sexta-feira, abril 20, 2007

Operação militar para 'caçar' Alfredo Reinado

Correio da Manhã, 2007-04-20 - 00:00:00


Ramos-Horta reúne-se com rebeldesO ex-deputado Leandro Isaac encontrou-se ontem com o primeiro-ministro timorense, José Ramos-Horta, em representação do ex-chefe da polícia Alfredo Reinado.

Isaac, que abandonou o cargo de deputado para se juntar a Reinado nas montanhas, adiantou que pediu a Ramos-Horta – que vai disputar a segunda volta como candidato da Fretilin, Francisco Lu Olo – que sejam suspensas as operações militares para apanhar o ex-chefe da polícia.

NOTA:

Alfredo Reinado era o chefe da polícia militar.

Ramos Horta sofre críticas por reunião com rebelde timorense

EFE – 20 de Abril de 2007, 00:58

Díli - O presidente do Parlamento do Timor Leste e candidato à Presidência do país, Francisco Guterres, criticou hoje a reunião de seu adversário na disputa eleitoral, o primeiro-ministro José Ramos Horta, com o comandante rebelde Alfredo Reinado.

Ramos Horta admitiu ontem ter se encontrado com Reinado, que mantém um grupo de 200 jovens armados.

Guterres disse à Efe que o primeiro-ministro deveria ter informado previamente ao Parlamento a sua intenção de falar com o militar foragido.

O chefe do Governo timorense se defendeu da acusação argumentando que foi a Same para entregar remédios doados pelo Governo da Espanha. No local, encontrou o congressista Leandro Isaac, também representante de Reinado, que propôs o encontro.

O objetivo do comandante rebelde era discutir sua possível entrega às autoridades para garantir assim a estabilidade do país.

"Reinado continua sendo um fugitivo da justiça, mas faz parte do povo e deve ser ouvido", declarou Ramos Horta, prêmio Nobel da Paz em 1996.

Reinado, que fugiu da prisão em agosto do ano passado, após ser detido por posse ilegal de armas, é hoje a principal ameaça à segurança nacional no Timor Leste.

Cinco pessoas morreram em março quando soldados da Austrália e Nova Zelândia tentaram capturar o rebelde e seus homens em Same, cerca de 50 quilômetros ao sul da capital.

Guterres, líder do partido Fretilin, e Ramos Horta, candidato independente, se enfrentarão no dia 8 de maio no segundo turno das eleições presidenciais.

East Timor: Hunt for “rebel” military leader called off

WSWS - 20 April 2007
By Patrick O’Connor

East Timorese presidential candidate and current prime minister, Jose Ramos-Horta, announced on Tuesday that he was calling off the pursuit by Australian soldiers of “rebel” military leader Alfredo Reinado. The former major is wanted for attempted murder and illegal firearms possession, charges relating to his mutiny and attacks on government forces in May last year. Reinado, who has close links with the Australian military and President Xanana Gusmao, played a significant role in Canberra’s campaign last year to unseat former Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri. The decision to suspend the pursuit and negotiate terms for a voluntary surrender raises further questions about Reinado’s provocative record.

Ramos-Horta’s announcement comes amid ongoing political manoeuvring in the aftermath of the first round of the presidential election on April 9. The national electoral commission released its final tally on Thursday, with Fretilin’s Francisco “Lu-Olo” Guterres winning the highest vote of 27.9 percent. Ramos-Horta won just 21.8 percent and finished only marginally ahead of rival opposition candidate Fernando “La Sama” de Araujo, on 19.2 percent. The losing candidates have threatened to challenge the results in the courts before the run-off ballot between the two leading candidates is held next month.

There is no doubt that Ramos-Horta’s decision to suspend the search for Reinado is bound up with his desperate attempt to secure support in the second round of voting. The initial ballot revealed that despite his constant promotion in the Australian media, Ramos-Horta has no genuine social base. He won relatively few votes outside the capital, Dili. With East Timor’s eastern districts solidly pro-Fretilin, Ramos-Horta aims to increase his vote in the western districts. For this, De Araujo’s support is critical, as he received almost all of his electoral support from this area. Ramos-Horta’s announcement that the pursuit of the former major was being called off came just days after he declared his intention to meet with the losing candidates, including de Araujo.

