Blooberg.com
East Timor Rebel Leader's Capture Is a Priority, Australia Says
By Ed Johnson
Sept. 12 (Bloomberg) -- The hunt for East Timor rebel leader Major Alfredo Reinado, whose escape from prison threatens to destabilize the Southeast Asian nation, remains a ``crucial priority,'' the Australian government said.
Reinado, whose rebel militiamen refused to lay down their weapons after the East Timor government fired around a third of the country's armed forces in March, has evaded a manhunt by United Nations police and international peacekeepers, since breaking out of jail in the capital, Dili, on Aug. 31.
The country's mountainous terrain is hampering the search, Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer and Justice Minister Chris Ellison said in a statement. Media reports that troops had given up the hunt were baseless, they said.
Australia leads a force of international peacekeepers, who were deployed to East Timor in May after the collapse of the country's security forces. Reinado's escape, combined with military weapons in the hands of criminal gangs, create a volatile political climate in the former Portuguese colony as it prepares for elections in 2007, Downer said on Sept. 5.
The Australian newspaper said it interviewed Reinado at an undisclosed location four hours drive over East Timor's main mountain range. Reinado, an Australian-trained former military police commander, said he has no intention of waging a guerrilla war and broke out of prison because the country's judicial system is dysfunctional, the newspaper reported.
...
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terça-feira, setembro 12, 2006
Imaginem se não fosse uma prioridade...
Violence sparks security fear at Dili hospital
News.com.au
From correspondents in Dili
September 12, 2006 05:22pm
Despite the presence of Australian troops and police in the capital, Dili hospital's director said an evacuation was being considered because of deteriorating security.
“I regret that access of patients has been impeded for the three months since Australian troops withdrew,” said Antonio Caleres.
“There is ethnic violence between refugees – both camped in hospital grounds and outside.
“Pregnant women can't come here to give birth, people are afraid to enter, and the windows of four wards have been smashed by rocks,” Mr Caleres said.
He said the hospital's continual requests for full-time security by international forces had been rejected, a claim backed by President Xanana Gusmao's office.
The Dili hospital, located in a suburb racked by ethnic strife, now has 3500 refugees in its grounds – some reportedly armed with bows and arrows and slingshots and who regularly use rocks as weapons.
Mr Caleres said Health Minister Rui Araujo was now considering moving its 260 patients to a former Portuguese hospital at Lahane, behind Dili, but probably there would not be sufficient beds.
However Major Graeme Henley, of the Australian-led Joint Task Force (JTF), said there was no ongoing problem with security at the Dili hospital.
He said Mr Caleres himself had declared security was satisfactory.
“There are constant army patrols there by the JTF as well as by police, and at a recent meeting the director said he was happy with the level of security provided,” Major Henley said.
More than 900 Australian soldiers and 180 Australian Federal Police officers remain in Dili in the wake of ethnic violence which began in April.
The hospital crisis corresponds with a rise of insecurity in Dili as political viewpoints harden behind fugitive rebel Major Alfredo Reinado on one hand and the governing Fretilin party and the army on the other.
Although daily papers today reported that some people were talking of evacuating Dili, amid rumours of “war”, the local director of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said refugee camp managers had not registered significant movement out of the capital.
Luiz Vieira said the security situation was “a mixed bag, really”.
“There's been no deterioration since some serious incidents at the weekend, when Obrigado Barracks (the UN compound) was attacked.
“There are even indications some refugees are returning to their homes in Dili.”
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East Timor seeks Norway's help to get refugees home
Dili (ANTARA News) - East Timor has sought aid from Norway to help
move tens of thousands of people languishing in camps back to their homes, the prime minister's office said Tuesday.
Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta has asked for 4.5 million dollars from Oslo to fund a plan designed to get refugees who fled unrest that has plagued East Timor since April back to their homes.
"Norway is committed to helping us fund and implement the Simu Malu program which is designed to prepare the way for people living in the internally displaced persons camps to return to their homes," Ramos-Horta was quoted by AFP as saying.
He did not however confirm that the money would be provided by Norway,
which he visited for three days earlier this month.
At least 60,000 East Timorese remain in camps in the capital Dili, too
afraid to return home, while up to 70,000 are estimated to be sheltering in camps in other districts.
Residents of the camps have endured intimidation and attacks by roaming
gangs of youths and have complained that the government has not done enough to ensure their security.
International peacekeepers were sent to restore order in the tiny nation in May but say they cannot patrol all of the camps.
East Timor, one of Asia's poorest nations, descended into chaos after some 600 deserting soldiers were sacked in March.
