Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Re-hashed arms story rejected by Timor-Leste government
REPÚBLICA DEMOCRÁTICA DE TIMOR-LESTE
GABINETE DO PRIMEIRO-MINISTRO PRESS RELEASE
June 19, 2006
Attention: International Affairs Reporter Chief of Staff
For immediate release
Re-hashed arms story rejected by Timor-Leste government
“One hard fact in today's reports in The Age and Sydney Morning Herald is that the company headedby Bader Alkatiri imported 257,000 rounds of ammunition at the end of 2004 for the police force,” said Mr Antoninho Bianco, Minister in the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of Timor-Leste.
“The reports failed to include that this purchase was the result of an open tender, designed with the input of foreign advisers, conducted in afully transparent manner,” said Minister Bianco.“This ammunition purchase is not the basis forany scandalous allegation against anyone in my government,” he said.
The story is a re-hash of a report by Herald writer Mark Dodd from July 7, 2005. It includes another fact that seven high-powered F2000 automatic rifles were imported by a company led by Mr Filipe Sousa-Santos, under a contract led by the United Nations Administration, UNTAET. Mr Santos-Sousa is part of the Carrascalão family,whose leading figure, Mario Carrascalão, is President of the six-member Opposition Social Democratic Party. The 30 armed members of the group led by Commander Railos Vicente were interviewed on the night of June 8 by the ABC 4 Corners reporter Liz Jackson at Mr Carrascalau's villa outside Dili.
“This old story should not divert attention from the really important issue of identifying who distributed arms to civilians in the week of May 22 or before that,” said the Minister Bianco.“Our government is fully involved in supporting this investigation”.
The SMH and Age stories seek to link the import of the ammunition to unsubstantiated reports that secretly imported and distributed arms to civilians such as the Railos group, which is now reported to be 20 armed people located at Liquica, on the coast west of Dili. This tenuous linkage is then used to suggest that the Prime Minister should be investigated and then dismissed by the President.
On June 14, President Xanana Gusmao declared to the Parliament that he would always uphold the Constitution, which does not allow him to dismissthe Prime Minister unless the Parliament itself declares a State of Emergency.
For further comment:
Antoninho Bianco + 670 723 0026
Peter Murphy + 61 418 312 301
Efrem dos Anjos + 670 728 2076
GABINETE DO PRIMEIRO-MINISTRO PRESS RELEASE
June 19, 2006
Attention: International Affairs Reporter Chief of Staff
For immediate release
Re-hashed arms story rejected by Timor-Leste government
“One hard fact in today's reports in The Age and Sydney Morning Herald is that the company headedby Bader Alkatiri imported 257,000 rounds of ammunition at the end of 2004 for the police force,” said Mr Antoninho Bianco, Minister in the Presidency of the Council of Ministers of Timor-Leste.
“The reports failed to include that this purchase was the result of an open tender, designed with the input of foreign advisers, conducted in afully transparent manner,” said Minister Bianco.“This ammunition purchase is not the basis forany scandalous allegation against anyone in my government,” he said.
The story is a re-hash of a report by Herald writer Mark Dodd from July 7, 2005. It includes another fact that seven high-powered F2000 automatic rifles were imported by a company led by Mr Filipe Sousa-Santos, under a contract led by the United Nations Administration, UNTAET. Mr Santos-Sousa is part of the Carrascalão family,whose leading figure, Mario Carrascalão, is President of the six-member Opposition Social Democratic Party. The 30 armed members of the group led by Commander Railos Vicente were interviewed on the night of June 8 by the ABC 4 Corners reporter Liz Jackson at Mr Carrascalau's villa outside Dili.
“This old story should not divert attention from the really important issue of identifying who distributed arms to civilians in the week of May 22 or before that,” said the Minister Bianco.“Our government is fully involved in supporting this investigation”.
The SMH and Age stories seek to link the import of the ammunition to unsubstantiated reports that secretly imported and distributed arms to civilians such as the Railos group, which is now reported to be 20 armed people located at Liquica, on the coast west of Dili. This tenuous linkage is then used to suggest that the Prime Minister should be investigated and then dismissed by the President.
On June 14, President Xanana Gusmao declared to the Parliament that he would always uphold the Constitution, which does not allow him to dismissthe Prime Minister unless the Parliament itself declares a State of Emergency.
For further comment:
Antoninho Bianco + 670 723 0026
Peter Murphy + 61 418 312 301
Efrem dos Anjos + 670 728 2076
Comments:
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19 June 2006
Media getting it wrong about the relationship between the President and the Prime Minister of Timor Leste
FRETILIN’s Sydney spokesperson, Mr Sahe da Silva, today expressed disappointment with claims from sections of the media that there is a political power struggle between the Prime Minister of East Timor, Mari Alkatiri, and the President of the Republic, Xanana Gusmao. The initial reports suggesting that the President would dismiss the elected government, and more recently accusations suggesting that the President was the figure behind the recent attempted coup d’etat, are far from the truth.