Reinado had publicly backed de Araujo’s presidential campaign, as had wide sections of the most right-wing layers of East Timorese society, including the Catholic Church. Father Martinho Gusmao, the Church’s representative on the national electoral commission, publicly endorsed de Araujo days before the vote. De Araujo has close connections with leading figures associated with the Indonesian military and the pro-Indonesian militias who inflicted widespread destruction in 1999 during the independence referendum. By calling off the pursuit of Reinado, Ramos-Horta was issuing an appeal to these reactionary elements to support his bid for the presidency on an anti-Fretilin platform.

The prime minister, however, could not have acted without the prior knowledge and permission of the Australian forces in East Timor. About 1,100 Australian troops, including at least 100 elite SAS forces, continue to occupy East Timor. They were initially dispatched in May last year, after the Howard government seized upon unrest in Dili, which had been partly instigated by Reinado and his men, in order to extend its control over the country and Timor Sea oil and gas. The troop deployment was portrayed as a humanitarian operation but, like the 1999 military intervention, was driven by the economic and strategic interests of the Australian ruling elite.

The Howard government’s first aim was to oust Alkatiri, who was viewed as an obstacle to these interests. The Fretilin leader had developed close ties with Portugal and China and had also forced Canberra to make some limited, though costly, concessions relating to its exploitation of the Greater Sunrise gas field. Alkatiri resigned in June after ABC television’s “Four Corners” accused the prime minister of forming a “hit squad” to assassinate his opponents. These charges have since been dropped due to lack of evidence. Reinado similarly alleged that before he mutinied, Alkatiri had ordered him to fire on anti-government demonstrators. Again, no proof was provided.

The exact nature of Reinado’s connections with Canberra remains unclear. He lived and worked in Australia in the 1990s, returning to East Timor in 1999 after the Indonesian government agreed to hold a referendum allowing formal independence. After joining the East Timorese armed forces, Reinado received military training in Canberra. His wife and children still live in Australia.

Australian troops made no effort to detain Reinado after they landed in East Timor last May. With the encouragement of President Gusmao, Reinado and his men had withdrawn from Dili to their base in the central mountains. He remained a public figure, issuing regular denunciations of the Fretilin government, for which he was feted in the Australian press. Gusmao’s staffers, media personnel and Australian soldiers were regular visitors. After Reinado was arrested on weapons charges by Portuguese police last July, it emerged that the house used to store these weapons was directly opposite an Australian military base in Dili.

In another highly dubious development, a month after his arrest, Reinado was able to literally walk out of Dili’s prison. East Timor’s Justice Minister Domingos Sarmento alleged that New Zealand forces guarding the gaol had been withdrawn just days before the breakout, while Ramos-Horta reported that Australian authorities had turned down several requests for troops to be posted outside the facility. Both Canberra and Wellington denied responsibility for the incident.

In the months after his “escape,” Reinado continued to issue various public statements. He accused Ramos-Horta of being weak and too dependent on Fretilin. In this way, the former major served as a useful means for Canberra to maintain the pressure on the East Timorese government and parliament.

In February, President Gusmao and Prime Minister Ramos-Horta negotiated a deal with Reinado on his surrender, but this collapsed after the parliamentary president (and now candidate for president proper), Fretilin’s Francisco Guterres, rejected the agreement because it was unconstitutional. Ramos-Horta subsequently authorised an Australian military raid. The Howard government dispatched an additional 100 SAS troops for the operation, and on March 4, Australian and New Zealand forces attacked the former major’s base in the central mountain town of Same. Five of his followers were shot dead, although Reinado again managed to escape.

How this happened has never been explained. Dozens of heavily armed and highly trained special forces, backed up by military helicopters and armoured personnel carriers, launched the operation in the middle of the night. Despite having monitored the area for weeks and being equipped with night vision goggles, the troops were unable to prevent Reinado and the majority of his men from disappearing.