The United Nations agreed last month to send more than 1,600 international police to fully restore stability. (*)
COPYRIGHT © 2006 ANTARA
September 12, 2006
Comunicado - PN
PARLAMENTO NACIONAL
Gabinete de Relações Públicas
Agenda Plenária no. 445/I/4a.
Terça-Feira, 12 de Setembro de 2006
O Plenário do Parlamento de hoje, dirigido pela Sua Excelência o Presidente do Parlamento Nacional, Sr. Francisco Guterres “Lu-Olo”, o II Vice-Presidente Sr. Francisco Xavier do Amaral, o Secretário da Mesa Sr. Francisco Carlos Soares, Vice-Secretárias Sra. Maria Avalziza Lourdes e a Sra. Maria Terezinha Viegas.
O único assunto agendado foi o seguinte:
Informação sobre intervenções recentes da polícia internacional, designadamente em várias datas do mês de Agosto e no passado dia 10 de Setembro, no campo de deslocados situado nas imediações do Aeroporto Internacional Nicolau Lobato, com base em carta dirigida ao Parlamento Nacional pelo coordenador do grupo de cidadãos em causa, José da Costa Gusmão, também recebido, em audiência, por Sua Excelência o Presidente do Parlamento Nacional.
Os Senhores Deputados, Presidentes das Bancadas discutiram amplamente e deram as suas opiniões para a elaboração ou não do Projecto de Deliberação sobre a actuação da Polícia Australiana que não respeita os direitos humanos perante a Polícia Timorense.
Segundo os Deputados, que antes de tomar uma decisão sobre este assunto é necessário obter informações concretas de todas as partes envolvidas no conflito.
E assim, depois de ouvir as intervenções dos Senhores Deputados, a Mesa do Parlamento fez a conclusão de enviar uma carta ao Governo de Timor Leste e também pedir a presença do Sr. Ministro de Defesa e o Sr. Ministro do Interior para dar informação mais completa e concreta em relação ao assunto em epígrafe.
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mais complicado receber ordens de Nova Iorque do que de Camberra...
"I don't know anyone who knows exactly where he (Major Reinado) is. It would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack," Mr Dodds said."
COM. - Mas o Mick Slater não disse já várias vezes que sabia onde estava Reinado?
"While the UN has the mandate to uphold policing, it cannot order the AFP to track down Major Reinado. That has to come from Canberra."
COM. - Ninguém percebe porque só a polícia está procurando Reinado. A tropa australiana não faz nada. Por isso Howard e Downer (com o apoio dos USA e UK) rejeitaram a intenção da ONU de colocar também uma força militar em TL, pois esta iria auxiliar a polícia na sua busca.
Aqui está um exemplo do que queria dizer Howard quando explicou que era mais complicado receber ordens de Nova Iorque do que de Camberra...
H Correia.
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JSMP Submission to the UN Independent Special Commission of Inquiry for Timor Leste
Pode encontrar a documentação aqui.
"JSMP makes the following recommendations:
1. Crimes committed during the crisis period should be processed within the domestic Timorese justice system.
2. Significant reliance should be place on international judges, prosecutors and defence council in order to ensure the capacity, independence and impartiality of those involved in this process.
3. Crisis period cases should be tried by specially designated panels of judges, composed of two international judges and a Timorese judge. Appeals from such cases should also be tried by such a panel of the Court of Appeal.
4. A special division or unit within the Office of the Prosecutor-General should be established for the purpose of prosecuting crisis period crimes. This unit should be headed by an international prosecutor in order to ensure the independence and impartiality of prosecutorial policy and practice.
5. International actors (judges, prosecutors and public defenders) should work together with Timorese probationary court actors.
6. A sufficient number of international lawyers should be employed to work as public defenders, judges and prosecutors.
7. Sufficient other resources must also be provided for, including support staff and logistical resources, in all institutions participating in the processes.
8. Police investigations into crisis period cases should be carried out exclusively by international police in order to ensure actual and perceived impartiality and independence of the police.
9. Every attempt should be made to ensure that persons within the PNTL and F-FDTL who are suspected of having committed crisis-period crimes are tried according to the law. Appropriate screening processes must be undertaken in both institutions to ensure that those who have committed crimes are not permitted to retain their positions.
10. Any processes established must be designed to adequately address the needs of victims. In particular a program should be established for the protection of victims and witnesses from intimidation and violence.
11. Complementary processes should be established to address the needs for community reconciliation and the compensation of victims.
12. Extensive community outreach should be undertaken to ensure that the public understands the nature and purpose of the processes undertaken and are able to adequately access them.
