fó direitus ba kompañia sira ne'e atu halo kampanha atu fa'an gáz hosi kampu ne'e, maibe direitus ne'e sira la iha. Kontratores sira liu husi Woodside mak iha. Hau hanoin sira kahur arbiru deit ona no ida nee sei haklot dalan ba Timor-Leste atu hetan oportunidade ba dada kadoras gáz nian no hari fatin prosesamentu gás nian iha ita nia rai laran.

"Ita hotu iha objetivu ida deit no ami fó apoiu ba governu ida ne'ebé deit, ne'ebé tenta hetan objetivu ne'e. Maibé ami iha obrigasaun atu koalia hasoru bainhira ami haré katak sira nia hahalok bele haklot dalan ba ita hetan objetivu ida ne'e", Dr Alkatiri hatete.

Dr. Alkatiri oferese dala ida ta'an katak FRETILIN prontu hanesan bai'bain kedas, hakarak no iha kapasidade ba kontribui ho esperiénsia barak ne'ebé iha atu halo negosiasaun diak kona ba asuntu rekursus nian, maibé, kontribuisaun ne'e tenke liu hosi organismu inkluzivu konsultoria nian ne'ebé sei hari ba asuntu espesífiku ida ne'e deit.

" Hanesan ne'e mak ami konsegue hetan buat ne'ebé ami nia governu hetan horiuluk maske dalan klot tebes. Ami inklui ema hotu, sosiedade sivil, opozisaun iha Parlamentu, Prezidenti, ema hotu-hotu", nia remata ho ida ne'e.

Se presiza Informasaun tan Kontaktu: José Teixeira +670 728 7080
Nilva Guimarães +670 734 0389

MEDIA RELEASE: FRETILIN, opposition parties and some AMP MPs join forces to increase budget allocation for poverty stricken veterans

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

Media Release

August 18, 2008

FRETILIN, opposition parties and some AMP MPs join forces to increase budget allocation for poverty stricken veterans

FRETILIN, KOTA-PPT, PUN, ASDT and other AMP MPs joined forces to amend the budget presented by the Gusmao de facto Government, to immediately start paying the liberation war veterans’ pensions, at a cost of US$20 million. “Our proposal succeeded despite strong opposition by de facto Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao and Finance Minister Emilia Pires to the very end,” said Josefa Soares Pereira, FRETILIN Parliamentary Party Secretary and MP.

Soares and FRETILIN MP Osorio Florindo put forward the proposal during the budget debate which ended on 31 July 2008, in the Timor-Leste National Parliament, because the government could not explain why veterans were going to be made to wait a further six months or more for payment of their much needed pensions.

“It seemed to us unjust and unnecessary for the government to continue to deny these impoverished veterans their pensions, when they have been quite prepared to make a priority of special payments to deserters from the defence force. These veterans in contrast sacrificed themselves and their families so that we can have the freedom and sovereign nation we have today,” she said.

In 2006 the FRETILIN dominated parliament passed a law establishing the criteria and mechanism to determine payment of pensions to veterans and their families, but the collection and verification of data as to who is a veteran was the task of three commissions established since 2002 under the auspices of then president Xanana Gusmao. The then President continued to insist that there was insufficient verification for the database compiled by the commissions to be used as the basis for commencing payment of pensions to veterans.

“It was a source of frustration for us who have tried to promote the cause of the veterans, that there was this constant proposition coming from the then president, now de facto Prime Minister, that the database was not ready. Yet in late 2006 and in the first half of 2007, before the parliamentary elections it was good enough to use the database to award around 17,000 medals of honor to veterans and their survivors. This issue was politicized by political figures in the campaign, including Mr Gusmao, and FRETILIN was painted as neglectful and mean for not paying the veterans,” added Soares.

“But when it comes to an outrageously high spending budget on largesse such as luxury cars for MPs, overseas travel for Ministers and others in government, rehabilitation of homes for ministers and others, they forget about the veterans and keep saying the database needs to be fixed. We don’t accept that anymore and are happy that the majority of the parliament agreed with us. Now it is a matter for the government to cut out the fat it has for travel, entertainment and other luxuries to make sure the veterans are paid,” Soares stressed.

To date only 238 or so veterans have received any payments whatsoever, with a tens of thousands still awaiting any payment, whilst living in extreme poverty. The FRETILIN government’s attempts to pay the veterans in the time prior to the elections in 2007 were also met with a dead end response from the veterans commission, which was under the control of Mr Gusmao.

“We do not want any more excuses from Mr Gusmao and Mr Virgilio Simith, the Secretary of State who is the chair of the veterans commissions. They have had five years to come up with the numbers for the veterans. They have done a poor job and we need to have an investigation into the numerous complaints that have been made by both veterans and development partners who gave millions of dollars towards the process. Mr Gusmao and Mr Simith have to be held responsible.

“We insist on this, but most of all, it’s the Veterans, including MPs who are veterans and supported our proposal for amendment, who spoke out in these terms. It’s time to act. The government must act or be held further responsible for the neglect of the veterans, for which Mr Gusmao and his appointees must carry their share of the responsibility,” Soares said in closing.

The budget which was rammed through by the AMP de facto government is currently the subject of a constitutional appeal by FRETILIN, and is awaiting promulgation by President Jose Ramos-Horta who has held back from proclaiming it subject to the court’s decision. FRETILIN MPs believe that one of the few areas warranting a revision was in the case of the additional US$20 million, which can be accommodated in the revised budget, by cutting extravagant and wasteful items, and without any need to withdraw in excess of the sustainable income set by the Petroleum Fund Law rules.

For more info, contact Jose Teixeira: +61 438 114 960 (Australia), +670 728 7080 (Dili, Timor-Leste)

FRETILIN requests President Ramos-Horta to initiate investigation

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

Media Release

10 August 2008

FRETILIN requests President Ramos-Horta to initiate investigation into unintended publication of rectifying budget

The President of Timor-Leste’s largest and historic party FRETILIN, Francisco Guterres “Lu Olo”, today called upon President Dr José Ramos-Horta to order an investigation into why the Revised Budget Law (also known as the rectifying budget) was sent by his office to the parliament, and then subsequently published in the official gazette, thereby bringing it into law, against the President’s declared intentions.

A Public Communiqué issued from the President's Office on the 6th of August 2008, when the President was already overseas stated, that prior to his departure the President delivered a speech to the nation, in which he informed the nation that he would await the decision of the Court of Appeal regarding a request for a ruling as to the constitutionality of the rectifying budget, before making a decision on whether or not to promulgate it.

The Communiqué added that: “The President of the Republic left very clear instructions to his office to send the rectifying budget for publication only if the decision of the Court of Appeal declared that the law was in conformity with all the requirements of the constitution.”

Lu Olo said, “The President’s own words, televised to the nation on the 5th of August 2008, and confirmed by the President’s Office Communiqué on the 6th of August, the following day, were that he left clear instructions that the rectifying budget was not to be sent for publication with the official gazette.

“It was clear that this is what he had in mind when he spoke to the people. We do not believe for one moment the President would have spoken those words whilst intending to do the exact opposite. Despite this manifest intent, others in his office took actions contrary to his clear instructions and sent it on for official publication.”

According to Lu Olo this is a very serious situation for FRETILIN, for the nation’s democratic institutions and the Timorese people. He added that FRETILIN did not blame the President, because it believed he left clear and explicit instructions with his office before leaving on his overseas trip.

“However, we do not have confidence in others who work in the Office of the President of the Republic. We have grave reservations about their loyalty to the President and their political impartiality to be working in such a high office,” Lu Olo said.

“We are very lucky that these suspect actions are such that may be fixed with the good will and cooperation of other institutions of our state. But we have to ask, what if it involved something more serious, something that could not be so easily reversed or rectified, such as a declaration of stage of siege or a declaration to dissolve parliament? Then what? The President had done all he could to ensure his intent was clear and that his actions would not impact negatively upon the nation, but even this could not safeguard a serious error from occurring.

“We cannot simply leave this matter as it is. It is important for us that state institutions know the truth of what actually happened. We have to know clearly whether this was the result of human error or whether there was some more deliberate act or omission to pervert the expressed will and intent of the President, to usurp his duties and powers. An in-depth investigation must occur into this matter and FRETILIN give its full support to the President in initiating an appropriate legal investigation,” Lu Olo added.

Lu Olo also emphasized that “this was not just a matter of an administrative issue in the President’s Office, but a matter of great importance to the government, the parliament, political parties and the people, who need to have confidence that the highest office in the land is functioning legally and constitutionally, not to mention with administrative efficiency, whoever the President is or will be.”

