Declaração do Primeiro-Ministro Dr. José Ramos Horta à reunião do Conselho de Segurança em Nova Iorque em 12 de Fevereiro de 2007

Statement by
H.E. Dr. José Ramos-Horta
Prime Minister
and
Minister for Defence

Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste
to the United Nations Security Council

12 February 2007

Mr. President,
Excellencies,

Allow me to congratulate you, Mr President, on the assumption of the Presidency for this month and for giving me an opportunity to address this Council today. I would like to commend the Secretary-General for the report before you and its insightful description of the challenges facing my country at this time. I generally concur with its observations and recommendations. On behalf of the Timorese people, I would also like to commend SRSG Khare and his team for their enormous efforts and good work in my country.

Security

Mr. President,

In May 2006 when Portuguese, Australian, New Zealand and Malaysian forces readily came to our assistance, they saw a different Dili; very different from the relative state of calm and order we have returned to today. The PNTL, our Police Service, had disintegrated, the F-FDTL, our armed forces, were besieged.

Since then the security arrangements established on the ground have been working. They provide an indispensable mechanism for coordination and cooperation in the security sector and thereby make an essential contribution to preserving the integrity, national reconciliation, and development of the country.

In the police sector, the Arrangement between the United Nations and my Government on the restoration and maintenance of public security in Timor-Leste is addressing both policy and operational issues of police reform. The Timor-Leste’s National Police (PNTL) screening process is well underway despite some coordination problems in the start up phase. To date, 1098 out of a total of the 1232 Dili police officers have registered for the vetting process. Of these, 604 have already been cleared and 362 have resumed their duties.

My Government would prefer to see a far greater number of PNTL vetted and fully deployed as we believe that the presence of Timorese officers in the streets will help restore confidence and trust of the general population in our national police forces. This will not only strengthen the capabilities of our police but also improve the sense of security among the population, particularly the still too large numbers of displaced.

Also, there is now nearly a full complement of UNPOL officers deployed across Timor-Leste and we expect them to be completely operational at the beginning of the electoral campaign. That will call for extra logistic means; Timorese Government is ready to assist and support the United Nations in these efforts, if necessary.

Under UNPOL Commissioner Rudolfo Tor, the policing operations are starting to have an impact on returning law and order to the streets of Dili. I thank him for his efforts and also wish to thank the previous Acting UNPOL Commissioner Antero Lopes for undertaking a successful planning and operational job with scant resources.

Yet, in view of the still fragile and precarious conditions in my country, the President of the Republic, the President of the National Parliament and I believe it prudent to request the Council to consider the deployment of an additional formed police unit to be provided by Portugal. The Portuguese authorities stand ready provide such a force in the lead up to elections. As the last 6 months have shown that the GNR is a very effective force that has served very well in Timor-Leste in 2001-2003 and again now.

But, Mr. President,

External support cannot be the solution in the long run. Therefore, my Government, supported by the UN, has made it an urgent priority the review and reform of the entire security sector - police and armed forces, including their management and overall governance structure.

The Forca 2020 just issued policy by the Ministry of Defence defines the objectives of the armed forces for the next 15 years and provides an assessment of its needs to face the challenges ahead which includes the creation of a Military academy to improve training and doctrine, the deployment of military personnel to UN peacekeeping missions, or the use of engineering units for civil protection tasks in the case of natural disaster.
To this end, new legislation was adopted, promulgating:

. The regime for military promotions;
. The code of Military Discipline;
. The organic law of the Ministry of Defence;
. Amendments to the organic law of the F-FDTL;
. A draft law on conscription to military service has just been submitted to the Parliament for consideration.

Reconciliation

Mr. President,

Allow me a few words on the status of our Armed Forces, the F-FDTL. As you know I am the Minister of Defence. In this role, I sometimes act more like a Chaplain and moderator, building bridges among the forces and with the communities. Both, President Xanana Gusmão and I have put a lot of effort into healing the wounds between PNTL and the FDTL. A number of joint initiatives are underway to facilitate this.

And, I can proudly say that our Armed Forces have demonstrated remarkable discipline after the tragic events of 25 May 2006. When ordered back to their barracks, they complied. My decision to deploy them to guard the Government Palace has not been challenged. They were the subject of malicious rumours, proven to be spurious. They are wounded, but the combined effect of being cleared of the rumours of mass killings and the resumption of some regular activities is assisting them in healing their wounded pride.