13. In order to ensure that the Commission’s recommendations are implemented, every attempt should be made to seek the involvement of the United Nations Secretary-General and Security Council. For example, the Commission could recommend that if the Parliament of Timor-Leste has not taken steps to implement its recommendations within a specified time period, action be taken by the United Nations."
All JSMP documents referred to in this submission can be found on the JSMP website: www.jsmp.minihub.org.
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Reinado says willing to negotiate with government without returning to prison
12.09.2006
The fugitive Timor-Leste's rebel leader Alfredo Reinado has said he was willing to negotiate with the government about handing himself in, but not if it meant a return to prison.
"I'm ready to face the tribunal, but when everything is fixed," Reinado said in an interview with The Australian newspaper, his first interview with a foreign media since escaping from Becora prison in the capital of Dili almost two weeks ago.
The paper, one of Australia's leading newspapers, said Tuesday that it found Reinado in Timor-Leste's southern mountains.
Reinado called for the Catholic Church and President Xanana Gusmao to lead a national debate on ways to solve the political crisis.
He said the United Nations and international security forces in his country should concentrate on catching other criminals who were worse than him.
He also reserved the right of self-defense, saying he had done nothing wrong and was entitled to protect himself in his own country.
The rebel leader blamed his current plight on a corrupt legal system and self-serving politicians but said he had no intention of waging guerrilla war or taking up arms against his country, according to the newspaper.
Reinado's interview was published after Australian Federal Police spokesman Tim Dodds conceded Monday there were not enough police to comb wide areas of Timor-Leste to track down the Australian-trained rebel leader.
"I don't know anyone who knows exactly where he (Reinado) is. It would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack," Dodds was quoted as saying.
The UN's police commander in Timor-Leste Antero Lopes said that extra numbers, which should start arriving next week, were needed to defeat a wall of silence created by family and friends of the rebels.
"We are getting more police and with more of a police presence we can get a better result," he said.
Source: Xinhua
Claim that President paid major's hotel bill
The Australian
Mark Dodd
September 12, 2006
ALFREDO Reinado, the East Timorese army deserter whose actions ultimately led to the ousting of prime minister Mari Alkatiri, has allegedly received financial help from the country's President.
There are claims that the office of President Xanana Gusmao, a long-term rival of Dr Alkatiri, paid an outstanding hotel bill on behalf of Major Reinado while the rebel leader was on the run earlier this year.
The bill covered the six weeks Major Reinado spent at an isolated, colonial-era mountaintop lodge called the Poussada, outside the coffee-growing town of Maubisse, 75km southeast of Dili.
Staff at the hotel, including assistant manager Julio da Costa, claim the bill was paid by the office of the President.
And Major Reinado, although sceptical of claims the bill was paid by Mr Gusmao, said he could not meet the entire account and he had heard reports it was picked up by the President or his Australian-born wife, Kirsty Sword Gusmao.
The claims, denied by Mr Gusmao's office, raise further questions about the coup-like strike by army officers that ultimately helped the President drive Dr Alkatiri out of office in late June this year.
Angered by what he believed was heavy-handed treatment by Dr Alkatiri and his former interior minister, Rogerio Lobato, in quelling a political protest that left six killed, Major Reinado and 20 other supporters, mostly military police under his command, deserted for the hills.
While a deserter, Major Reinado remained loyal to his commander-in-chief, with Mr Gusmao issuing an order, seen by The Australian, for him and his group to initially base themselves in Aileu, 50km southeast of the capital. But following escalating violence in Dili, Major Reinado moved deeper into the sanctuary of East Timor's mountains, establishing a base at the Poussada.
During the peak of the political crisis in June, Major Reinado's staunch anti-government rhetoric and actions provided a rallying point for anti-Alkatiri forces.
When Australian troops were deployed to the troubled nation, Special Air Service operatives went to the hotel to watch him.
Major Reinado spent six weeks at the Poussada but he moved out without settling his account, accumulating at a rate of $US16.80 per day per room. There was also a modest food and beverage bill, although Major Reinado had a preference for fresh fish from a hatchery pond about 20km away.
According to Poussada staff, Major Reinado's bill was paid by by the President. Mr da Costa, the 32-year-old assistant manager, was clear about this when questioned by The Australian last Tuesday. But within 24 hours, he was less certain. During that time, he had also been spoken to by his boss, lodge manager Maria-Isabel Benevides, whose suspicions had been aroused by the probing questions of her only two guests that night.
