[Poster's note: Repeats of international articles already sent out to the east-timor list (info@etan.org) have been removed.]

Saturday 27, Monday 29 January 2007

UNMIT ­ MEDIA MONITORING THE UN INTEGRATED MISSION IN TIMOR-LESTE DOES NOT VOUCH FOR THE ACCURACY OF THESE REPORTS

National Media Reports

Lobato's Trial-Vicente Heard Railos Speak To Xanana

Rogerio Lobato's trial continued Friday with statements from Liquica District Administrator, Vicente dos Santos and Agosto Pereira, the Bazartete Administrator. In his statement, Do Santos said Railos told and showed him the telephone number to confirm President Xanana had called. He also said he heard Railos speak to President Xanana Gusmao during the crisis, adding that Railos himself instigated the problem that occurred in Liquica. Former police commander Paulo de Fatima Martins is scheduled to testify today.

President Xanana Gusmao has stated that he is ready to respond to the court at any time regarding the crisis. (STL, DN, TP)

MUNJ Organizes Protest

Movimento Nacional ba Justisa no Paz (MUNJ) is planning a demonstration in Dili today, 29/1 with the aim to 'shake' the prosecutor general and the judges to work better and to support the judiciary body and to clearly look into the problems. Nino Pereira, MUNJ spokesperson said justice is progressing well but the court should note the evidence, provided so far which he considers sufficient to take to court. In the case of Rogerio Lobato, Pereira said the witnesses have all stated that the former Minister of Interior distributed guns, hence the court must make a decision rather than prolonging the case. He informed that the protest would involve people from all the districts on the second or third day with the youth and the population of the capital, Dili, attending the first day of the event. The spokesperson of MUNG also informed that a total of up to 1000 are expected to join in the activity, which is scheduled to take place in front of Hotel Dili, stressing that it will be a peace protest in cooperation with UNPOL. In the meantime, Major Alfredo has appealed to the people to support the protest adding MUNJ is the organisation that guarantees unity to overcome the problem of 'Lorosae-Loromonu' (STL, TP)

Government And UN Discusses UIR Reactivation

Prime Minister Ramos-Horta is currently discussing with the UN and UNPOL the possibility of reactivating UIR, stressing that 'terrorists group' like the martial arts group that continue to create violence in Dili will be dealt with soon. Ramos-Horta warned that the State is not playing around anymore with anyone who wants to continue with the violence. When questioned what type of measures the government was taking to deal with the problem, the Prime Minister said the government continues to observe the Constitution and the international conventions signed by the State. But in order to be able to operate on the ground, Ramos-Horta said the Parliament must pass legislation required by the government to give power to the police to act. (TP)

Fretilin Will Win Both Presidential and Parliamentary Elections: Alkatiri

Fretilin Secretary General Mari Alkatiri stated during a speech on the party's consolidation gathering as well as at the swearing-in of a member of the Organizing Electoral Commission in Baucau that his party would win the Presidential and the Parliamentary elections in 2007 with greater numbers and that peace and stability would be re-established. He said Fretilin would respect the small and big parties, that the party rejects reconciliation but does not hold hatred or revenge. Regarding the candidates for the Presidential seat, Alkatiri said his party would present the candidate when the election dates are announced, noting that its prerequisites for the candidate for the Presidential Elections include 24 years involvement in the struggle, a roots connection with Fretilin, a respect for the Constitution and they should be neutral. He also said that some Majors running around with guns shows that they are scared of the population and that they do not have power. He said in a democratic environment one does not need guns to win the popularity. Francisco Guterres 'Lu-Olo', also reiterated that Fretilin would easily win the elections. He said the swearing-in of the party members from region 1 is to monitor the campaign and elections of 2007 to ensure that Fretilin wins. (STL, TP, DN)

Signing Of Trilateral Agreement

Following the trilateral signing agreement between Timor-Leste, the UN and Australia on Friday, January 26, Foreign Affairs Minister, José Luis Guterres said the signing of the agreement is important for Timor-Leste as it refers to the sovereignty of the country, the Constitution, the government and it recognizes F-FDTL and PNTL as the defences of Timor-Leste. The Agreement also established a coordination trilateral forum, presided over by Prime Minister Ramos-Horta in the security sector. The Forum would also include Timor-Leste Foreign Affairs Minister, Minister of Defence, Interior, and Permanente Secretary for Defence, Commander F-FDTL, UNMIT representative, UNPOL Commissioner and Commander of International Forces. (DN)

International Media Reports

UN-Australia-Timor Leste Aid Deal Signed

United Nations, Jan 26 (Prensa Latina) Representatives from the United Nations, Australia, and Timor Leste signed an agreement in Dili on Friday, to give aid to that small Asian country.

The memorandum of understanding establishes a Trilateral Coordination Forum that will be used as a mechanism for the Dili government, the UN Integration Mission in Timor Leste, and the International Security Forces.

In that framework, the three parties could analyze security operations, better coordinate their work and share information, according to a report released at UN headquarters.

The signatories agreed that the integration of that tripartite coordination group constitutes an important example of security cooperation among the three countries to promote lasting stability in Timor Leste.

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]

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