For more info, contact Jose Teixeira: +61 438 114 960 (Australia), +670 728 7080 (Dili, Timor-Leste)

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komunikadu imprensa: FRETILIN husu Presidenti Republika ordena investigasaun Gabineti Presidensia Republika nian kona ba falansu promulgasaun Orsamentu Retifikativu

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN

10 Agostu 2008
Komunikadu imprensa

FRETILIN husu Presidenti Republika ordena investigasaun Gabineti
Presidensia Republika nian kona ba falansu promulgasaun Orsamentu
Retifikativu

FRETILIN husu ohin ba Prezidenti Republika Dr. Jose-Ramos Horta halao
investigasaun klean ida ba insidenti neebe mosu iha semana liu ba iha
Gabeneti Presidensia Republika nian bainhira Xefe Gabineti haruka Lei
Orsamentu Retifikativu ba Parlamentu Nasional, no depois resulta iha
publikasaun maske kontra Prezidenti Republika nia intensaun klaru,
deklara Prezidenti partidu FRETILIN nian, Francisco Guterres "LuOlo"
iha Dili ohin.

Tuir Komunikadu neebe sai husi Prezidensia Republika iha loron 6
Agostu 2008: "Molok nia sai ba liur, nia halo deklarasaun ba nasaun,
tuir neebe nia dehan katak nia sei hein to'o desiziaun husi Tribunal
Rekursu kona ba rekursu ida neebe tama kona ba konstitusionalidade Lei
Orsamentu Retifikativu, molok nia halo desizaun ikus liu atu pormulga
ka lae lei ida nee."

Prezidenti aumenta mos ida nee iha deklarasaun neebe temik katak:
"Prezidenti Republika husik hela orientasaun klaru ba nia gabineti atu
labele haruka lei ba publikasaun molok desizaun sai husi Tribunal
Rekursu katak lei cumpri ho normas konstituisaun nian tomak."

"Maske Prezidenti nia liafuan, neebe fo sai iha deklarasaun iha
televisaun, no konfirmado tuir mai iha komunikadu ofisial iha loron 6
Agostu, Prezidenti deklara katak nia fo 'orientasaun klaru' atu nia
gabineti labele haruka lei nee ba publikasaun. Nia hatudu mos nia
intensaun bainhira nia koalian ba Povo tomak iha Televisaun. Ami la
fiar nia bele koalian buat ida loron ida, no halo buat seluk fali.
Maibe tuir mai, ita hotu hare katak ema seluk halo fali kontra nia
hakarak, ema ruma iha nia gabineti haruka fali lei nee ba publikasaun.
Nee assuntu ida neebe seriu ba nasaun, seriu ba orgaun soberania
seluk hotu, no Povo Timor-Leste tomak. Ami la foo sala ida ba
Prezidenti, tamba ami fiar nia liafuan. Maibe ami duvida makas ba ema
seluk neebe servisu iha nia gabineti. Ami duvida sira nia intensaun
plitika no imparsialidade atu halau servisu iha gabineti aas liu
hanesan nee," dehan LuOlo.

"Sorte hahalok sala nee buat ida neebe bele hadiak hela ho vontade
diak husi orgaun soberania hotu. Maibe hau husu deit, sei envolve
karik buat seluk neebe labele hadiak fasil hanesan nee? Hanesan
deklarasaun estadu de sitiu ka disolusaun parlamentu por ezemplu?
Entaun oin sa? Sorte ida nee laos deklarasaun funu ida neebe
consekuensia todan liu ba nasaun. Prezidenti halo buat hotu hotu
neebe nia bele atu labele iha impaktu negative ba ita nia rain no
Povo, maibe iha falansu seriu fali tamba hahalok iha nia gabineti
laran."

"Ita abele husik deit hanesa nee. Ita presiza buka hetan lialos. Ita
presiza hatene momos sei ida nee falansu humanu duni ka buat seluk,
hanesan manipulasaun ruma ba Prezidenti nia hakarak, nia dever. Tamba
nee presiza investigasaun klean. FRETILIN apoia Prezidenti republika
total atu halau investigasaun ida neebe seriu no transparent, tanba
kredibilidade gabineti Presidenti republika nian aban bairua iha
duvida hela iha ema barak nia Hanoin sei ita la hetan lialos," LuOlo
taka.

Favor ida, kontaktu: Jose Reis +670 734 1505 (Dili)

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

Media release
10 August 2008

FRETILIN requests President Ramos-Horta to initiate investigation into
unintended publication of rectifying budget

The President of Timor-Leste's largest and historic party FRETILIN,
Francisco Guterres "Lu Olo" today called upon President Dr. José
Ramos-Horta to order an investigation into why the Revised Budget Law
(also known as the rectifying budget) was sent by his office to the
parliament, and then subsequently published in the official gazette,
thereby bringing it into law, against the President's declared
intentions.

A Public Communiqué issued from the President's Office on the 6th of
August 2008, when the President was already overseas stated, that
prior to his departure the President delivered a speech to the nation,
in which he informed the nation that he would await the decision of
the Court of Appeal regarding a request for a ruling as to the
constitutionality of the rectifying budget, before making a decision
on whether or not to promulgate it.

The Communiqué added that: "The President of the Republic left very
clear instructions to his office to send the rectifying budget for
publication only if the decision of the Court of Appeal declared that
the law was in conformity with all the requirements of the
constitution."

Lu Olo said, "The President's own words, televised to the nation on
the 5th of August 2008, and confirmed by the President's Office
Communiqué on the 6th of August, the following day, were that he left
clear instructions that the rectifying budget was not to be sent for
publication with the official gazette.

"It was clear that this is what he had in mind when he spoke to the
people. We do not believe for one moment the President would have
spoken those words whilst intending to do the exact opposite. Despite
this manifest intent, others in his office took actions contrary to
his clear instructions and sent it on for official publication.

According to Lu Olo this is a very serious situation for FRETILIN, for
the nation's democratic institutions and the Timorese people. He added
that FRETILIN did not blame the President, because it believed he left
clear and explicit instructions with his office before leaving on his
overseas trip.

"However, we do not have confidence in others who work in the Office
of the President of the Republic. We have grave reservations about
their loyalty to the President and their political impartiality to be
working in such a high office," Lu Olo said.

"We are very lucky that these suspect actions are such that may be
fixed with the good will and cooperation of other institutions of our
state. But we have to ask, what if it involved something more
serious, something that could not be so easily reversed or rectified,
such as a declaration of stage of siege or a declaration to dissolve
parliament? Then what? The President had done all he could to ensure
his intent was clear and that his actions would not impact negatively
upon the nation, but even this could not safeguard a serious error
from occurring."

"We cannot simply leave this matter as it is. It is important for us
that state institutions know the truth of what actually happened. We
have to know clearly whether this was the result of human error or
whether there was some more deliberate act or omission to pervert the
expressed will and intent of the President, to usurp his duties and
powers. An in depth investigation must occur into this matter and
FRETILIN give its full support to the President in initiating an
appropriate legal investigation," Lu Olo added.

Lu Olo also emphasized that "this was not just a matter of an
administrative issue in the President's Office, but a matter of great
importance to the government, the parliament, political parties and
the people who need to have confidence that the highest office in the
land is functioning legally and constitutionally, not to mention with
administrative efficiency, whoever the President is or will be."

For more information, please contact Jose Teixeira: +61 438 114 960
(Australia), +670 728 7080 (Dili, Timor-Leste)

Media Release: FRETILIN welcomes President's decision to await outcome of opposition parties' request for judicial review of 2008 revised budget

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

Media Release

Dili, Timor-Leste, 6 August 2008

FRETILIN welcomes President's decision to await outcome of opposition parties' request for judicial review of 2008 revised budget

FRETILIN today said it welcomed President Ramos Horta’s decision to wait until after the request by FRETILIN, KOTA/PPT and PUN to the Court of Appeal to undertake a constitutional review of key aspects of the revised budget of USD$425.6 million, which will see this year's original annual budget increased to more than USD$773.3 million, before he would move to promulgate it into law.

President Ramos Horta’s decision to await the outcome of the court’s constitutional review of aspects of the revised budget was announced yesterday (Tuesday 5 August) on Timor-Leste’s state owned television.

FRETILIN parliamentary leader Aniceto Guterres said, “The President’s decision is a wise and prudent one, expressing caution and concern over the legality of a number of aspects of the revised budget proposed by the Gusmao de facto Government.

“During the course of the last few months, and in particular during the parliamentary debate for this revised budget (16-31 July), FRETILIN, civil society, international donors and multilateral institutions such as the World Bank and IMF have questioned the need for such a large increase in the budget.

“In particular questions were raised in relation to the transparency and legality of this budget, the capacity to spend it and also as to why such a large amount of the budget was allocated to goods and services as opposed to capital development.

“Despite strong and widespread public opposition, the Gusmao de facto Government refused to listen to the people’s concerns and rammed the revised budget through National Parliament with very few amendments.

“We welcome the President’s decision because it not only reflects concern amongst FRETILIN, but also civil society groups and the broader public in Timor-Leste.”

For more info, please contact: Nilva Guimaraes +670 7340389 (Dili, Timor-Leste)

Media Release: FRETILIN condemns secret plan to create monopoly for vital supplies in Timor-Leste

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

Media Release

July 22, 2007

FRETILIN condemns secret plan to create monopoly for vital supplies in Timor-Leste

Aniceto Guterres, FRETILIN leader in parliament yesterday condemned the proposal by the Gusmao AMP government to create an Economic Stabilisation Fund using US$240 million of money from the Petroleum Fund. “It is a secret plan to create a monopoly in the supply of vital fuel and building materials, as well as vital rice and other foodstuffs, in the hands of one or two businesses linked to the ruling party and ministers in the government,” said Guterres.