The most plausible explanation is that the Australian operation was never aimed at capturing Reinado. It is unlikely that Australian forces have subsequently made any genuine efforts to capture him. While military spokesmen insisted that troops, including the SAS personnel, were “on the hunt” for Reinado, the fugitive continued to issue public statements and grant interviews to the media during the presidential election campaign. An ABC “Foreign Correspondent” camera crew met him in the jungle less than a fortnight after the raid in Same. There is no doubt that Australian intelligence could have pinpointed his location had they wanted to; an entire Australian agency, the Defence Signals Directorate, is devoted to monitoring overseas electronic communications.

Ramos-Horta’s announcement that the “pursuit” was now being called off was barely reported in the Australian media and has met with no official response from the Howard government or the Australian military. A spokesperson for the foreign ministry in Canberra told the World Socialist Web Site that they would not comment because it was an issue for the defence ministry, while the defence ministry insisted it was an issue for the East Timorese government.

No announcement has been made of any withdrawal of Australian personnel, including the 100 SAS troops the government claimed were needed for the Same raid. Such an announcement is unlikely until the elections are finalised. The real reason for the troop build up was to bolster Australia’s military forces in preparation for the presidential election as well as the parliamentary vote scheduled for June 30. Having expended considerable resources on ousting Alkatiri last year, Canberra is determined to prevent Fretilin from regaining power. The Howard government hopes to ensure the defeat of Guterres in next month’s run-off ballot and then engineer an anti-Fretilin government based on President Gusmao’s new party, the National Congress for Timorese Reconstruction (CNRT), after the parliamentary vote.

These plans rely upon election results going Canberra’s way. If they do not, there is every possibility that East Timor will be plunged back into violence. The Australian military is already playing an increasingly aggressive role and there will no shortage of pretexts and provocations in the next period, particularly with Reinado now enjoying a free hand.

"Lu Olo" mantém posição no boletim de voto da segunda volta

Díli, 20 Abr (Lusa) - Francisco Guterres "Lu Olo" mantém a posição de candidato número um no boletim de voto da segunda volta das presidenciais, marcadas para 09 de Maio, conforme o sorteio realizado hoje no Tribunal de Recurso.

O candidato número dois é José Ramos Horta.

A ordem dos candidatos no boletim de voto foi sorteada pelo presidente do Tribunal de Recurso, Cláudio Xímenes, na presença de representantes dos dois candidatos.

Francisco Guterres "Lu Olo", presidente do Parlamento e candidato da Fretilin, obteve 27,89 por cento dos votos nas eleições de 09 de Abril.

José Ramos Horta, primeiro-ministro e candidato independente, foi o segundo mais votado, segundo os resultados finais provisórios da Comissão Nacional de Eleições.
PRM-Lusa/Fim

Notícias em inglês´- 20 de Abril de 2007

Canberra Times - Friday, April 20, 2007

Opinion: Presidential Election Results a Worrying Portent for East Timor
George Quinn

East Timor's National Electoral Commission has confirmed that a run-off will be held on May 9 between the first-round front runners in the country's presidential election.

Francisco Guterres (known as "Lu Olo"), supported by powerful ruling party Fretilin, will face Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jose Ramos Horta, an "independent" who will be widely supported by anti-Fretilin voters. But at the local district level an ominous trend has emerged in the first round of voting. The pattern of voting is casting a shadow over the second round and over the parliamentary election due on June 30.

According to interim figures, Francisco Guterres dominated polling in the three eastern-most districts of the country, easily scoring more votes there than all other candidates combined. In Viqueque, for example, he scored 20,512 votes, drubbing his nearest rival Ramos Horta who managed just 5627 votes.

But in the west of the country it was a totally different story. In districts along the border with Indonesian West Timor, and in the Oecussi enclave, Francisco Guterres scarcely troubled the scorer. In Bobonaro district Guterres collected just 4701 of the 35,426 votes cast (these are interim figures, but I think they will be close to correct). In neighbouring Ainaro he appears to have scored 2428 of 22,154 votes cast.

In Covalima, Oecussi and Ermera he did a little better but averaged only about 20 per cent of the vote.

In short, voting patterns appear to confirm a deep cleavage between east and west in East Timor. Between March and June last year when the nation's army fractured into hostile halves and Dili erupted into gang violence, the trouble was widely attributed to hostility between the country's easterners and westerners.