There is no power struggle between the Prime Minister and the President. The President, as the Head of State and leader of the independence struggle, has the political and moral authority to deal with the various political groups within the country, particularly during a crisis such as now being experienced in Timor Leste. The Prime Minister, as the Head of Government, based on a 57% majority in the 2001 election, has the legal authority and the political mandate to manage the country. Especially since the violent incident of December 4, 2002, and now during the current crisis, these two leaders have worked in close collaboration to find an effective and lasting resolution. Both understand and have stated that any action taken to resolve the crisis must be within the boundaries of the Constitution and must uphold the rule of law.
During recent weeks, the President, despite intense speculation to the contrary, never requested the dismissal of the government or the removal of the Prime Minister. It was simply never discussed or on the table as a possible solution. There is no doubt that the President and the Prime Minister have different points of view on various issues and that these views are often expressed at their weekly meetings. However, these differences are not evidence of political rivalry, but just a difference of opinion about how the country’s affairs should be managed. This is no different to other democracies where disagreements between key political figures are commonplace and where there exists a certain degree of tension between the various arms of government.
The President’s statement to the Parliament last Wednesday that he would always uphold the Constitution and respect for the rule of law was welcomed by the East Timorese MPs and people. This has effectively signalled, for now, the end of the push by certain local political players to have the Prime Minister undemocratically removed and for a new Government that supports their interests to be installed. It dispels any notion that the President requested the resignation of the Prime Minister, and certainly quashes any speculation that he is behind any attempt to overthrow the Government.
For further comment: Sahe da Silva 0414 807 824
FRETILIN, the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor, was formed on May 20, 1974, to campaign for an independent East Timor, following the April 25 1974 Revolution in Portugal. FRETILIN was a key component in the National Council of Timorese Resistance, created in 1998 to unite all Timorese political parties. CNRT led the campaign for the independence vote conducted by the UN on August 30, 1999. In the Constituent Assembly election of August 30, 2001, FRETILIN won 57% of the votes and 55 out of 88 seats.
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Media getting it wrong about the relationship between the President and the Prime Minister of Timor Leste
FRETILIN’s Sydney spokesperson, Mr Sahe da Silva, today expressed disappointment with claims from sections of the media that there is a political power struggle between the Prime Minister of East Timor, Mari Alkatiri, and the President of the Republic, Xanana Gusmao. The initial reports suggesting that the President would dismiss the elected government, and more recently accusations suggesting that the President was the figure behind the recent attempted coup d’etat, are far from the truth.
There is no power struggle between the Prime Minister and the President. The President, as the Head of State and leader of the independence struggle, has the political and moral authority to deal with the various political groups within the country, particularly during a crisis such as now being experienced in Timor Leste. The Prime Minister, as the Head of Government, based on a 57% majority in the 2001 election, has the legal authority and the political mandate to manage the country. Especially since the violent incident of December 4, 2002, and now during the current crisis, these two leaders have worked in close collaboration to find an effective and lasting resolution. Both understand and have stated that any action taken to resolve the crisis must be within the boundaries of the Constitution and must uphold the rule of law.
During recent weeks, the President, despite intense speculation to the contrary, never requested the dismissal of the government or the removal of the Prime Minister. It was simply never discussed or on the table as a possible solution. There is no doubt that the President and the Prime Minister have different points of view on various issues and that these views are often expressed at their weekly meetings. However, these differences are not evidence of political rivalry, but just a difference of opinion about how the country’s affairs should be managed. This is no different to other democracies where disagreements between key political figures are commonplace and where there exists a certain degree of tension between the various arms of government.
The President’s statement to the Parliament last Wednesday that he would always uphold the Constitution and respect for the rule of law was welcomed by the East Timorese MPs and people. This has effectively signalled, for now, the end of the push by certain local political players to have the Prime Minister undemocratically removed and for a new Government that supports their interests to be installed. It dispels any notion that the President requested the resignation of the Prime Minister, and certainly quashes any speculation that he is behind any attempt to overthrow the Government.
For further comment: Sahe da Silva 0414 807 824
FRETILIN, the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor, was formed on May 20, 1974, to campaign for an independent East Timor, following the April 25 1974 Revolution in Portugal. FRETILIN was a key component in the National Council of Timorese Resistance, created in 1998 to unite all Timorese political parties. CNRT led the campaign for the independence vote conducted by the UN on August 30, 1999. In the Constituent Assembly election of August 30, 2001, FRETILIN won 57% of the votes and 55 out of 88 seats.
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