On the issue of the so-called petitioners, we have made some progress. On 27 April 2006 at the height of the crisis, the then Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri, alongside President Xanana Gusmão announced the establishment of a “Commission of Notables” to look into the allegations contained in the petition of the former 594 F-FDTL members. The Commission is expected to release its report shortly, making a number of recommendations for Government action.

On the issue of national reconciliation more generally, I commend all political, community, and church leaders. This includes Norway for engaging Bishop Staalsett, a former member of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, as their Special Envoy. And, the European Commission, through the Club of Madrid, who have also assisted in this dialogue. In particular, I would like to highlight the event of the 10 December 2006, led by President Gusmão, which brought together the national leadership in a traditional peace ceremony during which Timorese leaders publicly acknowledged collective responsibility for the crisis.

President Gusmão also set up a Commission that involved our youth, who are among the most disadvantaged and disaffected in our society. They have not yet earned the dividend of our hard won freedom that we and they had so eagerly expected and fought for. We must pay special attention to them; they need to build a stronger sense of identity through stronger participation in our nation-building efforts and community relations.

The combined efforts of the President’s national reconciliation programme, the Government’s SIMU MALU initiative, my personal engagement, and UNPOL security measures are starting to bring criminal gangs and martial arts groups, primarily recruited from among the jobless youth, under control.

Humanitarian

Mr. President,

The Government’s SIMU MALU policy initiative was borne out of the need to address the then 150,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). SIMU MALU means, in my native tongue Tetum, “to receive each other”, it means that the IDPs are being received back into their home communities, in line with the internationally accepted principal of voluntary return in safety and dignity. The program has been successful to an extent. Still, 25,000 – 29,000 IDP’s continue to live in camps in and around Dili, as an even larger number in the districts.

Efforts are being made to access the real damages that we suffered during the crisis through the development of an emergency reconstruction plan which encompasses a survey in the field that will allow us to plan for the relocation of families.

At the same time, the government of TL has made land available for the building of new housing which, although do not cover all the needs will be a first step in providing support to displaced families, specially the ones that are more at risk.

With the help of Development Partners, temporary houses were built in several areas of Dili to provide shelter for IDPs which are at risk due to the starting of the raining season. I would like to use this opportunity to thank all these agencies and the donor community for their immense efforts and for responding generously to the United Nations appeals as well as for their bilateral and local contributions.

Mr. President,

The violence of last year has led to the destruction of an estimated 2,500 houses, most of them burnt. The often-times violent manner in which many of these people were forced to flee their homes, sometimes under severe and imminent threat to their lives, sometimes intimidated by stone throwing on the roofs of their houses, has brought to light a serious strain on our young country: the violence of today is part of a collective trauma deriving from the violence of our past. Overcoming it constitutes one of the greatest challenges for our generation. We must learn to settle our disputes peacefully and enjoy our individual freedoms responsibly.

Justice

We remain committed to achieve our long term vision for the justice sector – an accessible justice system capable of delivering equal and efficient justice upholding the rule of law and protecting the democratic system of state with the ultimate goal of sustainable growth to the benefit of our people. From a difficult starting paint in 2000 we have come a long way in the construction of our legal and judicial system with clear priorities - development of the legal framework for the country; institutional and human resources capacity development alongside with increased legal awareness amongst the population in general. With the support of like-minded partners and through the UNDP we are slowly but steadily progressing. With focused systematic capacity development strategies and coherent training programmes in-country we have now, since mid 2006, a small but qualified cadre of Timorese court actors working alongside and under the mentoring of over 15 international judicial practitioners.

However, the 2006 crisis has had an enormous impact on this nascent judicial system that was being created to deal with a normal development scenario. The system is determined to provide justice to the people and contribute to restore social peace. Clear steps have been taken in that sense with several sensitive cases being investigated and already on trial. But due to the additional burden and complexity of the caseload that resulted from the events of April and May 2006, the system is clearly overstretched and not prepared to deal with this post crisis scenario. The State is united and determined to see justice done. The principal framework of assistance that the UN is providing to the sector must be enhanced so that we respond to the immediate needs of justice delivery without loosing sight of our long term goal – capacity development of our institution and human resources. It is a two-fold battle that we are facing – delivery of quick, efficient and impartial justice as recommended by the Special Commission of Inquiry alongside the long term endeavour of forming (not reforming) a judicial system from scratch, knowing that evidence indicates that processes of judicial reform in any country need 10 to 15 years to bear fruit. High and unrealistic expectations without adequate support to fulfil them can create unnecessary anxiety and lead us to failure in both battles.

