quinta-feira, junho 08, 2006

Vigaristas, intriguistas... sempre os mesmos.

Alkatiri alleged to have recruited armed group

The World Today - Thursday, 8 June , 2006 12:26:00

Reporter: Liz Jackson

ELEANOR HALL: Claims are emerging in East Timor today of an armed group whose members say they were recruited on the instruction of Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri to destroy his political opponents.

Mr Alkatiri has today denied those claims, which were made to Liz Jackson of the ABC's Four Corners program, and Liz Jackson joins us now in Dili.

So Liz, you met this group last night. What did they tell you about their connection to the Prime Minister?

LIZ JACKSON: Well, basically they were a group of about 30 men who came to meet us very late at night. A number of them had travelled three, four hours to be at the meeting. They came at about 12 o'clock, one o'clock at night.

They claim that they were recruited by the former Interior Minister, Rogerio Lobato, on the instructions of the Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri.

And they say that they were asked to do two things: one, to settle down differences between those people from the east and the west of Timor, but also far more seriously they claim that, three of them claim... the central leadership of this group claim that they knew their mission and were specifically told their mission was to eliminate political opponents, to eliminate the so-called petitioners group and people who break the Fretilin rules.

ELEANOR HALL: And what did you understand by this term eliminate? Did you… a political term, or, you know, a term that actually involves killing people?

LIZ JACKSON: Well, I did specifically ask that question and they said specifically that the Prime Minister said that they should kill political opponents.

I should add that they claim… they don't claim that they have actually done that. They don't claim to have killed political opponents.

But they do claim that they were formulated to last a year, until the next elections, and that their job was to intimidate the support.

ELEANOR HALL: Were they given weapons?

LIZ JACKSON: Oh, they brought weapons. I mean, they brought weapons to the meeting last night. I mean, they claim, and give dates and times of places where they were given weapons and people who gave them weapons. They say that in all they had 18 assault rifles, 6,000 round of ammunition, two vehicles and uniforms.

ELEANOR HALL: They claim they were given weapons. By whom?

LIZ JACKSON: Well, they say basically organised by the former Interior Minister Rogerio Lobato.

ELEANOR HALL: And Liz, just who are these people? How do you verify their claims?

LIZ JACKSON: Well, that's extremely difficult. I mean, I think that one thing that you can clearly verify is that they are civilians and they do have weapons. So that in itself is a matter of concern.

In terms of verifying their claims, they've given us a list, a full list, of the 30 names of the people.

So I suppose to the extent that they're prepared to put up their hands in the current climate and say: "We are people who… former Falantil fighters, who have accepted weapons on behalf of the present Government and senior ministers within that Government" - their preparedness to face up to that puts it one stage above second-hand rumours.

And as I say, there's no doubt that they are people who are well armed. They're a highly disciplined group. And this was the message they wanted us to put out into the public domain and put to the Prime Minister.

ELEANOR HALL: Why do they want this message out there now?

LIZ JACKSON: I think they're part of a… they clearly have an interest in seeing the removal of the Prime Minister.

ELEANOR HALL: Now, you've since spoken to…

LIZ JACKSON: I mean they explicitly state that…

ELEANOR HALL: Sorry, you've since spoken to Mr Alkatiri. How did he respond to these claims?

LIZ JACKSON: Well, he said that he didn't know the leader of the group.

He said yes, he did know Commander Reilos (phonetic). He did accept that he'd met him on the day that was listed in the chronology, but said that none of the matters that Commander Reilos suggested had been put to him were put to him.

And he just said it's one more attempt to demonise him, it's one of the many rumours, and denied absolutely that a Fretilin secret security team existed.

ELEANOR HALL: Liz Jackson in Dili, thank you.

6 comentários:

Anónimo disse...

Não está preocupado Senhor Ramos Horta?

Anónimo disse...

Estou mesmo a ver o grupo de "manes" à 24 horas a ir ter com a Liz e a contar-lhe tudo.
Lindo!

Anónimo disse...

Ah!Ah!Ah!
Será que há cidadãos australianos a acreditarem nisto?!

Anónimo disse...

