[Poster's note: International and other articles already sent out to the east-timor list (info@etan.org) have been removed from below.]

Daily Media Review Monday, 12 September 2006

National Media Reports

Major Alfredo Is Not The Only One Demanding Justice: Bishop Basilio

The Bishop of Baucau, Don Basilio do Nascimento said Major Alfredo is not the only one demanding justice, everybody is demanding it. The Bishop stated he doesn’t know whether the slowness of the justice process is due to the conditions or the lack of capacity and hopes there are no other interests preventing the process from taking place. Don Basilio is of the opinion there must be an explanation for the escape of the prisoners from Becora jail. He said the biggest threat is the loss of faith in the State institutions. He appealed to the community to fully understand the justice process because it is a fundamental that everybody demands justice and it is also important that that accused are provided a fair court hearing and should not be punished merely by public demands. The Bishop of Baucau said all citizens must obey the law regardless of whether they are ministers or from the majority party and each group should not make their own laws. In the meantime, MP Leandro Isac said the population would create a popular revolution if the International Forces and F-FDTL will join forces to recapture him.

STL reported Cecilio Caminha Freitas, Chairperson of East Timor Person’s Action (ETPA) NGO as saying that the joint patrol by Australian Military and F-FDTL is a mockery and like asking the people to kill each other. Freitas said the time is not appropriate yet to involve the Timorese on these activities, stressing F-FDTL and PNTL were in conflict four months ago and their involvement in patrolling should be delayed until the investigation process and evaluation is complete. He stressed that the fact that the President and the former Prime Minister requested international forces means that the two national forces can no longer provide security and stability. The ETPA chairperson said the involvement of members of these two national institutions might have a negative impact on the community due to the recent conflict between the two institutions and it is not yet know who was involved in different cases. According to STL, in an interview with RTTL, Prime Minister Alkatiri rejected that there is a joint patrol between F-FDTL and the international forces explaining that the F-FDTL members are cooperating with the international forces under their guidance. (TP, STL)

Justice Is Progressing Well, Claudio Must Be Replaced: De Jesus

According to Aderito de Jesus, a human rights advocate, the justice in Timor-Leste is progressing well and in a fair manner but he wants to ask SRSG Sukehiro Hasegawa to replace the President of the Court of Appeal for many mistakes that he has made, including the decision in favor of Fretilin’s second congress. De Jesus said Claudio Ximenes does not have the capacity to sit on the Court of Appeals as he is working in the capacity of a Timorese but earning an expatriate’s salary due to his contract as a foreigner while in charge of a sovereign body of Timor-Leste. He said SRSG Hasegawa must have the courage to expel Ximenes and replace him with an international judge that has the capacity and experience to carry out a judgment in an impartial manner in the country. The human rights lawyer says Claudio Ximenes must be replaced by a capable and experienced judge for Timor-Leste to get out of this crisis. He said the UN should not contract Timorese with Portuguese passports who do not have the capacity for this job because it only increases the problem in the country. Aderito wants the UN to be responsible for the weakness of the justice system and not to wash their hands of it. On the judges from CPLP countries, Aderito de Jesus said their contribution had worsened the situation in Timor-Leste. But the President of the National Parliament, Francisco Lu’Olo Guterres said the justice system is functional in Timor-Leste therefore it should not be touched. He said it has been impartial and has achieved a lot for the Timorese including providing training, said Lu’Olo. On the question of Ximenes having a Portuguese passport, Lu’Olo said the constitution of Timor-Leste allows dual citizenship therefore he is not denied Timor-Leste citizen even though he holds a Portuguese passport.

In a separate article, Aderito de Jesus said Mari Alkatiri’s accusation stating that Ramos-Horta manipulated him to step down as Prime Minister is a political waste of time and there is no strong evidence to substantiate the accusation.

MP Jose Nominado Buras (PD) said the leaders should not use political compromises to cover each other in relation to justice. MP Xavier do Amaral (ASDT) said the accusation by Mari Alkatiri against Ramos-Horta is a statement to shift the attention of the people from the allegations against Alkatiri alleging that he distributed guns to civilians and puts the blame on the current Prime Minister for the crisis that emerged.(TP, STL)

RTTL news headlines

11-09-2006

Airport IDPs laments about International Forces and PM Horta

Representatives of the IDPs at the airport met the National Parliament on Monday to protest the actions of Australian forces who reportedly broke into their camps and arrested and beat some IDPs including some security guards. Speaking to journalists after the meeting at NP, one of the IDPS also lamented about the attitude of PM Horta who had shown no interest in them. Horta had reportedly said that he had worked very hard but that the IDPs had made him suffer so. Replying to an IDP who said it was the leaders who had made them suffer, Horta reportedly replied that in 30 years he never taken a cent from the Timorese people.

CCF asked PM Horta not to promise too much

FRETILIN Central Committee, CCF, has reportedly decided to ask the Prime Minister Jose Ramos Horta not to make too many promises. Speaking to journalists in Manatuto on Sunday, the Deputy Secretary General, Jose Reis, said that it has always been FRETILIN’s principal not to make any promises to the people, as they are sick of empty promises. Hence, by making too many undeliverable promises, the image of FRETILIN could be affected.

International Media Reports

Note from UNMIT Public Information Office:

An article which appeared in 8 September 2006 Daily Media Review international media reports, ("Downer's big stick for East Timor") was published by The Guardian, a weekly newspaper of the Communist Party of Australia and not The Guardian, a daily published by Guardian Unlimited in the United Kingdom

Returning Timorese refugees not in danger, Australian police say

Tuesday, September 12, 2006. 6:28am (AEST)

Australian police in East Timor believe a group of refugees forced to return to Dili will not be in any serious danger. Thirty-seven East Timorese flew out of Darwin yesterday after their three-month visas expired. They had sought asylum at the height of East Timor's unrest in May, with many losing their homes in the violence and still fearing for their safety. But the Commander of Australian police in Dili, Steve Lancaster, says despite sporadic incidents of violence, there is no reason for any to feel in danger. "There's a vast area in Dili that is safe for people to come home for most Dili people, and the people who seem to be getting hurt are those who are actually engaging in the gang fights or just wanting to get involved," he said. "If those who choose to stay away, they do, they can find those safe areas to go."

Reinado negotiations

Meanwhile, authorities in East Timor have been in communication with the former rebel leader Alfredo Reinado who is still on the run from jail. International police believe Reinado and many of the other 56 prisoners who escaped from prison last month are hiding in the mountains behind Dili. Commander Lancaster says authorities have followed up countless leads on the prisoners' whereabouts only to arrive somewhere and find they have already gone. But he says Timorese authorities have been in negotiations with Reinado. "He has been in discussions with other agencies and the Government and, as you're well aware, he's certainly been putting himself in the media spotlight as well," he said. "All we can actually do is just actively encourage him to bring himself in and discourage him from getting involved in any violent or any political, sort of, options." (ABC)

NATIONAL NEWS SOURCES:

Timor Post (TP) Radio Timor-Leste (RTL) Suara Timor Lorosae (STL) Diario Tempo (DT) Diario Nacional Seminario Lia Foun (LF) Televisaun Timor-Leste [TVTL]

These Items Do Not Reflect the Position or Views of the United Nations. UNOTIL Public Information Office

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