“Information we have indicates this is part of a secret plan to deliver all these vital contracts into the hands of a few well-connected businessmen at the expense of others who would otherwise be able to compete to bring down prices, but cannot do so with the bulk the government is purchasing,” said Guterres.

Business people, including foreign investors, have complained to the FRETILIN leadership that everything is being channeled through one or two companies.

“When FRETILIN raised this both in the parliament and in the media, we provoked a vitriolic response from the Prime Minister but no real explanation. Even members of his own CNRT party say this deal must be explained thoroughly,” said Guterres.

“We are debating the revised budget now, which would increase the money the government will have by 122 per cent, from US$349 million to US$773.3 million. It will also involve taking money out of the Petroleum Fund beyond its Estimated Sustainable Income. Yet the government has presented inadequate justification to either the Petroleum Fund Consultative Council, an independent body nominated to oversee the fund and its sustainability, or to the parliamentary committee for economy, finance and anti corruption.

“Both these bodies say the government should not be authorized by parliament to withdraw the non-sustainable amount until the government provides such a justification,” added Guterres.

“We are not against helping our people against the shocks of the international food and fuel crisis. We are against using the crisis to create a fund lacking in financial controls and monitoring, without any proper planning, which is merely a Trojan Horse for collusion, corruption and nepotism,” closed Guterres.

The Economic Stabilisation Fund would give the government US$240 million to buy food, fuel and building materials that it would then sell to the public at a subsidised price. This is the concept that recently provoked public controversy because rice prices were neither stabilised nor lowered substantively by this mode of government intervention, especially in the districts where prices of rice and other foodstocks are exorbitantly high.

For more information, please contact: Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080

Media Release: FRETILIN: Growing opposition to Gusmão's maladministration and bad governance

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

Media Release

July 19, 2007

FRETILIN: Growing opposition to Gusmão's maladministration and bad governance

There is growing opposition to the misadministration and corruption of the Gusmão government with members of a key parliamentary committee and a key independent parliamentary consultative body rejecting the government's request to withdraw from the Petroleum Fund an amount greater than the benchmark "sustainable income"*.

The defacto Gusmão government wants the additional money from the Petroleum Fund for its revised budget.

FRETILIN parliamentarian and leader in parliament Aniceto Guterres said, “The Economy, Finance and Anti-corruption parliamentary committee met yesterday (Friday 18 July) and delivered a report on the mid year budget recommending against the government’s request to withdraw USD$290 million in excess of the sustainable income amount.

“The decision of the parliamentary commission comes in addition to the Petroleum Fund Consultative Council’s recommendation to National Parliament that it refuse to authorize the transfer of funds from the Petroleum Fund to the government budget, because the government has failed to justify that it needs the extra money from the Fund.”

The Petroleum Fund Consultative Council is an independent body that is legally mandated to oversee the workings and future of the fund and is made up of civil society and representatives of religious confessions.

The members of the Council are independent from any political party.

Guterres said, “The decisions of the parliamentary committee and the Petroleum Fund Consultative Council reflect the wide spread and growing concern and suspicion about misadministration and corruption within the Gusmão government.

“Even members of Gusmão’s own CNRT party who sit in the parliamentary committee voted against the government's request”.

Guterres added, “The Gusmão government has only actually spent 22%, or USD$77.3 million, of this year's annual budget of USD$347.7 million, which is the largest in Timor-Leste's history and far greater than any of the budgets of the previous FRETILIN governments.

“It is ludicrous that a government that is incapable of spending even a fraction of the budget, and who is also the subject of many allegations of maladministration and corruption, would ask for a mid year budget increase in the amount of USD$425.6 million (taking this year’s revised budget to USD$773.3 million).”

Guterres said that if the excessive withdrawal from the fund is approved by parliament, the government would have used over USD$1 billion in just one year, when you take into account that the government also had a transitional budget of in excess of $300 million for the period between September 2007 to 31 December 2008.

“This will mean that 43% of the Petroleum Fund's current reserves of USD2.3 billion will be spent in just one year.

“We call on other members of parliament and civil society to follow the lead of the Economy, Finance and Anti-corruption parliamentary committee and the Petroleum Fund Consultative Council in expressing their opposition to this irresponsible budget.

“It is not only them or FRETILIN which have expressed concern. Other political parties, including the National Unity Party, ASDT and KOTA/PPT, as well as business groups and civil society in general have expressed their opposition to this irresponsible and questionable budget. But mostly they question the raiding of the petroleum fund, which has been acclaimed around the world.

“If the AMP members in the parliament authorize the withdrawal, then they will be flying in the face of overwhelming public opinion in this country. We urge them to question this government’s direction, just as they did with the government’s ludicrous gun laws that were defeated in this parliament, which was out of step with public opinion on the issue,” said Guterres.

The Timor-Leste parliament began debate on the government's proposed budget revision yesterday (Friday 18 July).

Background notes:

* The Sustainable Income (known formally as the “Estimated Sustainable Income”) is calculated under the Petroleum Fund Law and informs the Government, National Parliament and civil society of the maximum amount of money that should be withdrawn from the Petroleum Fund in any given year to fund government spending. The Estimated Sustainable Income for the 2008 budget is USD$396.1 million.

If the government wants to withdraw more than the Estimated Sustainable Income it must first obtain the approval of National Parliament. As part of that approval process, the Government must set out its reasons why its total annual withdrawals from the Petroleum Fund should exceed the Estimated Sustainable Income and present them to the Petroleum Fund Consultative Council, who in turn provide their opinion to National Parliament. The aim of the Estimated Sustainable Income is to assist Timor-Leste avoid the “resource curse” experienced by other Third World resource rich nations. It does this by acting as a guide to Timor-Leste on how to spend its petroleum wealth sustainably, with the aim of creating inter-generational equity so that both current and future generations can enjoy the benefits of the petroleum resources.

For more information, please contact: Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080

Media Release: FRETILIN opposes Decree Law creating Economic Stabilization Fund

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

Media Release

July 18, 2008

FRETILIN opposes Decree Law creating Economic Stabilization Fund

"Today FRETILIN expresses great concern about the Economic Stabilisation Fund proposed in the revised budget, which in our view is full of illegalities and lacks transparency."

This statement was made by the FRETILIN Parliamentary Leader, Aniceto Guterres, in a media release yesterday, July 17. The Decree Law was approved by the Council of Ministers and proclaimed by the President of the Republic, Ramos-Horta, on July 14. FRETILIN called on MPs in the government coalition to join it in voting against the proposed law, as they did recently over the proposed firearms law.

Guterres added: “Though there are a lot of areas for concern in this revised budget proposal, the Economic Stabilization Fund is the most worrying because it involves the withdrawal of a large amount of money from the Petroleum Fund without sufficient legal control.

“Although the president of the republic proclaimed the Decree Law, it is yet to be published and come into force. In the meantime the de facto government is seeking the approval of the parliament in its revised budget proposal to withdraw an amount of USD$240 million, which it would spend under this law, which does not detail clearly the legal and financial mechanism for procurement, disbursement and accounting for the funds in a transparent and accountable manner. So much money, representing the total of the Timor-Leste state budget between 2002 and 2005, to be managed simply by a law made up of one and a half pages and 8 sections.

“FRETILIN opposes this Decree Law and the proposal to take these funds from the Petroleum Fund in this way. Among other reasons, we strongly suspect it is nothing more than an attempt to withdraw funds from the Petroleum Fund in a non-transparent and irresponsible manner.

The objectives of the Decree Law, set out in Article 2, are the procurement and distribution of food for food security, fuels and building materials by the government. But the Decree Law does not establish the procedures, rules and mechanisms for the procurement, administration and financial control of the funds or the distribution of the acquired stock in a transparent or accountable manner. Sections 4, 5 and 6 state that these vital transparency and accountability issues will be dealt with by ‘appropriate regulations to be approved.’

“With all due respect, this demonstrates that the de facto government does not regard our peoples' parliament with seriousness and respect,” said Aniceto Guterres.

“We have to ask, what did this de facto government have in mind when it put to this parliament a proposal to approve such a large amount of money to be spent without the appropriate legal and administrative rules and procedures being set out in the law that purports to establish it? How are we, who are asked to approve this large amount of money and who are constitutionally mandated to oversee and hold the government accountable for its spending according to the laws of the land, going to be able to do our job, given that we are not informed of the rules and mechanisms to hold them accountable by?

“This also leads us to think that the de facto government merely intends to use the funds the parliament approves as a slush fund without controls or accountability. It leads us to think that there will be even less procurement through open public tenders in accordance with the applicable procurement law, to procure such large amounts of foodstuffs, fuel and building materials, than there is at the moment. We are led to think that procurement contracts for these will simply be given directly, without open public tenders, to their friends and political allies, just as the recently publicized US$14 million rice procurement contract, which has been widely questioned. This rice procurement process was questioned even by members of the CNRT party in parliament, and the de facto government has thus far not fully explained or justified it to the satisfaction of the public or to our satisfaction.

