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

UNMIT United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste

Public Information Unit

Daily Media Review

Tuesday, 12 December 2006

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

National Media Reports

Mari Alkatiri Joins Parliament

Yesterday, former Prime Minister, Mari Alkatiri met with President of the National Parliament to discuss his return to Parliament, reported Diario Nacional. Alkatiri told the media that he has pledged to the people to mainly focus on his party therefore he wants to balance his time between the Parliament and Fretilin. He said he will join the institution on the debate of the electoral bill and once it is approved he will shift his focus to the party. The former Prime Minister said the electoral legislation should have been completed in November but hopes that it will be approved before Christmas to allow for debate and preparation for the elections. He disagreed with postponing the elections for August 2007, stressing that the elections must take place before May 20, 2007. On the proposed electoral bill, Alkatiri would like all parties to convene and debate before raising an uproar, stressing that democracy is imperative for the nation not to experience a similar crisis as the recent one.

On the return of IPDs, Mari Alkatiri said he is willing to contribute to provide support for the government and the institutions by contributing some of his governance knowledge but the issue of the IDPs is dependent upon the government competence. He said that he left a government with lots of money therefore the government has the money to carry out its work. On the internal problems of Fretilin, Alkatiri said it is a process faced by all political parties but somehow people tend to focus on his party, thanking them for their concern but that Fretilin would resolve their problems.

In a separate article, Alkatiri reportedly said that he could not wait around for the justice process, which he considers slow, because he is looking forward and wants to continue working in line with the promises he made on May 20, 2002. (STL, DN, TP)

Catholic Church Acknowledges Cultural Traditions

Director of the Justice and Peace Commission of Baucau Diocese, Fr. Martinho Gusmao said the Catholic Church acknowledges the cultural traditions like the popular religious expression and the participation of the church in gathering around a sacred mat in a traditional house and it shows that the church of Timor-Leste and the people are one and the same in this struggle. Gusmao said cultural activities illustrate moral and ethical strength of the Timorese people. (DN)

Prosecutor General Lacks Will

The Prosecutor General has been accused of lacking the will or intention to resolve the problem by not providing protection to the two eyewitnesses, Rai Los and Labadai, who were in the Public Ministry Office on 30 November, the day of the preliminary hearing for Rogerio Lobato. Jose Luis Oliveira, Director of HAK Association, said such an attitude is not contributing to the efforts of the youth, the President and others in ending the current violence in Dili. He said unless the judiciary system of Timor-Leste functions, the efforts will be worthless. He said that the Prosecutor has the competence to mandate the security institutions as well as ask the police to provide security for the suspects and the accusers. The Director of HAK said the eyewitnesses to Lobato's case were accompanied to Dili by PNTL officers from Liquica District and both were not taken to the court which shows that either the Prosecutor is not honest with his work or does not have good intentions. (DN)

More Than 1000 People Detained By Forces

The Office of the Provedor for Human Rights and Justice issued a communique on Friday stating that international forces and the UN have captured a total of 1,074 people and 38 of this number were children between the ages of 9 and 18. The document said that on 20 November police interviewed two detainees between the ages of 9 and 14 alleged suspects for their involvement in arson and murder in Maubisse, Ainaro sub-district. Both were later released. The communique stated that the data is based on the current human rights situation and that between 24-30 November police in some districts detained 16 people, including 13 year-olds, for alleged involvement in murder. (DN)

Indonesia Willing To Support TL Membership

Indonesian Foreign Minister, Hassan Wirajuda told his Timor-Leste counterpart, Jose Luis Guterres that ASEAN is creating the conditions for Timor-Leste to become a member of the organization. During a meeting in Indonesia, Wirajuda conveyed Indonesia's willingness to provide diplomacy training for the Timorese people and was grateful for Timor-Leste's support for his country to be a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. Indonesia has been supporting Timor-Leste membership into the ASEAN. According to Timor Post, during the meeting Wirajuda also asked Guterres about the latest problems in the country and whether Alfredo Reinado would be a threat to the nation. (DN, TP)

More Advisors for NP

The UN has appointed four jurists to work in the National Parliament, especially with Commission A in charge of the electoral legislation. They are: Marta Pereira, Joana Camara, Jose Kimenga, and Paulo Madeira. In the meantime, the Eventual Commission of the Parliament to analyse the report of the COI in-depth completed their task and have handed in their report to the President of the Parliament. (STL, TP)

International Media Reports

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