Notwithstanding our national reconciliation policy, we cannot accept impunity. Several cases presently under trial, including the former Interior Minister and F-FDTL soldier’s cases, demonstrate our commitment for equal and efficient justice.

In the case of Major Alfredo Reinado, and others implicated in the violence of May 2006, my Government, with United Nations support, has opted for dialogue - a prudent approach so as to ensure that justice prevails without the use of force. I am cautiously optimistic that we may be able to persuade Mr. Reinado to present himself to justice voluntarily.

Elections

Another critical element of Timor-Leste’s path to restoring stability will be this year’s Presidential and Parliamentary elections. Parliament has recently adopted the electoral laws governing both elections; they provide a legal framework for a parliamentary, multi-party, party-list system, with a twenty-five per cent female representation quota, and for the establishment of an independent electoral commission (Comissão Nacional de Eleições). The UN’s Election Certification Team has provided constructive feedback in their three reports to date. They are being considered in the regulations to be submitted for approval by the CNE and in the discussions of an interpretative law.

The President has set the date of the Presidential election for 9 April 2007 and will announce the date of parliamentary elections immediately following the Presidentials. According to the electoral law of Timor-Leste, parliamentary elections must be held no less than 80 days after that announcement.

I am confident that with the extensive support from UNMIT, the presence of international observers, and the internationally supervised body of laws and processes in place, we can organize and conduct peaceful, free, fair and transparent elections. Let the elections 2007 become the same popular display of hope, confidence, and enthusiasm that they were on the memorable day of 30 August 2001.

Petroleum

Mr. President,

Another cornerstone of Timor-Leste’s development is its economic stability, in particular the further exploitation of its petroleum reserves. Timor-Leste is blessed with significant natural resources that, if well managed, may guarantee of our economic future.

The Petroleum Fund which was established to guarantee transparency in managing Timor-Leste’s national petroleum income and to ensure that future generations will benefit from our resources entered into effect only two years ago, has already 1 billion US dollars.

The National Parliament will soon ratify two agreements with Australia related to the exploration of the Greater Sun Rise field. We expect the parties would immediately begin further investments that will bring additional significant revenues to Timor-Leste within a few years.

In this context, I would like to commend my predecessor, Dr. Mari Alkatiri, for his able and pragmatic leadership on the negotiation of all petroleum treaties. I would also wish to put on record Australia’s Prime Minister John Howard and Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer for their equally pragmatic and sensitive approach in the negotiations in regard to the 3 treaties.

Conclusions

Mr. President,

In my inaugural speech as Prime Minister of Timor-Leste on 11 July 2006, I emphasized that I would govern as an advocate for the poor. Poverty eradication, progress towards reaching the Millennium Development Goals, and establishing the conditions for Good Governance will thus continue to be the guiding principles of my Government.

Already, we have

· Increased the number of ‘cash for work’ programmes;
· Expedited the rural development programme across all villages;
· Ensured that Chefe de Sucos have better and more resources to do their jobs”;
· Increased scholarships for the young;
· Provided financial support to widows, including those affected by last year’s events;
· Undertook a review of the tax system, supported by IMF;
· Streamlined the business development process, including legislative changes to ensure that doing business and creating jobs in Timor-Leste becomes more attractive.

But, Mr. President, building a state, from almost zero, is a Herculean task. And that is why, at this critical juncture, we need your, the United Nations, continued support and sustained commitment to successfully master this long and arduous task.

When I look at our own region and the success stories of Singapore, Malaysia, the Republic of Korea, and others, I am reminded that success did not come overnight. It was the result of decades of dedicated and disciplined institution-building, socio-economic development, massive investment in vocational training and education, and the ability to convert set-backs into opportunities for the future.

I do not wish to make excuses for our own shortcomings in the area of governance. But, I believe that all of us have a better understanding of the challenges now than we had 6 years ago. I therefore plead with you to stay the course with us, in order to turn Timor-Leste eventually into a lasting success story. The extension of UNMIT’s mandate for another 12 months would be a first instalment towards this end.

Thank you, Mr. President.

May God, the Almighty and the Merciful bless you all.
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