The presidential payment is not confirmed by a receipt, although on Tuesday night, the hotel's accounting records, comprising several tatty invoice books scattered loosely on the office desk, had been rearranged and tidied up as if suddenly inspected.
Asked whether the payment claims were true, Mr Gusmao's chief-of-staff, Agio Pereira, said: "No, I don't think so. The President does not have enough money to pay his own police."
Mr Pereira said Mr Gusmao was unhappy about Major Reinado staying at the Poussada because "it was a private business". Major Reinado said he paid some of the bill but not enough to settle the entire account for himself and his armed colleagues.
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Notícias - traduzidas pela Margarida
Afirmação de que o Presidente pagou a conta de hotel do major
The Australian
Mark Dodd
Setembro 12, 2006
ALFREDO Reinado, o desertor das forças armadas Timorenses cujas acções últimamente levaram à saída do primeiro-ministro Mari Alkatiri, alegadamente recebeu ajuda financeira do Presidente do país.
Há queixas de que o Gabinete do Presidente Xanana Gusmão, um rival há muito tempo do Dr Alkatiri, pagou uma importante conta de hotel a favor do Major Reinado quando o líder amotinado estava em fuga mais cedo este ano.
A conta cobriu as seis semanas que o Major Reinado passou numa isolada pousada do estilo da era colonial chamada a Pousada, fora da cidade produtora de café de Maubisse, 75 km sudeste de Dili.
Pessoal do hotel, incluindo o director assistente Júlio da Costa, diz que a conta foi paga pelo gabinete do Presidente.
E o Major Reinado, apesar (de estar) céptico da afirmação de que a conta foi paga pelo Sr Gusmão, disse que não podia pagar a conta por inteiroe que ouvira relatos de que fora paga pelo Presidente ou pela sua mulher Australiana, Kirsty Sword Gusmão.
As afirmações, negadas pelo Gabinete do Sr Gusmão, levantaram mais questões sobre o tipo de golpe disparado por oficiais das forças armadas que ultimamente ajudaram o Presidente a tirar o Dr Alkatiri do gabinete no final de Junho deste ano.
Zangado pelo que acreditou ser tratamento duro por parte do Dr Alkatiri e o seu antigo ministro do interior, Rogério Lobato, em acalmar um protesto político que deixou seis mortos, o Major Reinado e 20 outros apoiantes, a maioria polícias militares sob o seu comando, desertou para as montanhas.
Enquanto desertor, o Major Reinado permaneceu leal ao seu comandante-em-chefe, com o Sr Gusmão a emitir uma ordem, vista pelo The Australian, para ele e o seu grupo se basearem eles próprios em Aileu, a 50 km sudeste da capital. Mas no seguimento da escalada da violência em Dili, o Major Reinado movimentou-se mais profundamente para o santuário das montanhas de Timor-Leste, estabelecendo uma base na Pousada.
Durante o ponto alto da crise política em Junho, a sólida retórica anti-governo e as acções do Major Reinado foram um ponto de reunião para as forças anti-Alkatiri.
Quando as tropas Australianas foram destacadas para a nação inquieta, operacionais da Special Air Service foram para o hotel para o manterem debaixo de olho.
O Major Reinado passou seis semanas na Pousada mas saiu pagando a sua conta, acumulada ao preço de $US16.80 por dia por quarto. Havia também uma conta modesta para alimentação e bebida, apesar do Major Reinado ter uma preferência por peixe fresco dum lago à volta de 20 km de distância.
De acordo com o pessoal da Pousada, a conta do Major Reinado foi paga pelo Presidente. O Sr da Costa, o director assistente de 32 anos, foi claro sobre isso quando questionado pelo The Australian na última Quinta-feira. Mas em 24 horas, ficou com menos certeza. Durante esse tempo, a sua patroa falou com ele, a directora da pousada Maria Isabel Benevides, cujas suspeitas foram levantadas pelas perguntas experientes dos seus dois únicos hóspedes dessa noite.
O pagamento presidencial não foi confirmado por um recibo, apesar de na Terça-feira à noite, os livros de contabilidade do hotel, compreendendo vários livros de facturas espalhadas â solta pela secretária, terem sido re-arrumadas e limpas como se tivesse havido uma inspecção repentina.
Perguntado se a afirmação do pagamento era verdadeira o chefe de Gabinete do Sr Gusmão, Agio Pereira, disse: "Não, não penso. O Presidente nem tem dinheiro suficiente para pagar à sua própria polícia."