“It is because of this that FRETILIN says that it will oppose this attempt to withdraw funds from the Petroleum Fund just to allocate contracts to friends and allies of the de facto government.

“With this attempt this AMP government has demonstrated yet again that they are not serious about executing and managing the peoples’ money with seriousness, responsibility, and transparency.

“We have already seen with important dealings that have been made public that they hide things. The agreement proposing to allocate large tracts of land to a foreign company to cultivate sugarcane for bio fuels was hidden for months, despite repeated requests for the agreement to be made public. The agreement to grant the sole and exclusive rights to a foreign oil company to market Sunrise gas remains hidden from the public at the government’s insistence that it is a ‘government secret’, despite requests to make it public. The contract to purchase luxury cars for members of parliament has been hidden from us again, despite requests that they be made available to opposition parties. Now, it’s worse, with an extremely large fund of USD$240 million they are not disclosing how they will spend these funds in regulations yet to be approved.

“FRETILIN already knows that there are parties and MPs who are prepared to exercise their conscience to oppose this proposal. We appeal to these well intended Timorese in our national parliament who otherwise vote with the AMP, who follow the government’s policy orientations, to join us in opposing this proposal that is not in the interests of our people. Just as we did with the gun laws some weeks ago, we ask you to join us in exercising your consciences and vote in the interests of the welfare of our people, the future of this nation, the peace and stability deserved by our people, instead of simply following the path that is not transparent, and will be detrimental to our nation and people.

“FRETILIN agrees with the objective of helping our people to meet the current global food and fuel crisis, but will not support courses of action that are not transparent and accountable, and which serve only to benefit a very few at the expense of our people, who will continue to stay poor and go hungry. During the budget debate FRETILIN will propose measures to confront the hardship faced by our people with seriousness, responsibility and transparency.”

For further information: FRETILIN parliamentary media officer - Nilva Guimaraes +670 734 0389

Comunicado de Imprensa da Bancada da FRETILIN: "Fretilin Contra Dekretu Lei Fundo de Estabilizasaun Ekonomiku"

BANCADA FRETILIN

COMUNICADO DE IMPRENSA

"Fretilin Contra Dekretu Lei Fundo de Estabilizasaun Ekonomiku"


Ohin Fretilin hakarak manifesta nia preokupasaun kona ba proposta ida iha orsamentu rectifikativu nebe'e tuir ami nia hare'e nakonu ho ilegalidade no laiha transparencia.

Deklarasaun ne'e fo sai hosi Chefe Bankada FRETILIN, Aniceto Guterres, Lio hosi Komunikado Imprensa, Quinta Feira (16/10), relasiona kona ba dekretu lei kona ba Fundo de Estabilizasaun Ekonomiku nebe'e Konselho Ministru Aprova ona ho hetan ona promulgasaun hosi Presidente da Republika Ramos Horta, Maske iha buat barak no seluk iha orsamentu rectifikativu nebe'e ema barak preokupa proposta atu hari'i Fundo de Estabilizasaun Ekonomiku ne'e proposta projetu ida.

Iha loron 14 de Julho 2008, Presidente da Republika promulga (maibe sei hein publikasaun) Dekretu lei nebe'e kria fundo lei ida nebe'e governu de facton ne'e hakarak Parlamentu aprova $ 240 milhoes, no fo kbit ba governu de faktu ne'e atu gasta ba objektivu nebe'e seidauk klaru iha pagina ida ho balun deit no artigu 8 deit.

Osan boot $ 240 milhoens, osan nebe'e representa orsamentu geral de estadu nia ba tinan 2002-2005 hamutuk sei gere ho pagina ida ho balun no artigu 8 deit.

Fretilin contra dekretu lei ne'e no proposta atu hasai osan hosi fundu mina rai tamba tuir ami nia hare'e ida ne'e tentativa suspeita ida atu hasai osan hosi fundu minarai sein liu hosi dalan nebe'e transparenti no responsavel.

Ita hare'e iha aritigu 2 lei ne'e nian katak, objektivu atu sosa aihan combustivel no materia construsaun sivil, maibe depois iha artigu 4,5 no 6 laiha mekanismu ka prosedimentu oin sa bele halo ida ne'e, no halo gestaun ba objektivu ida ne'e. Dehan deit katak ida ne'e sei tuir mai bainhira "diploma propiu sei aprova".

Ho respeitu boot ida ne'e laiha transparensia, no hatudu atitude halimar ho orgaun soberanu povu nian- Parlamentu Nasional.

Governu de factu ne'e hanoin saida bainhira haruka pedidu osan bot nee mai Parlamentu no hein deit Parlamentu aprova deit osan boot ne'e sein hatudu regras no prosedimentu tuir lei hodi nune'e ita bele fiskaliza sira nia lalaok aban bain rua? Tamba laiha duni regras no prosedimentus.

Governu husu deit PN aporova orsamentu osan boot liu ho objetivu atu hari'i fundo ida nebe'e sira atu hodi uza hanesan saku azul. Maibe atu sosa tuir prosidementu no regras konkursu ka atu fo kontratu atu sosa aihan, konbustivel, no material konstrusaun liu hosi prosesu bolu deit no entrega deit ba maluk Partido ida nian deit hanesan ema barak kestiona ohin loron kona ba kontratu $ 14 milhoens sosa fos. Prosesu sosa fos neebe hetan mos kritika husi bankada CNRT rasik maibe seidauk hetan esklaresimentu diak no los husi governu de faktu.

Hodi ida ne'e mak ami FRETILIN dehan, tentativa ida ne'e atu buka dalan hasai osan hosi fundo mina rai no lori ba fahe kontratus ba maluk ne'e, Fretilin sei kontra!.

Ho tentativa ida ne'e governu AMP hatudu dalan ida tan katak sira la seriu atu halao exekusaun no gestaun osan povu nian ho seriadade, responsabilidade, honestidade no transparensia.

Ita hare'e ona ho assuntus importanti barak katak sira subar deit. Akordu fo rai luan Povo nian ba kompanhia husi liur ba tinan atus ida atu kuda Tohu subar. Akordu fo direitu ba kompanha mina rai husi liur atu faan gas hosi greaten sunrise subar. Kontratu sosa kareta luxu ba deputados ho subar. Agora a'at liu maka fundo boot liu ho osan $ 240 milhoens subar iha diploma lei nebe'e Parlamentu seidauk hare'e.

Ami Fretilin hatene ona katak partidu no deputadu balun iha consiensia atu kontra tentativa ida ne'e. Ami apela mos ba maluk sira seluk nebe'e vota bebeik ba AMP, nebe'e tuir governu deit, mai ita hasoru tentativa ida ne'e tamba ladun iha povu nia interese. Hanesan ita halo ba lei kilat, mai ita vota ho konsiensia ba povu nia diak , rai ne'e dia futuru no paz no estabilidade, em vez de tuir deit ema balun nia intensaun nebe'e la transparenti, la mos la diak ba it nia rai no povu..

Fretilin concorda ho inisiativa hodi tulun povu hasoru krizi aihan no kombustivel, maibe laos liu hosi poposta nebe'e laiha transparensia no sei habokur deit balun no povu sei kiak no hamlaha nafatin. Iha debate orcamentu Fretilin sei halo proposta oin sa bele hasoru ida ne'e ho seriadade, responsabilidade no transparensia.

Atu hetan Info bele kontaktu
Media Office Bankada FRETILIN
Nilva G, Hp 7340389

Media Release: FRETILIN condemns secret Timor Sea gas deal

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN

Media Release
15 July 2008

FRETILIN condemns secret Timor Sea gas deal

FRETILIN today condemned a secret deal by Xanana Gusmao’s de facto AMP government to give a foreign oil company the exclusive right to market petroleum from the Greater Sunrise Field in the Timor Sea.

FRETILIN said the multi-billion-dollar deal again raised questions about malpractice and maladministration within the Gusmao administration and demanded that details and copies of the agreement be made public.

FRETILIN parliamentarian and former Minister for Energy and Natural Resources Jose
Teixeira said: “From the little they have told us, the government has given the exclusive right to market petroleum from the Greater Sunrise Field to a single foreign company without an open tender.

“It is internationally recognized best practice that deals such as this should not be secret. Only by treating them with the utmost transparency will you safeguard against corruption,” Teixeira said.

“To pick a company that will do the best job for Timor-Leste requires an open and competitive tender process. The government did not do this and we demand that they be held publicly accountable for their actions.

“The public has the right to know what price the company will pay for obtaining these exclusive rights, exactly how Timor-Leste will benefit from this deal, and exactly what other concessions the government has given this foreign company.

“This contract involves billions of dollars because the marketing company is responsible for finding buyers for our petroleum who will sign long-term contracts with the government of Timor-Leste.”

Teixeira added that the deal also threatened Timor-Leste’s reputation as a favourable investment environment for the exploration of petroleum resources.