East-west resentment still simmers in the streets and refugee camps of Dili, kept in check only by the watchful presence of United Nations police and Australian troops.

In the first round of the presidential election, the Fretilin candidate attracted just under 30 per cent of the total vote. If Fretilin's support in the parliamentary election remains at a similar level (and this appears likely) the party will be decimated in parliament, possibly clinging to as few as 20 seats in the new 65 seat assembly (down from 55 seats in the current 88 seat assembly). Of course, it is by no means certain that voting in the parliamentary election will exactly mirror the presidential result, but there can be little doubt that Francisco Guterres will lose, and lose heavily, to Ramos Horta in the second round of the presidential election. And if the subsequent parliamentary election can be kept clean, Fretilin will be thrown from the back of Timor's exuberantly bucking mass of voters.

Fretilin, the ruling party since independence in 2002, richly deserves the hiding it is about to get.

While former prime minister Mari Alkatiri pursued cautious fiscal policies, locking up oil and gas revenues in trust funds that will yield steady long-term income, he failed dismally to address his nation's more immediate problems. To a shocking degree, the rural infrastructure (market buildings, country roads, clinics, homes) destroyed in the militia mayhem of 1999 remains untouched. In Dili, unemployment is the norm for the many thousands of young men who have flocked into the city since independence. It is their frustration that ignited much of the violence in the city last year.

The rank and file of Fretilin supporters, especially the hard-liners at the centre of government, won't take kindly to election defeat. For them, Fretilin and independent East Timor go together. After the sacking of westerners from the East Timor Defence Force last year, the army is now overwhelmingly staffed by soldiers from the east. They have been humiliated by Alfredo Reinado leader of the sacked westerners who remains at large in the mountains of the interior revelling in his Scarlet Pimpernel popularity among the disaffected western youth of Dili.

A Fretilin loss in the second round of the presidential election may be tolerable (just) to Fretilin hard-liners.

After all, the presidency is a largely symbolic-ceremonial office, and since independence they have learned to live with a non-Fretilin president in Xanana Gusmao. But real power resides in parliament, and the parliamentary election will be fiercely fought. All the signs are that in the parliamentary election Fretilin is unlikely to significantly raise its current 30 per cent of voter support.

Its only hope of a good result is to keep the turnout of anti-Fretilin voters low. There is, then, a real chance of intimidation and rough-house tactics in the campaign and in polling on June 30, and if this happens it will have to happen in the country's west.

To this volatile mix add east-west ethnic hatreds and guns. The eastern-dominated army has strong Fretilin allegiances. If Fretilin comes a cropper in the parliamentary election, or if it attempts to seize the election by intimidation and manipulation, it is possible that we will see renewed tension across the country. By July there may well be a face-off between a defeated Fretilin with its army allies, and a western-dominated, non-Fretilin government. Even with peacekeeping troops and UN police thick on the streets this could be a formula for trouble.

- George Quinn heads the South-East Asia Centre in the Faculty of Asian Studies, ANU College of Asia and the Pacific. He was an international election observer in the recent first round of East Timor's presidential election.


Jakarta Post - April 20, 2007

Will Timor Leste polls turn violent?
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta

Just burn one house, and the whole of Timor Leste will fall into chaos.

That's how observers described the fragility of Asia's youngest nation after rival security forces clashed in Dili, sparking gang warfare that killed 37 people and forced more than 150,000 others to flee their homes in May last year.

Violence has reportedly broken out almost every day since then, with machete-wielding gangs roaming the streets, setting homes on fire and shooting each other. More than 3,000 international peacekeeping troops, mostly from neighboring Australia, struggled to keep order.

Against this backdrop, it is understood that international and local observers were quite surprised by the peaceful process of the April 9 presidential election.

They praised it as a great achievement of the Timor Leste people and a clear sign of their maturity in democracy.

While the peaceful election should make Timor Leste's people proud, the United Nations and international observers, including the European Union, should remain cautious and careful that the worst period is yet to come.

The subsiding violence has a lot to do with Timor Leste's political elites who tend to have a "wait and see" attitude. Whoever ignited and was involved in the violence that hit the country over the last year is waiting for who will win, not only the presidential election but also the parliamentary election.