O Sr Pereira disse que o Sr Gusmão estava infeliz com a estadia do Major Reinado na Pousada porque isso "foi um negócio privado ". O Major Reinado disse que pagou parte da conta mas não o suficiente para arrumar toda a conta dele próprio e dos seus colegas armados.
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Polícia desiste do amotinado de Timor-Leste
The Australian
Mark Dodd
Setembro 12, 2006
A polícia Australiana e da ONU reconheceram que lhes faltam elementos para perseguir o líder amotinado Timorense Alfredo Reinado, que tem estado em fuga depois de fugir duma prisão de Dili quase há duas semanas.
O major das forças armadas fugitivo, entrevistado pelo The Australian num local secreto, parece em forma, saudável e não assediado pela lei quando lançou um forte ataque a um sistema de justiça "corrupto".
Também disparou um ataque ao novo Primeiro-Ministro, José Ramos Horta, a quem acusou de passar demasiado tempo for a e de fazer promessas que não conseguir cumprir.
Na sua primeira entrevista frente-a-frente com um jornalista estrangeiro desde que fugiu da prisão de Becora, o Major Reinado apelou à Igreja Católica e ao Presidente Xanana Gusmão para liderar um debate nacional sobre modos de resolver a crise política.
Torcendo o seu nariz às tentativas para o recapturarem, disse estar disponível para negociar com o Governo sobre entregar-se, mas não se isso significasse um regresso à prisão. "Estou pronto a enfrentar o tribunal, mas quando tudo estiver combinado," disse.
O The Australian encontrou o Major Reinado nas montanhas do sul do país depois duma semana de prolongadas negociações. Estas envolveram uma série de chamadas para números de telemóveis em mudança, mensagens de texto e a troca de senhas secretas com um dos apoiantes do Major Reinado num encontro a quatro horas de viagem da principal fileira de montanha de Timor-Leste.
O Major Reinado, 39 anos, admitiu que fugiu num veículo de quarto rodas e gabou-se de ter acenado aos soldados Neo-zelandeses quanto partiu. Mas disse que as forças internacionais e da ONU em Timor-Leste se deviam concentrar em apanhar outros criminosos que são piores do que ele.
Mas também se reservou o direito à auto-defesa, dizendo que não tinha feito nada de errado e estava intitulado a proteger-se a ele próprio no seu próprio país.
A polícia agora aguarda um reforço urgente para ajudar a cercar os elementos párias que permanecem uma ameaça no Estado da meia-ilha.
O comandante da polícia da ONU em Timor-Leste, Antero Lopes, disse que extra elementos, que devem começar a chegar na próxima semana, são necessários para derrotar o muro de silêncio criado pela família e amigos dos amotinados.
"Estamos a arranjar mais policias e com mais presença de policias conseguiremos melhores resultados."
O porta-voz da Polícia Federal Australiana Tim Dodds admitiu ontem que não há policias suficientes para cobrir vastas áreas do país e seguir a pista do líder amotinado treinado pelos Australianos, que fugiu da prisão com outros 56 presos em 30 de Agosto.
"Não conheço ninguém que saiba exactamente onde ele (Major Reinado) está. Seria como tentar encontrar uma agulha num palheiro," disse Mr Dodds.
Com cerca de 120 oficiais da AFP, a Austrália tem um dos maiores destacamentos de polícia em Timor-Leste mas, tal como a força militar de 1000 elementos, estão correntemente sob comando nacional e não da ONU.
Ao contrário das forças de defesa, a AFP juntar-se-á à ONU mas continuam as negociações entre Canberra e a sede da ONU em New York acerca dos termos do seu engajamento.
O Major Reinado disse que recentes afirmações de que estava preparado para lutar contra tropas Australianas o zangaram. "Não disse isso. Tenho tido relações boas com os militares Australianos.
"Não estou zangado com a ADF mas com a GNR, sabem o que defendo. Os Portugueses querem silenciar-me," disse.
O Major Reinado treinou na Austrália e a mulher mora em Perth, onde está à espera do quarto filho do casal.
"Tenho muitas saudades deles. Ouvi dizer que o meu puto mais velho está doente. Isso preocupa-me e eles estão sozinhos mas quero agradecer aos Australianos por cuidarem deles," disse.
O amotinado acusou que a sua luta corrente é (contra) um sistema legal corrupto e ao serviço dos políticos mas disse que não tinha a intenção de lançar uma guerra de guerrilha ou de pegar em armas contra o seu país.
O Major Reinado mantém-se orgulhosamente leal ao Sr Gusmão, dizendo que ele era "como um pai ".
"Gusmão é o único líder Timorense a quem (se pode) confiar e o único com capacidade para curar uma nação partida,".
