UNMIT

(International news reports and extracts from national media. UNMIT does not vouch for the accuracy of these reports)

PM: Gov will be responsible for the 12 Nov victims – TVTL

Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão said that the government will take into consideration the
demands of the victims and the families of the massacres that took place in the Santa Cruz
cemetery on 12 November 1991. The PM promised that the Government would support efforts to find the sites were victims of the massacre were buried.

PNTL officers suspended for misuse of funds- TVTL

The Minister of Defence and Security has suspended eight PNTL officers who were found to
have misused funds during the Joint Operation Command. The officers have been suspended for three months and will have their salaries reduced. The Prime Minster said that the decision to suspend the officers was based on the results of an investigation into the Joint Operation.

Gov won’t tolerate PNTL who break the law- TVTL

The Minister of Defence and Security has said that he will not tolerate PNTL officers who break the law. This comment was made in relation to the performance of an officer who had organized some youth to attack the police station in Fatumeta on 17 July 2008. The officer responsible was suspended for forty five days during which he did not receive a salary. The Minister said that these measures were part of the reform the Government wanted to initiate in the PNTL.

Prosecutor-General defends secrecy around report- RTL

The Prosecutor-General, Longuinos Monteiro, has defended the decision of the Public Ministry to not publicise the report on the 11 February events as the investigation is sill ongoing. Mr Monteiro said that the report would be revealed once the investigation had ended and the evidence presented to the courts.

Alkatiri doubts ability of AMP to deliver pipeline to TV – Diario Nacional

Fretilin’s Secretary-General Mari Alkatiri said that he doesn’t believe the Government will be
able to convince the Australian Government to create a pipeline to Timor-Leste. According to Mr Alkatiri, the Government’s words cannot be backed with concrete action as there does not exist any current mechanism or law to create such a pipeline.

Telecommunications Decree Law prepared – Tiimor Post

The Minister of Finance Emilia Pires has confirmed that the Government has created a
decree law for communications which would allow another telecommunications company to compete with Timor Telecom. Minister Pires said that the new policy would allow for constructive competition.

New support for rice prices- The Bangkok Post, 19 August

CHATRUDEE THEPARAT & PHUSADEE ARUNMAS- The government plans to begin another rice-pledging scheme in November for the main paddy crop in a bid to shore up domestic rice prices.

Commerce Minister Chaiya Sasomsab said the pledging price would be no less than the 14,000 baht per tonne offered currently for second-crop paddy.

Mr Chaiya said earlier that the price could be as high as 15,000 baht a tonne for regular paddy and 19,000 baht for jasmine rice paddy.

However, exporters warned that proposed higher prices might affect export competitiveness, given the high price gap between Thai rice and rice from other countries.

The government bought 1.2 million tonnes of paddy _ equivalent to around 720,000 tonnes of milled rice _ from farmers under a buying scheme for the second crop that started on June 15. Purchases are due to end on Sept 30.

Mr Chaiya also said that the government was confident it could clear the entire 2.1 million
tonnes of rice in its old stockpile, and another 1.2 million tonnes bought from the latest pledging scheme.

The government yesterday agreed to sell 120,000 tonnes of 15% white rice to Timor-Leste. Thailand will deliver the first lot of 30,000 tonnes under a government-to-government deal at $860 per tonne, with the remainder to be handled by private exporters.

Last week, the government signed a letter of intent to sell 100,000 tonnes of 25% white rice a year via private exporters under a three-year contract with Djibouti.

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

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