These groups will also want to see if both elections are won fairly or unfairly.

In other words, the semblance of peace during the campaign period until the vote counting shows that the violence that preceded the election process was not community-based in nature and beyond the control of ordinary people. It was the elite's struggle for power. The Timor Leste people as a whole desperately want to live in peace and build a better future for their children.

With the presidential election stretched to a runoff between Fretilin's Francisco Guterres and Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta on May 9, the immediate threat to national stability could come from supporters of the Democrat Party's Fernando Araujo Lasama, who finished third.

Lasama has shown his disappointment with the vote count and has said he suspected many irregularities and fraud had tarnished the poll. He has said he will challenge the election result unless his demand for a ballot recount is heeded.

Democrat Party supporters, mostly youths who are quite militant, loathe both Fretilin and Ramos-Horta. During the campaign period, they often clashed with Fretilin's supporters, leaving some of them injured.

Lasama's supporters have always blamed Fretilin, the ruling party, for the prolonged crisis of the past five years and are demanding a change of guard. They don't like Ramos-Horta for ordering the arrest of Maj. Alfredo Reinado, the widely-supported rebel leader among Timor Leste youth.

Many have suggested that the imminent threat of violence could be prevented if Ramos-Horta and Lasama could reach a deal on the issue of fugitive Reinado and vote for Ramos-Horta in the run-off. Otherwise, the disappointment could accumulate and explode at any time.

The next potential threat will loom after the 9 May run-off in which the presidential winner will be decided. During an interview with The Jakarta Post, Fretilin's most influential figure, Mari Alkatiri, made it clear that the party was seeking the post heavily.

"Because we can work with whoever becomes the prime minister or whichever party leads the parliament as long as we secure the presidential post," he said.

Although Alkatiri has made it clear that his party members will not perpetrate violence should they lose the presidential election, it remains to be seen how effective it will be in restraining certain militant wings in the party.

If Ramos-Horta wins the presidency, and Fretilin wins the parliamentary election, and subsequently the prime ministerial post, then Timor Leste will emulate the unproductive five years under Xanana Gusmao as the president and Alkatiri as the prime minister with a Fretilin-controlled parliament.

To make matter worse, the same groups that sparked the recent violence will be back into action.

Fretilin will celebrate a double win in presidential and parliamentary elections. But what will happen if they lose both? Will supporters of the party, the symbol of independence struggle, accept the defeat and not resort to violence?

In any case, the Timor Leste political elite must learn from their people, who have shown their patience and maturity in practicing democracy. They managed to put national interests behind short-sighted political goals.

- The writer is a journalist at The Jakarta Post.



ABC - Friday, April 20, 2007. 2:00pm (AEST)

Unsuccessful candidates appeal against E Timor election results
By Anne Barker

Three of the losing candidates in East Timor's presidential election have lodged a formal appeal against the results in court.

East Timor's Electoral Commission has formally announced the results of voting in last week's election.

No candidate won a majority, so the two frontrunners, Jose Ramos-Horta and Fretilin candidate Francisco "Lu Olo" Guterres, will contest a runoff election in early May.

But the results allowed a 24-hour window for candidates to appeal.

Now three of the losing candidates, Fernando de Araujo, Lucia Lobato and Francisco Xavier do Amaral, have done so, protesting to Dili's District Court.

They have alleged widespread manipulation of the vote on polling day and other serious irregularities.

They want the court to declare the first round result invalid.


United States Agency for International Development (USAID) - 19 Apr 2007

East Timor – Complex Emergency Fact Sheet #1 (FY 2007)

U.S. Agency For International Development Bureau For Democracy, Conflict, And Humanitarian Assistance (DCHA) Office Of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA)

Background

- In April 2006, the commander of East Timor's armed forces, with the support of the former Prime Minister, dismissed nearly 600 soldiers who were protesting alleged discrimination against military personal from the western part of the country. The dismissals exacerbated existing political and social tensions, and resulted in riots, confrontations between the police and military forces, and subsequent clashes involving youth gangs due to the absence of law and order. Approximately 150,000 East Timorese were displaced at the height of the violence, according to the U.N. and humanitarian monitoring organizations.