E disse que a sua prisão em Dili por posse ilegal de armas foi tramada por interesses políticos pró-Portugueses destinados a frustrar as conversas de reconciliação planeadas pelo Presidente. Contudo, foi fechado sobre a questão das armas em seu poder.
Disse que estava disponível para negociar com o Governo sobre entregar-se mas não se isso significasse um regresso à prisão. "Estou pronto para enfrentar o tribunal mas quando tudo estiver negociado," disse, repetindo uma longa lista de queixas sobre o sistema de justiça disfuncional de Timor-Leste.
Preso inicialmente com acusações de armas ilegais, foi mais tarde acusado por tentativa de homicídio em conexão com o tiroteio de 23 de Maio envolvendo soldados da força de defesa no qual duas pessoas foram mortas.
"Não se resolve esta crise com armas. Esse tempo passou, meu amigo. Agora é tempo de conversar. Tomaremos alguns cafés, é o que gostaria de fazer, como o diálogo que sugeri," disse o Major Reinado.
Apesar de Mari Alkatiri ter resignado como primeiro-ministro em Junho, disse, "os socialistas de Maputo como Alkatiri" mantém-se nos ministérios, e a influência do antigo primeiro-ministro era ainda evidente.
O Major Reinado disse que a sua fuga da Prisão de Becora em 30 de Agosto foi planeada com duas horas de aviso porque lhe tinha sido dito que o seu pedido para ficar em prisão domiciliária era provável não ser aceite.
Admitiu ter ameaçado um funcionário da prisão para abrir um ou dois portões com cadeados, o que lhe permitiu e a outros 56 presos caminharem para a liberdade.
"Repare, podia ter fugido desde o dia um," disse. "Já viu aquela prisão? Esperei até há hora das visitas. Não envolveu muito planeamento.
"Lembre-se, sou um militar bem treinado e estava preocupado com os meus homens. Não mereciam isto," disse, referindo-se aos seus amigos presos com ele em 25 de Julho.
A desajeitada estrutura de comando da força internacional em Timor-Leste está a dificultar ainda mais a perseguição aos fugitivos.
Enquanto a ONU tem o mandato para fazer o policiamento, não pode ordenar à AFP para perseguir o Major Reinado. Essa ordem tem de vir de Canberra.
O Comissário Antero Lopes, à frente da força de polícia da ONU, admite que precisa de mais homens com boinas azuis e que precisa delas rapidamente, incluindo as Australianas.
Disse ao The Australian que espera dentro de oito semanas ter uma força de boinas azuis suficiente para poder manter a lei e a ordem na capital.
A força de polícia da ONU está projectada ter 1600 elementos, mas dados os pedidos de recursos policiais para outras missões da ONU, é crescentemente duvidoso que o alvo será atingido por países que expressaram interesse.
O comissário Lopes também quer a antiga polícia Timorense de regresso ao trabalho mais cedo do que a AFP, que está a exigir medidas de escrutínio mais apertadas para garantir que nenhum elemento pária seja readmitido ao serviço.
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Polícia considera oferecer um prémio pelos fugitivos Timor de Timor-Leste
ABC News Online
Segunda-feira, Setembro 11, 2006. 8:21pm (AEST)
As Autoridades em Timor-Leste consideram oferecer um prémio nos seus esforços para recapturar 57 presos que estão em fuga há quase duas semanas.
A polícia internacional não está perto de encontrar os 57 fugitivos que saíram pela entrada da frente da prisão de Becora em Dili no mês passado.
O grupo inclui o antigo líder amotinado Alfredo Reinado.
O comandante da polícia Australiana Steve Lancaster diz que Reinado tem estado em comunicação com várias agências em Dili, mas tem conseguido iludir a polícia.
Diz que o Governo de Timor-Leste está a considerar um prémio financeiro.
"Estamos a falar com o procurador e com o Procurador-Geral aqui, e isso é para encorajar as pessoas, se conhecem onde estão, similar ao Crimestoppers... Se a informação for útil e ajudar ao relação ao regresso ou à descoberta desses fugitivos então podemos considerar essas opções de oferecer prémios," disse.
O Comandante Lancaster diz que Reinado ainda se recusa entregar-se.
Diz que até agora a polícia ainda não conseguir encontrar pistas de nenhum dos presos fugitivos.
"Particularmente dentro de Dili, respondemos rapidamente, mas outra vez temos que chegar lá a tempo, antes deles partirem," disse.
"Quando às vezes recebemos muita, muita informação falsa sobre onde estão, assim perdemos alguma energia tentando localizar essa gente."
