Displaced Timorese to return home in next few months

DILI, Timor-Leste, June 30 (Xinhua) -- More than 33,000 displaced Timorese will leave their camps and return home in the next several month, Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos Horta said here Saturday.

Horta told reporters after casting his vote in the capital of Dili that the government has been working more proactively to resolve the problem.

The president said that the government has taken security measures across the country and held dialogues with political leaders to prevent new violence, which has been the main cause of the returning home of thousands of displaced people.

"Many leaders of the displaced have come to talk to me in the last few weeks. They are waiting for the end of the legislative election and many of them want to start moving to some of the transitional centers," said Horta.

Timor-Leste is holding the legislative election on Saturday, which might speed up the establishment of the new government from September to July, according to the electoral commission (CNE).

The president said that for those who lost their houses, the government would build temporary buildings.

"The government will also start accelerating building alternatives place," he said.

Despite overall stable situation in the new country now, the internally displaced people still fear to return home, as they seethe possibility of flaring violence among groups in their residence.

For those who do not want to leave the camps for some reason, the government would improve the condition of the camps, Horta said.

Over 33,000 people fled homes after the unrest that killed 23 people from April to May last year.

The unrest was triggered by the sacking of 600 soldiers by the former Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri, who was forced to resign due to the sacking.

The sacking triggered the resistance led by Major Alfredo Reinado, which then sparked to street-gang fighting.

The situation had been restored after thousands of Australian-led multi-national troops arrived in Dili.

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