“Without naming the company, we are aware it has its own interests in the Timor Sea Joint Petroleum Development Area. The company also does not have any interests in any upstream activities such as processing and refining.

“However, it seems this company may also have been granted participatory rights in any LNG plant which will be built in Timor-Leste.

“This raises potential for conflict of interest which prejudices the rights of other existing contractors in the Timor Sea who invested on the basis that Timor-Leste was committed to a world-class transparent regime. The other Timor Sea contractors would be justified in feeling that their trust has been shattered,” said Mr Teixeira.

“I have asked the de facto government twice in parliament and twice in meetings of the Natural Resources Parliamentary Committee to be transparent and make the agreement public.

“However, on each occasion Secretary of State for Energy and Natural Resources Alfredo Pires has refused to do so, stating that the documents are a government secret.

“I don’t accept Mr Pires’ response and I don’t believe that the people of Timor-Leste, who demand transparency and accountability from government, accept that the details of this deal should be kept secret.”

Teixeira repeated FRETILIN’s public declaration of November 2007 that because it does not accept the legitimacy of the AMP Government, all agreements entered into by this government, especially those relating to sovereignty and natural resources, would be considered on a case-by-case basis when FRETILIN returns to government.

“That consideration would necessarily involve examining the transparency and commercial propriety of natural resources agreements,” he said.

Note: As the former Minister for Energy and Natural Resources under the leadership of former Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri, Jose Teixeira was instrumental in establishing in Timor-Leste a petroleum regime which has been applauded by industry experts and the international community as a world leader in transparency. In 2005-2006, Teixeira oversaw what has been widely acclaimed as the most transparent international bid round for acreage blocks in Timor-Leste’s exclusive offshore areas.

For further information contact: Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080
Nilva Guimaraes +670 734 0389

Media Release: FRETILIN demands President, Vice Presidents and Secretaries of Parliament release documents on purchase of luxury vehicles for MPs

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN

Media Release
13 July 2008

FRETILIN demands President, Vice Presidents and Secretaries of Parliament release documents on purchase of luxury vehicles for MPs

FRETILIN parliamentary group deputy leader, Francisco Miranda Branco today demanded that the President, Vice Presidents and Secretaries of the National Parliament (known as the
‘Parliamentary Administration’) provide copies of the contract and Commitment Payment Vouchers (‘CPV’) for the proposed purchase of luxury 4 wheel drive vehicles for members of the national parliament.

“Despite repeated calls to do so by our party group, and the National Unity Party group, the Parliamentary Administration have thus far failed to divulge to us copies of the contract and CPV documents. This is not a particularly difficult request, nor does it involve matters that are secretive to either them or the ministry of finance. There is no reason whatsoever not to release the documents we have requested,” said Branco.

According to Branco it is very important for the copies of the documents that were requested to be urgently made public because a controversy is currently raging regarding this issue, and there have even been demonstrations demanding answers to questions like how much these luxury vehicles will cost the state, and where the budget to pay for them exists or will exist.

“It is extremely important to all of us MPs and for civil society to see with our own eyes the details so that we can inform the public of the truth of the matter. Otherwise, this matter will remain a matter of controversy. The continued failure of the Parliamentary Administration to provide us with copies of the documents requested has led many people to conclude that there is no transparency in the management of the parliament’s finances. We tend to agree and ask the administration to quickly reform themselves in this regard,” Branco added.

This week the national parliament will commence to debate the Revised Budget from the de facto AMP government, which seeks to increase the current budget by 122%.

“It is they in the AMP who have defended the purchase of these luxury vehicles. But those parties who have questioned it are unable to obtain the documents regarding the proposed purchase or the documents filed with the ministry of finance. This shows yet again that the AMP regime is not transparent in its administration and does not have the political will to manage the budget and its spending with the minimum of transparency, because they cannot even do something as easy and simple as provide documents that are public and not confidential in any way.

“If they cannot be trusted to show transparency with such a small matter, how can we trust them to execute a budget which is 122% bigger than the existing budget transparently? This is the people’s money, not the administration’s or the parliament’s. Because of this we all have a right as the peoples’ representatives to access the detailed information regarding the process of the proposed purchase,” Branco concluded.

For further information contact: Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080
Nilva Guimaraes +670 734 0389

Komunikadu Imprensa: FRETILIN Ezigi Meza Parlamentu Nasional Fo Sai Kopia Surat Kontratu no CPV Kona Ba Sosa Kareta ba Deputadus

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN

KOMUNIKADU BA IMPRENSA
13 Julhu, 2008

FRETILIN Ezigi Meza Parlamentu Nasional Fo Sai Kopia Surat Kontratu no CPV Kona Ba Sosa Kareta ba Deputadus

Vice Chefe Bankada FRETILIN, Francisco Branco ohin ezigi dala ida tan ba meza parlamentu nasional atu fo sai kopia dokumentus kontratu no CPV sosa kareta ba deputadus parlamentu nasional.

“Maske ami nia bankada, no bankada PUN mos ezigi ona dalan rua ba meza parlamentu nasional atu fo sai dokumentus kontratus hirak nee, no CPV, meza seidauk hatan ba ami nia pedidu. Buat nee laos buat susar ida, no mos laos buat segredu ba meza deit ka ministeriu finansas. Ida nee Povu nia osan, no mos osan neebe ami deputadus hotu hotu envolvidu iha laran. La iha razaun ida atu la fo sai dokumentus hirak neebe ami husu,” tenik bRANCO.

Tuir Branco, importanti duni atu hetan dokumentus hirak nee tanba iha polemika barak neebe mosu iha komunidade nia leet kona ba, no manifestasaun mos mosu, kona ba osan hirak mak kareta hirak nee sei kusta ba estadu, no orsamentu mai husi neebe.

“Importanti duni ita deputadus hotu hotu, no sosiedade sivil bele hare ho matan rasik detalhus hirak nee atu bele informa povu tomak. Se lae, ita sei dun malu nafatin no konfusaun sei mosu tanba dadus konkretus la too ba publiku. Tanba nee mak hau dehan, importanti no urgenti duni sira fo sai dokumentus hirak nee.”

“Meza nia falansu atu fo sai kopias dokumentus neebe ami husu, halo ema balun iha komunidade hanoin ona katak parlamentu nasional la iha liu transparensia. Ami mos konkorda no husu meza atu halo mudansa lalais ba lalaok hanesan nee,” Branco hatutan.

Aban, Segunda-Feira loron 14 Julhu, Parlamentu Nasional atu hahu diskusaun kona ba Orsamentu Retifikativu tuir neebe governu de facto AMP nian buka atu amuneta orsamentu geral estadu nian 122%.

“Sira AMP mak defendi liu sosa kareta nee. Maibe ami bankadas neebe kestiona sosa kareta nee labele hetan nem kopias dokumentus kona ba sosa kareta hirak nee no CPV neebe hatama ba Ministeriu Finansas. Nee hatudu dalan ida tan katak regime AMP nee la iha transparensia nem vontade politika atu halau minimu transparenti kona ba orsamentu no gestaun orsamentu, tanba sira labele halo buat ida kiik hanesa loke dokumentus neebe lolos dokumentu publiku, laos segredu.”

“Se ita labele konfia sira atu hatudu transparensia ho buat kiik hanesan nee, oinsa ita bele konfia sira ezekuta orsamentu ida neebe atu aumenta ba 122% bot liu tan ho transparensia. Nee povu nia osan, laos meza nian ka parlamentu nian deit. Tanba nee tenki hatudu momos ba povu nia representanti detalhas tomak kona ba prosesu sosa kareta,” Branco taka.

Kontactus: Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080 Nilva Guimaraes +670 734 0389

Media Release: FRETILIN MPs back Amnesty International concern at student arrests

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN

Media Release
July 9, 2008

FRETILIN MPs back Amnesty International concern at student arrests

The Gusmao de facto AMP government and its allies in the national parliament have to listen to Amnesty International's concerns, said the MPs from FRETILIN yesterday, as a further 16 students were arrested while holding another peaceful protest against government corruption.
FRETILIN is the largest party in the Timor-Leste parliament.

“We as Timorese who resisted against the Suharto military regime, in many instances have Amnesty International to thank for helping to save our lives," said Aniceto Guterres, leader of the FRETILIN parliamentary group.

“Many Timorese escaped death and torture because Amnesty International was our defender throughout the world, at a time when we did not have a voice, when there were few who would listen to our cries. They were listening only to the large nations, big powers, listening mostly to the Indonesians.”

On Monday, July 7, Amnesty called on police in Timor-Leste not to use excessive force on student protestors.

They also said: “We urge security forces to respect people’s right to protest peacefully.
Individuals should have the freedom to express their views in public through legitimate protest.

“According to press reports, today saw a number of people detained 'for investigation purposes' at one demonstration in Dili. We also ask for any individuals detained for protesting to be charged with a recognizably criminal offence, or released immediately,” said Amnesty International.

Guterres urged members of parliament and the de facto government not to forget that their constitution consecrates the right to demonstrate as a basic right in their democracy. “We want to remind everyone of this basic principle and give our unqualified support to the exercise of this right,” he said.