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Mari Acusa Horta de Golpe de Estado
Unotil
Revista dos Media Diários
Sábado 09 Set, Segunda-feira 11 Set 2006
O antigo Primeiro-Ministro Mari Alkatiri acusou Ramos-Horta de dirigir um golpe de Estado contra a Fretilin. Em resposta à declaração de Horta de que a Fretilin precisa de mudanças na liderança, Alkatiri disse que o corrente Primeiro-Ministro fez todas as movimentações possíveis para o forçar para fora do governo e depois pretendeu apresentar os nomes dos candidatos para o cargo de primeiro-ministro sabendo que era o único que seria Primeiro-Ministro. Falando numa reunião com membros do Comité Central da Fretilin de 13 distritos no Sábado, Alkatiri clarificou aos membros do seu partido que a razão porque saiu do cargo de Primeiro-Ministro se deveram às manipulações do corrente Primeiro-Ministro.
Alkatiri disse ainda que Horta sabia que José Luis Guterres não tinha uma chance de ser o secretário-geral da Fretilin mas usou uma maneira de dividir a Fretilin pondo-se ao lado do ‘Grupo para a Mudança da Fretilin’. O Secretário-Geral da Fretilin disse que todos os membros do CCF tinham concordado manter um diálogo com o ‘Grupo para a Mudança da Fretilin’ ou suspender o grupo por não mais obedecer às regras do partido.
(TP, STL)
Mari Accuses Horta of Coup D’Etat
Unotil
Daily Media Review
Saturday 09 Sept, Monday 11 Sept 2006
Former Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri has accused Ramos-Horta of staging a coup d’etat against Fretilin. In response to Horta’s statement that Fretilin needs leadership changes, Alkatiri said the current Prime Minister made every possible move to force him out of government and then pretended to present the names of candidates for the premiership knowing he was the one who would become Prime Minister. Speaking during a gathering with Fretilin’s Central Committee from the 13 districts on Saturday, Alkatiri clarified to members of his party that the reason he stepped down as Prime Minister was due to the manipulation by the current Prime Minister.
Alkatiri further said Horta knew that Jose Luis Guterres did not have a chance to become Fretilin’s secretary general but used a way of dividing Fretilin by siding with the ‘Fretilin Group for Changes’. The Secretary General of Fretilin said all members of CCF have agreed to hold a dialogue with ‘Fretilin Group for Changes’ or suspend the group for no longer obeying the party’s rules.
(TP, STL)
Police give up on East Timor rebel
The Australian
Mark Dodd
September 12, 2006
AUSTRALIAN and UN police have conceded they lack the numbers to track down East Timorese rebel leader Alfredo Reinado, who has been on the run after breaking out of a Dili prison almost two weeks ago.
The fugitive army major, interviewed by The Australian in a secret location, looked fit, healthy and not harassed by the law as he launched a scathing attack on a "corrupt" justice system.
He also took a swipe at the new Prime Minister, Jose Ramos Horta, who he accused of spending too much time overseas and making promises he was unable to keep.
In his first face-to-face interview with a foreign journalist since escaping from Becora prison, Major Reinado called for the Catholic Church and President Xanana Gusmao to lead a national debate on ways to solve the political crisis.
Thumbing his nose at the attempts to recapture him, he said he was willing to negotiate with the Government about handing himself in, but not if it meant a return to prison. "I'm ready to face the tribunal, but when everything is fixed," he said.
The Australian found Major Reinado in the country's southern mountains after a week of protracted negotiations. These involved a series of calls to changing mobile numbers, text messages and the exchange of a secret password with one of Major Reinado's supporters at a rendezvous four hours drive over East Timor's main mountain range.
Major Reinado, 39, admitted he escaped in a four-wheel-drive vehicle and boasted that he waved to New Zealand soldiers as he left. But he said the UN and international security forces in East Timor should concentrate on catching other criminals who were worse than him.
But he also reserved the right of self-defence, saying he had done nothing wrong and was entitled to protect himself in his own country.
The police are now waiting on urgent reinforcements to help round up the rogue elements that remain a threat in the half-island state.
The UN's police commander in East Timor, Antero Lopes, said that extra numbers, which should start arriving next week, were needed to defeat a wall of silence created by family and friends of the rebels.
"We are getting more police and with more of a police presence we can get a better result."
Australian Federal Police spokesman Tim Dodds conceded yesterday there were not enough police to comb wide areas of the country to track down the Australian-trained rebel leader, who escaped from the prison with 56 other inmates on August 30.