Já agora um esclarecimento os "mane" do Alkatiri falaram com a Liz em que língua?
Não vá haver confusões conforme houve com o Comandante dos militares australianos. Conforme o mesmo afirma mesmo falando em Inglês as palavras são diferentes o que pode gerar "confusão".

Anónimo disse...

But there is also good and fair australian press!


Stand up, the real Mr Alkatiri
Email Print Normal font Large font June 1, 2006
Page 1 of 2 | Single page
While Alkatiri was being told by Australians he should resign, the Portuguese and other leaders were wishing him well and urging him not to.

Advertisement
AdvertisementThe Australian Government and media have demonised East Timor's PM without knowing all the facts, writes Helen Hill.

Ever since the August 2001 elections for the Constituent Assembly in East Timor - when the longest-standing party of resistance, Fretilin, won a convincing 57 per cent of the vote against 14 other parties - I have observed among Australian embassy employees in Dili, and most Australian journalists who write about Timor, a readiness to criticise Mari Alkatiri, East Timor's Prime Minister, on grounds that show they barely know anything about him.

The Bulletin and The Australian regularly recommend his overthrow. The week before the Fretilin congress in Dili, the ABC joined them as regular Alkatiri critics. Jim Middleton on the ABC's evening news wondered "what would happen if Alkatiri decides to resist" calls for his resignation, and uncritically put to air claims from a sacked Fretilin central committee member alleging that 80 per cent of the central committee was against the Prime Minister. A week later, after further violent episodes in Dili, we saw Maxine McKew on Lateline trying to put words into the mouths of MPs Malcolm Turnbull and Peter Garrett: "Wouldn't you say there's not much support for Alkatiri?" How could they possibly know, if all they saw were the Australian media?

Who is Mari Alkatiri and why does he arouse such hostility from Australian politicians and media presenters? While Alkatiri was being told by Australians he should resign, he was also taking phone calls from the Portuguese and other prime ministers, wishing him well and urging him not to.

With Jose Ramos Horta, Alkatiri helped found Fretilin when, back in the early 1970s, it took the form of a clandestine group of young people meeting under the nose of the Portuguese colonialists in front of the building where he now has his office. On the eve of the full-scale Indonesian invasion, Alkatiri, who had already graduated as a surveyor in Angola, was sent with Ramos Horta and Rogerio Lobato to put Timor's case at the United Nations. His exile lasted 24 years, but it was productively used; he studied law and economics at Eduardo Mondlane University in Mozambique, with South African exiles and others struggling for freedom. Mozambique had offered scholarships to any Timorese students who could qualify for admission, and it was this group, who worked in many professions on graduating and gained a great deal of experience in economic development, who now form the backbone of the public service. In Mozambique, Alkatiri learnt a great deal about international organisations and how to avoid falling into some of the traps Mozambique had encountered. His negotiating skills that the Australian Government finds so fearsome were gained during this period.

Anónimo disse...

Aqui esta o link para a pagina internet do ABC com os links para as imagens video dos 30 homens armados que alegam ser o braco armado da Fretilin com a missao de eliminar os oponentes do PM:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200606/s1658942.htm

Traduções

Todas as traduções de inglês para português (e também de francês para português) são feitas pela Margarida, que conhecemos recentemente, mas que desde sempre nos ajuda.

Obrigado pela solidariedade, Margarida!

Mensagem inicial - 16 de Maio de 2006

"Apesar de frágil, Timor-Leste é uma jovem democracia em que acreditamos. É o país que escolhemos para viver e trabalhar. Desde dia 28 de Abril muito se tem dito sobre a situação em Timor-Leste. Boatos, rumores, alertas, declarações de países estrangeiros, inocentes ou não, têm servido para transmitir um clima de conflito e insegurança que não corresponde ao que vivemos. Vamos tentar transmitir o que se passa aqui. Não o que ouvimos dizer... "
 

Malai Azul. Lives in East Timor/Dili, speaks Portuguese and English.
This is my blogchalk: Timor, Timor-Leste, East Timor, Dili, Portuguese, English, Malai Azul, politica, situação, Xanana, Ramos-Horta, Alkatiri, Conflito, Crise, ISF, GNR, UNPOL, UNMIT, ONU, UN.