“All FRETILIN members of parliament would also like to make it clear that after we investigated Monday's events, we found that the students had acted peacefully and in accordance with the law. We condemn the use of what we regard in the circumstances to have been excessive force by the Police," Aniceto Guterres said.

The law on public demonstrations does not require police authorization before a demonstration can proceed. It merely requires notice be given to the police. “We have seen the letter from the police to the students ‘denying authorization’ for the demonstration. This is not required by law,” said Guterres on behalf of the FRETILIN MPs.

As has been widely televised and witnessed, the students involved on Monday were not on the road, they were standing on the verandah of the university. The police entered the verandah to arrest them. The students were standing peacefully and with dignity. “Our view is that Monday’s actions by the police were illegal and we do not accept their actions,” said Guterres.

“FRETILIN members of parliament clearly declare that we have no objections to anyone demonstrating in front of the parliament peacefully and in a democratic spirit. That’s democracy. In 2006 and 2007, the FRETILIN government was faced with many such demonstrations. We do not mind if people want to express their criticism of their politicians. That is their right.

"Long live democracy. Long Live the RDTL. Long live the Maubere People," concluded Guterres.

Contact: Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080
Nilva Guimaraes + 670 727 0458

Timor Leste UNIVERSITY STUDENTS PROTEST IN DILI

Timor Leste UNIVERSITY STUDENTS PROTEST IN DILI

Petition delivered July 7, 2008

University Students protest will be carried on today in Dili.

A petition was delivered yesterday to the following institutions
- Parliament: Received by the President of the Parliament, Fernando Lasama and the two vice-Presidents of the Parliament, Vicente Guterres and Maria Paixão.
- Office of the President: Received by the Chief of the Cabinet, Ms Natalia Carrascalão
- Office of the Prime Minister: Received by Ms Elisabeth Exposto
- F-FDTL: Received by Colonel Lere

The students will deliver today the same petition to the Court of Appeal and the Office of the Ombudsman.

This petition was presented by ASUTIL (Timor Leste University Students Solidarity Action) and aims at raising concerns of the people of Timor-Leste.

It demands the following:

that state institutions look into measures to decrease food prices to allow people to have greater access to food

that the President of the Republic uses his power of veto to block the rectifiying budget because it is too high, the government is incapable spending it appropriately, it is only going to further benefit the powerful elite, it would lead to corruption and also lead to greater dependency of Timor-Leste on debts when the country stops receiving revenues from the petroleum resources.

This could happen in the very near future.

that the Parliament blocks the proposal on the arms law in which article 4 is a major concern

that the President and the both Vice-Presidents of the Parliament should not change the agreement they had made with the students on the 12 June 2008 in regards to the purchase of the luxury cars for the parliamentarians. On this agreement they were told that only 26 cars would be purchased for the Parliament Committees.

that Mariano Sabino, the Minister of Agriculture should stop making agreements to provide land for foreign companies for sugar cane and rubber plantations because people need this land for food production.

that the President meets the students to hold talks on scholarships which should have taken place on the 11th of February 2008 (the date of the assassination attempt on the President).

that government should resolve the issue of Internally Displaced People to avoid having refugees in our own country

A peace march will be organized to defend people’s rights if the students’ demands are not met.

Action Coordinator: Santiago Ximenes Vaz “Kilikai Mata”

Spokesperson: Marcos Guterres Gusmão “Auraga”

Dili, 7 July 2008
Contact: +670 737 9007

Media Release: Call to investigate Gusmão's rice contract for mates

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN

Media Release
July 7, 2008

Call to investigate Gusmão's rice contract for mates

The de facto Prime Minister of Timor Leste, Xanana Gusmao, is being widely condemned for awarding a US$14.4 million rice supply contract to a ‘mate’, without a competitive tender.

FRETILIN today called for an independent investigation into the contract which went to the company Tres Amigos, headed by Mr Germanu da Silva, Vice-President of Gusmao’s CNRT party, and an old friend and a member of Mr Gusmao’s Finance Department when he was President.

FRETILIN Vice President, former minister and MP Arsenio Bano today condemned the contract and called for a full and transparent independent inquiry into the deal that even some CNRT MPs have criticised as indicative of “Corrupt, Collusive and Nepotistic” conduct, known in Timor-Leste by its Indonesian acronym “KKN”.

“It is well known that Gusmao and Germanu da Silva are long time friends and political allies,” Bano said. “It raises many questions when the Prime Minister gives him a contract for US$14 million, with no public tender or other competitive bidding process.”

Bano said the growing furore in Dili over the rice deal would embarrass Gusmao’s “luminary foreign advisors who have shouted long and loud about the Gusmao government’s anti-corruption credentials”.

Bano said copies of contract documents obtained by FRETILIN, show that an original contract was awarded by Gusmao on 29 February 2008 for the supply and storage of 8,000 tons of rice, at US$510 per ton, with a total contract value of US$4.08 million. This original contract was amended by Mr Gusmao on or about 7 May 2008 to increase the amount of rice to be supplied to 16,000 tons at a unit price of US$900 per ton and a total contract price of US$14.4 million.

“When you read the copies of the contract documents, you see that at first there was one amount to be supplied for the price of US$4.08 million, then it was changed by hand to 10,000 tons, then it was reduced again by hand to 8,000 tons. It looks to us like rice price speculation on the run,” Bano said.

“This is very suspicious especially when it involves a single source contract, without any other competitive bidder being involved. To anyone looking at the documents, it looks like they have colluded to play around with the amount of rice to be supplied to get a better deal for the supplier.”

Critics of the rice deal include two MPs from Gusmao’s own CNRT party – Mr Cecilio Caminha, Vice President of the Parliament's Economics, Finance and Anti-Corruption Committee C (Timor Post 3 July 2008) and Ms Maria Terezinha Viegas (Timor Post 4 July 2008).

Arsenio Bano said Mr Gusmao could not legally commit his government to the contract purchase rice because parliament had not approved the budget.

Bano said there were serious doubts about the integrity of other major contracts awarded by the Gusmao administration, including for two patrol boats and two heavy fuel-oil powered electricity plants.

“To cover these and other contracts, the administration is seeking a supplementary budget increase of 122% for 2008. All indications are that they cannot be trusted with such a huge increase,” Bano said.
Bano said FRETILIN had already referred cases of suspected corruption involving Gusmao’s deputy prime minister and others to the Ombudsman for investigation.

Contact: Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080
Nilva Guimaraes +670 734 0389

Media Release: Timor Leste: Second defeat for controversial gun law

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN

Media Release
July 2, 2008

Timor Leste: Second defeat for controversial gun law

A controversial new gun law proposed by Timor Leste’s de facto government suffered a second defeat in parliament on Monday, and debate on the draft law was postponed.

Article 4 of the draft law, drawn up by Xanana Gusmao’s AMP (Parliamentary Majority Alliance) without any public consultation, would empower the national police commander to licence civilians to obtain and carry firearms.

Following Monday’s vote, FRETILIN’s parliamentary leader Aniceto Guterres called on the AMP leadership to allow MPs a conscience vote on the issue.

“FRETILIN believes Timor Leste needs fewer guns, not more, and many AMP members of parliament agree with us,” Guterres said.

The legislation was first voted down on June 25 (by 23 votes to 11 with 3 abstentions) with AMP members siding with FRETILIN and other opposition parties.
FRETILIN’s parliamentary leader Aniceto Guterres said AMP leaders tried to resurrect Article 4 in parliament on Monday, June 30.

“FRETILIN again proposed the elimination of Article 4, and our position was supported by 25 votes to 17. Everyone in the chamber counted it as such, but the vote was formally declared of 25 votes against our motion and 20 in favour. We objected and a second vote was held immediately which resulted in 23 in favour, 23 against and 7 abstentions – a tie,” Guterres said.

“In the event of a tied vote, the standing rules of parliament provide for another vote after further debate, but that was not immediately possible because parliament became too unruly. Parliament then agreed on a joint motion to suspend the debate.

“Our people have had enough of being subjected to armed groups disrupting their lives. That’s why FRETILIN opposes this legislation and we know that many AMP members agree with us. But they are obviously under pressure to tow the line.”
Guterres said the de facto government had ignored FRETILIN’s offer last week to discuss how to reach consensus on a new draft law, opting instead for a confrontational approach.

“If the gun law comes back in the same form or substantially the same form, we will again oppose it,” he said.

Contact: Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080
Nilva Guimaraes +670 734 0389

DEKLARASAUN POLITIKA HUSI BANCADA FRETILIN

DEKLARASAUN POLITIKA HUSI BANCADA FRETILIN

ASSUNTO: KONVITE HUSI GOVERNU DE FACTU RDTL BA EXPRESSAUN DE INTERESSE ATU HARII SENTRAL ELETRIKA FOIR RUA NO REDE LINHA ELETRIKA NASIONAL

Parlamentu Nasional RDTL
29 Juñu 2008

Iha loron 17 Junhu 2008, ministerio finansas lansa "Konvite ba Hatama Espresaun Interesse no

Proposta" iha sira nina website atu buka kompania neebe hakarak "harii rede energia nasional no sentral eletrika rua ho kapasidade produz 150 too 200 MWs".