"I don't know anyone who knows exactly where he (Major Reinado) is. It would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack," Mr Dodds said.
With about 120 AFP officers, Australia has one of the largest police deployments in East Timor but, like the 1000-strong military force, they are currently under national and not UN command.
Unlike the defence forces, the AFP will join the UN but negotiations are continuing between Canberra and UN headquarters in New York about their terms of engagement.
Major Reinado said recent claims that he was prepared to fight Australian troops made him angry. "I did not say that. I've had good relations with the Australian military.
"I'm not angry with the ADF but the GNR (Portuguese riot police), they know what I stand for. The Portuguese want to silence me," he said.
Major Reinado trained in Australia and his wife lives in Perth, where she is expecting the couple's fourth child.
"I miss them very much. My oldest kid, I hear, is sick. That worries me and they are alone but I'd like to thank the Australians for looking after them," he said.
The rebel blamed his current plight on a corrupt legal system and self-serving politicians but said he had no intention of waging guerilla war or taking up arms against his country.
Major Reinado remained fiercely loyal to Mr Gusmao, saying he was "like a father".
"Gusmao is the only East Timorese leader to be trusted and the only one with a capacity to heal the broken nation," he said.
And he said his arrest in Dili for illegal weapons possession was concocted by pro-Portuguese political interests designed to thwart reconciliation talks planned by the President. However, he was cagey about the issue of weapons in his possession.
He said he was willing to negotiate with the Government about handing himself in but not if it meant a return to prison. "I'm ready to face the tribunal but when everything is fixed," he said, repeating a long list of complaints about East Timor's dysfunctional justice system.
Arrested initially on illegal weapons charges, he was later charged with attempted murder in connection with a May 23 gun battle involving defence force soldiers in which two people were killed.
"You don't solve this crisis with weapons. That time is past, my friend. Now is the time to talk. We'll have a few coffees, that's what I'd like to do, like the dialogue I've suggested," Major Reinado said.
Although Mari Alkatiri had resigned as prime minister in June, he said, "Maputo socialists like Alkatiri" remained in the ministries ,and the influence of the former prime minister was still evident.
Major Reinado said his escape from Becora Prison on August 30 was planned with two hours' notice because he had been told an application for house arrest was likely to fail.
He admitted to having threatened a prison officer to open one of two steel padlocked gates, which allowed him and 56 other inmates to walk to freedom.
"Look, I could have escaped from day one," he said. "Have you seen that jail? I waited until visiting hours. It did not involve a lot of planning.
"Remember, I'm a well-trained military man and I was worried for my men. They did not deserve this," he said, referring to his friends arrested with him on July 25.
The awkward structure of the command of the international force in East Timor is making it more difficult to track down the fugitives.
While the UN has the mandate to uphold policing, it cannot order the AFP to track down Major Reinado. That has to come from Canberra.
Commissioner Antero Lopes, in charge of the UN police force, admits he needs more men wearing blue berets and needs them quickly, including Australians.
He told The Australian he expected within eight weeks to have a large enough force of blue berets to be confident about upholding law and order in the capital.
The UN police force is projected to be 1600 strong, but given demands by other UN missions for policing resources, it is increasingly doubtful the target will be met by countries that have expressed an interest.
Commissioner Lopes also wants former East Timorese police back on the beat sooner than the AFP, which is demanding tighter screening measures to ensure any rogue elements are not readmitted into the service.
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Police consider offering reward for E Timor fugitives
ABC News Online
Monday, September 11, 2006. 8:21pm (AEST)
Authorities in East Timor are considering offering a reward in their efforts to recapture 57 prisoners who have been on the run for nearly two weeks.
International police are no closer to finding the 57 escapees who walked out the front gate of Dili's Becora jail last month.
The group includes former rebel leader Alfredo Reinado.
Australian police commander Steve Lancaster says Reinado has been in communication with various agencies in Dili, but has still managed to elude police.
He says East Timor's Government is considering posting a financial reward.
"We're speaking to the prosecutor and the prosecutor-general here, and this is to encourage people, if they do know the whereabouts, similar to Crimestoppers... If the information is useful and helpful in relation to returning or finding these escapees then we can look at those options of offering a reward up," he said.
Commander Lancaster says Reinado is still refusing to give himself up.
He says so far police have been unable to track down any of the escaped prisoners.
"Particularly inside Dili, we do respond quickly, but again you've got to get there in time, before they leave," he said.
"When sometimes we do get a lot of, we do get a lot of false reports of crime and false reports of where people are, so we do waste a bit of energy trying to locate these people."
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