Ida nee halo em vez de halo Tender hanesa ita hotu kompreende. Laos tender.

Iha konvite nee dehan katak proposta hotu hotu tenki simu molok ka iha loron 4 Julhu 2008. Ida nee fob a potensial investidores semana rua no loron tolu deit atu hatama proposta ida neebe representa investimentu publiku bot liu iha Timor-Leste nia historia. Tamba sa mak semana rua deit?

Ami sei esplika ami nia suspeita tamba sa mak semana rua deit tuir mai.

Konvite nee husi governu de facto RDTL nian, husi ministeriu finansas no infraestruturas, tatoli mos katak sentral rua neebe atu harii tenki hodi kombustivel "heavy oil", ka iha tetum dehan "mina todan' ka iha portugues "oleo pezado".

Iha Ingles mos iha naran seluk hanesa "residue oil" (mina restu) ka "numeru 6". Naran hirak nee tamba mina nee, mina neebe mosu depois de porsessu refinasaun neebe hasai te ona bensin, mina rai, solar, no seluk, no hela deit oleo ida neebe foir no todan liu. Tamba nee mak hanaran "mina todan".

Folin tomak ba harii sentral rua nee ita seidauk hatene, maibe ita hatene katak governu de facktu orsamenta iha orsamentu rektifikativu osan dolar US$10 MILHOES.

Rede transmissaun no distribuisaun nasional ami hatene ona tamba governu uluk prepara ona programa investimentu eletrifikasaun nasional.

Mina todan nee ita hatene ona katak mina ida neebe foir liu, no nia teknologia atu produz energia nee ida neebe tuan liu. Iha mundu tomak ohin loron rai itoan deit mak sei halau pordisaun energia husi mina todan. Rai neebe sei halau hela sentral hirak nee barak mak buka dadaun atu taka lalais tamba metodo produsaun nee produz poluisaun makas liu neebe estraga ambiente.
Parlamentu nee mos foin ratifika tratadu Kyoto neebe buka hamenus metodo produsaun energia neebe foir hanesan husi mina todan.

Ita bele dehan deit katak mina todan nee aat liu batuk bara. Uluk dehan iha fatin nee katak batuk bara mak atu uza. Diak liu buka opsaun ida neebe diak liu buat rua nee hotu.

Hau hakarak fo ezemplu ida: iha tinan 1973, 16.65% Estadus Unidus Amerika ninia energia produz husi mina todan, maibe ohin loron 0%. Sira taka tamba sentral hirak nee produz polusaun makas. Laos deit sira, iha rai barabarak iha mundu, no mos iha rai besik ita hanesa Indonesia, Australia, Tailandia, Korea no China, ohin loron hotu buka taka sira nia sentral mina todan.

Maibe Timor-Leste buka loke fali.

Ita hotu kompreendi katak Timor-Leste presiza investimentu makas iha sector eletrisidade.

Governu FRETILIn uluk buka dalan ba ida nee no prepara investimentu iha sector ida nee. Ita hotu hatene kona ba hidro eletriku iha Ira lalara no fatin seluk iha Timor tomak neebe bele harii sentral hidro eletriku, estudu hirak neebe klean los no tomak, no mos kona ba gas natural no solar no buat seluk. Governu uluk la halai deit ba buat neebe fasil maibe foir no nakunu ho problemas.

Ami buka solusaun sustentavel no neebe fo vantage ba Povo no ambiente.

Konvite neebe publika husi governu de facto buka sentral rua ho kapasidade 150-200 MWs, no tuir 3.5 apendix ba dokumentu konvite, "projetu tomak, hodi desenhu to hahu halau, sentral no linha transmisaun tenki remata iha tinan ida nia laran hodi assina kontratu". Nee hodi ita kestiona tan buat barak.

Tuir estudu ADB nian iha tinan 2004, iha tinan 2025 Timor-Leste sei presize 109 MWs deit. Ida nee toma konta ona nesedidade kona ba kresimentu ekonomiku, fabrikas neebe atu harii no turismu etc. Tansa mak harii fali sentral 200 MWs iha tempu badak hanesa tinan ida?

Maski it abele harii sentral hirak nee Povo no industria nia kapasidade sei la too iha neeba too tinan sanulu karik. Povo maubere la iha geleira ka AC ka buat seluk neebe uza energia makas hanesa nee. Entaun it abele dehan governu propoen uza sira nia osan ba se nia benefisiu deit? Laos ba sira entaun ba se?

Tamba iha kolega ruma neebe budu hela ka hein hela ho sentral tuan ida iha rai ruma neebe tenki taka no hakarak mai soi iha Timor-Leste? Atu lori mai ita nia rai dobin, nudar rai ida neebe bele soi besi tuan ka?

Timor-Leste sei la presiza 150-200 MWs iha tinan sanulu nia laran. Loke matan ba realidade ida nee Povo Timor-Leste! Governu de faktu nee hakarak foti imi nia osan atu fo kontratu ba sira nia amigus karik? Kontratu ida neebe sei lakon imi nia osan.

Dokumentu konvite la hatete katak sentral neebe buka atu harii tenki foun. Tamba sa mak la dehan tenki foun? Ida nee kondisaun ida neebe normalmente hakerek iha tender ka konvite.

Tamba hatene ona katak iha ida neebe tuan budu hela ka? Ami la divida katak sira nia intensaun mak sentral neebe atu harii la dun presize foun, tamba sira hatene ona sé mak atu lori sentral tuan ida mai. Los ka lae? Governu de faktu tenki hatan deit. Sei ami sala, ami hein deit imi esklarese. Ami hein imi nia hatan sei la los.

Ami suspeita ida nee makas tamba, la iha kompanhia professional ida neebe atu hatan ba projetu bot ida hanesa nee iha semana rua nia laran deit.

La iha mos kompanhia ida neebe seriu neebe bele hahu harii sentral no buat seluk too ramata iha tinan ida nia laran.

Nee hatudu deit,
1. Sira iha ona ema ida neebe sira hakarak fo kontratu bot nee ba, no
2. Sentral tuan ida budu hela deit atu lori mai.

Buat rua nee la diak ba nasaun no povo Timor-Leste tamba ita sei la hetan nem teknologia ida neebe diak no efisienti, no ita la hetan folin diak no sentral no ekipamentus diak tamba tempu badak la fo oportunidade ba kompanhia ida neebe diak iha mundu laran bele hatama sira nia proposta.

Sosa sentral ida ho folin liu USD$300 milhoes laos hanesa hola taxi ka hola trator tempu CNRT neeba.

Ami dehan ho lian makas: nee hili sala no aat bot husi governu de faktu ida nee. Tansa mak la halau ba oin deit estudu murak no sustentavel kona ba hidro eletriku no gas natural, no biomassa neebe la foir hanesa mina toda?

Tamba laos sira nia maluk ruma mak atu hetan osan karik.

Depois tintinan ita sei tenki hola nafatin mina ho folin aas. Maske ita iha ita nia mina rasik, ita sei buka tama iha kuak bot ekonomiku sei ita buka uza ita nia mina deit, tamba loron ruma mina sei laiha ona nusa? Hare deit ba Indoensia nia problema horas dadaun.

Ou tamba assessor ruma mak agora tau fali hanoin seluk? Iha nee, ohin hikas, ami hakarak fo hatene ba assessors neebe lori sira nia agenda mai katak buat neebe sei mosu aat ba ita nia Povo, neebe osan Povo nian mak lakon, amu sei buka imi atu lori hatan ba justisa iha neebe neebe deit mak imi hanoin imi atu halai.

Hau konvida kolegas deputadus hotu neebe hakarak buka lia los kona ba hau nia deklarasaun atu buka le deit Dokumentu Konvite.

Hau hakfodak liu katak dokumentu konvite nee la iha nem lia fuan ida kona ba Tau Matan ba impaktu Ambiental ka impaktu social negativu. La tau obrigasaun kona ba ida nee.

Projetu ida neebe lori kombustivel ida neebe foir liu iha mundu la iha impaktu ambiental? No ita tenki hanoin, bainhira ita kolian impaktu ambiental katak Povu sira mak moris besik liu sentral hirak nee. Sentral hirak nee atu harii iha neebe mos ita seidauk hatene.

Maibe iha loron badak, semana seit, no fulan deit buat hotu hotu tenki pronto ona.

Ami hanoin katak ho attitude ida nee, Povo barak mak sei terus, no porblema barak mak sei mosu. Problemas oioin deit. Problemas hanesa taxi neebe sai besi tuan no hanesan trator tempu CNRT nian karik.

FRETILIN la iha objesaun bainhira iha proposta atu halau prosessu ida neebe bele dezenvolve Povo no nasaun ho responsabilidae no sustentabilidade.

Maibe buat neebe halo sem plane, sem programa neebe diak ba Povo, ami sei kontra. Liliu tamba ami iha nee atu tau matan ba Povo nia osan, Povo nia riku soin. Keta sentral nee mos marka Prado karik?

Ikus liu, ami seidauk haree estudu viabilidade ekonomiku husi governu kona ba proposta projetu bot ida nee. Nee mos it abele dehan, politika hola taxi deit, tamba la interessa ba sustentabilidade ka viabilidade.

Ami la husik imi halau governasaun hanesa ba hola taxi ka trator.

FRETILIN deklara ona: Ami sei la rekonesi arbiru deit akordu neebe governu ilegitimu ida nee halo. Tamba nee ami fo avisu bot ida: sé sé deit mak atu hatama sira nia proposal ba governu de faktu ida nee, husu ba katak sira lori imi nia proposal tomak mai parlamentu atu ami mos bele hare ho diak no aprova, tamba governu de sei hakarak parlamentu aprova selu imi nia investimentu iha tinan tolu tuir mai.

FRETILIN pronto aprova buat hotu neebe transparente, sustentavel no iha folin ba ita nia Povo.
Projetu ida nee halo la liu pratika diak iha mundu kona ba transparensia nem hatudu katak atu iha folin diak ba Povo. Laos mos sustentavel. Hanesa nee ami chumba. Nee Dr Mari Alkatiri hatete ona ba malai sira iha Washington iha fulan ida nee no sira mos konkorda: governasaun tenki transparent no etikal atu FRETILIN bele apoia projetus nasionais neebe sira halau.

Ami hatete klaru ba maluk kontrator neebe hanoin atu investi iha porjetu ida nee: ami sei la selu imi nia osan tuir kontratu neebe imi halo ho governu ilegitimu sei la transparente no sei la aprovadu husi parlamentu nasional.

No mos, sé sé deit mak buka halo kolusi iha prosessu nee nia laran, ami sei hakotu imi nia kontratu tamba kolusi nee krime, no ami sei buka imi iha neebe neebe deit.

Nee avisu todan, maibe ita hotuhotu iha responsabilidade todan: tau matan ba Povo nia osan no rikusoin. Tamba nee mak ami nia liafuan mos todan.

Mak nee deit. Ami sei tau matan kroat ba kestaun ida nee.

Komunikadu Imprensa - Sekretáriu Jeral FRETILIN nian, Dr Mari AlkAtiri fila hikas mai ona Timor Leste

FRENTE REVOLUCIONARIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

KOMUNIKADU IMPRENSA
Dili, 28 Juñu 2008

Sekretáriu Jeral FRETILIN nian, Dr Mari AlkAtiri fila hikas mai ona Timor Leste, sabadu kotuk hafoin halo vizita semana lima ba Europa, Áfrika no Amérika.

Iha konferénsia imprensa halo iha sede partidu nian iha Komoro, Dr. Alkatiri explika katak delegasaun FRETILI lao lemorai, la'os atu fasi roupa foer uma laran nian. Sira husu komunidade international atu continua tulun nafatin Timor-Leste. La'os atu fó osan deit maibé tenke halo mo'os fiskalizasaun ba programas ne'ebé halao ho osan ne'ebé Timor-Leste simu hosi komunidade internasional.

Dr. Alkatiri esklarese katak nia la simu premiu iha Amérika, maibé, simu elojiu bo'ot no hosi ema barak kona ba Fundu Minarai ne'eb hari iha tempu I Governu Konstusional ne'ebé nia rasik lidera.

Kona ba orsamentu rectifikativu ne'ebé Governu ható ba Parlamentu Nasional, ne'ebé a'as liu Orsamentu Jeral de Estadu ba tinan 2008, Dr. Alkatiri hatete : "N'ee hanesan orjia do poder, halo nar'naran deit. Iha orsamentu retifikativu, governu hakarak mo'os hari'i Fundu estabilizasaun ekonómika, ne'ebé husu tokun rihun rua lima nulu , USD$250 milhoens. Dr Alkatiri dehak katak nia la konkorda tamba ne'e "inkonstutusional no la tuir orsamentu minimu. Governu la aprezenta justifikasaun ho programas konkretus ba fundu ne'e. Ida ne'e bele sai deit saku azul hanesan iha tempu Suharto nian. Fundu ne'e ba duni estabilizasaun ekonomika ka bele sai fali fundu ba instabilizasaun polítika?", Dr. Alkatiri husu.

Kona ba presus ne'ebé aumenta ba bei'beik Dr. Alkatiri hatete: " Governu tenki hola medidas urjentes ho tempu badak tebes. La'os fó deit subsídiu. Tenke aumenta produsaun, aumenta servisu, hanoin ba agrikulturam, peskas, atividade lor'loron povu nian, reforsa saúde, edukasaun, trasnporte, ligasaun agrikultura ho komérsiu. La'os aumenta dependénsia povu ba subsídiu. Ne'e la'os governasaun".

Bainhira Dr. Alkatiri hetan ho MCC – Milenniun Challenge Corporation, iha Amérika, sira hatete ba nia katak iha 2006, Timor-Leste avansadu ba simu apoiu hosi MCC, maibé, falha deit maka iha kritériu konsulta popular, la'os tamba iha korupsaun.

Ba mo'os konferénsia ne'e, Prezidenti ASDT, Sr. Franscisco Xavier, Prezidenti Kota, Sr. Manuel Tilman no Reprezentante Prezidenti PPT nian.

Iha sira nain rua nia diskursu sira hatete katak sira hakarak tanen Tilor-Leste no hamo'os korupsaun.

Militantes no simpatizantes FRETILIN hatudu sábadu kotuk katak sira hadomi no iha respeito ba Dr. Alkatiri núdar Sekretáriu Jeral FRETILIN nian no núdar líder istótiku partidu FRETILIN nian ne'ebé sei importante nafatin ba futuru partidu nian no mo'os ba Timor-Leste.

Kontaktu: José Teixeira, tel 727 7080
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Nota adisional: Enkontrus halo iha Amérika: Dr. Alkatiri no José Teixeira, deputadu FRETILIN nian, no eis Ministru Rekursus Naturais, hetan malu ho responsáveis hanesan Sr. Christopher Hill, Asistente Sekretáriu Estadu, Sr. Scott Marciel, Secretáriu-Adjuntu ba Ázia-Pasífiku no Sr. David Price, Prezidenti Komité Demokrasia nian hosi Kaza Reprezentantes nian responsáveis, Nia mo'os hetan funsionárius hosi "United States Agency for International Development", "National Democratic Institute for International Affairs" , " International Republican Institute", "Millennium Challenge Corporation", "Peterson Institute for International Economic Development" no Banco Mundial.

Media Release:Key aspect of Gusmao gun law defeated in Timor Leste parliament

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE

FRETILIN

Media Release
June 26, 2008

Key aspect of Gusmao gun law defeated in Timor Leste parliament

Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão’s de facto AMP government suffered a stunning defeat in the national parliament late yesterday afternoon, when its proposal to grant the sole discretionary power to license civilians to have firearms to the Timor-Leste National Police Commander was defeated. By a vote of 23 votes in favor, 11 against and 3 abstentions, the operative section in the draft proposed law (section 4) was deleted, said FRETILIN’s parliamentary leader, Aniceto Guterres.

FRETILIN holds the largest block of seats in the Timor-Leste National Parliament, 21 seats from a total of 65.

“An alternative motion to amend the important section 4, by considerably limiting the category of persons entitled to be authorized to obtain and carry firearms, was withdrawn during the heated and emotive debate, because the mover of the motion became convinced that the law was too liberal and should be more restrictive of who can have and carry firearms. FRETILIN is happy that the debate was so fulsome and productive that it resulted in even members of parliament allied to the AMP seeing the inappropriateness of the draft law,” said Guterres.

With section 4 struck out, the draft law is in tatters. This was the operative section, and without a substituting clause, the law has no mechanism to authorize the issuing of firearms licenses.

“Those who need to carry weapons in the course of their duties, such as the Defense Forces and Police are able to do so. They have their own laws that permit it. The public do not want to widen that category to include persons for whom it is not essential they have firearms to perform their duty effectively and lawfully. We reject totally the argument by some AMP MPs that many others are potentially in danger whilst performing their duty and should therefore be able to carry firearms. If we apply this category, then Timor-Leste will potentially be like the ‘Wild West’, where everyone will be toting guns. We don’t want that kind of society and its clear neither do our people. Like our people, we reject this ‘armed to the teeth’ approach to living,” added Guterres.

Guterres says that this episode has given both the de facto government and its parliamentary wing the chance to consult with FRETILIN, PUN, PD, PSD, KOTA/PPT and ASDT, as well as its own MPs who opposed the direction of the draft gun laws, to try to find acceptable changes.

“We need consensus on laws such as these. We in FRETILIN will always be open to dialogue towards enacting a sound, workable anti-gun law that embodies our people’s aspirations and that has been attained by consensus. We need a strong law that says, ‘Less Guns in Our Midst! Let’s End the Culture of Violence!’ That's what we all want,” Guterres said in closing.

Contact: Jose Teixeira +670 728 7080
Nilva Guimaraes +670 734 0389