- The unrest prompted the deployment of international peacekeeping forces in May 2006, and the establishment of the U.N. Integrated Mission and an international police force in August 2006.

NUMBERS AT A GLANCE SOURCE
Total Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) 100,000 OCHA(1) – March 14, 2007
IDPs in Dili camps 30,000 OCHA – March 14, 2007


USAID HUMANITARIAN FUNDING PROVIDED TO DATE (FY 2006 AND FY 2007)
USAID/OFDA Assistance to East Timor: $1,970,836
USAID/FFP(2) Assistance to East Timor: $3,400,000
Total USAID Humanitarian Assistance to East Timor: $5,370,836

Current Situation

- The U.N. estimates that as of March 2007, approximately 100,000 people remain displaced, with 30,000 IDPs located in camps near the capital city of Dili, and 70,000 living with host families in other districts. In January 2007, violence and arson displaced approximately 5,000 people in Dili, according to OCHA.

- On April 9, 2007, East Timorese residents voted for a new president in the first locally-organized election since independence from Indonesia in 2002. Foreign election observers, including representatives from the European Union, reported the election was generally orderly and peaceful. A run-off election will occur on May 8.

(1) U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
(2) USAID's Office of Food for Peace

Relatório na íntegra em:

http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/DHRV-72F5E6/$File/Full_Report.pdf

PRIMEIRO-MINISTRO SUSPENDE de novo A SUA ACTIVIDADE GOVERNATIVA

Gabinete do primeiro-ministro

INFORMAÇÃO À COMUNICAÇÃO SOCIAL 20 de Abril de 2007

Segunda volta da Eleição Presidencial

Como aconteceu durante o anterior período de campanha eleitoral, o Primeiro-Ministro Dr. José Ramos-Horta vai suspender a sua actividade na chefia do governo entre os dias 23 de Abril e 7 de Maio - correspondentes ao período de campanha eleitoral para a 2ª volta da eleição presidencial.

O 1º Vice-Primeiro-Ministro Engº Estanislau da Silva assumirá nesse período a função de Ministro Coordenador e Ministro da Defesa em exercício.

A lei eleitoral não impõe a suspensão da actividade governativa durante o período de campanha. Apesar disso, o Primeiro-Ministro entende que a deve suspender para separar claramente a actividade do governo e a campanha política, garantindo o funcionamento transparente das estruturas do Estado e prevenindo conflitos de interesse ou situações de vantagem entre candidatos.

No mesmo sentido, enquanto em campanha eleitoral, o Dr. Ramos-Horta não utilizará telefones ou viaturas oficiais nem qualquer outro meio do Estado, tal como nunca utilizou, em nenhuma circunstância, veículos oficiais em visitas de carácter particular.

O Dr. Ramos-Horta determinou ainda que todo o pessoal do seu gabinete permaneça ao serviço, dando todo o apoio necessário ao Vice Primeiro-Ministro Estanislau da Silva.

The UNMIT Deputy Special Representative meets with PNTL officials throughout the country

UNMIT
19 April 2007

Dili, Timor-Leste – The Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Security Sector Support and Rule of Law, Mr. Eric Tan, travelled to Liquica district, 20 km west of the capital, to meet with representatives from the United Nations Police (UNPOL) and the Policia National Timor-Leste (PNTL).

The trip was part of a series of visits conducted by the DSRSG to discuss security concerns surrounding the just-completed and upcoming elections.

Speaking at the PNTL station, the DSRSG commended the officers for their professionalism in carrying out their duties throughout the electoral process.

“Smooth elections do not come naturally or accidentally but because of your hard work. We depend on your continued assistance to ensure that the upcoming elections remain free of violence,” Mr. Tan said.

Touching upon the security issues surrounding the elections, the Deputy Special Representative urged the officers to look out for any incidents of intimidation. “Voting is the right of every individual,” he said, adding that “intimidation is an offence that could lead to arrest.” More importantly, he urged the PNTL to ensure that no such incidents occur within their units.

During the meeting, other issues discussed included UNMIT support and security developments throughout the electoral process. The DSRSG has also met with PNTL officials in Gleno, Manatuto, Baucau and Viqueque.

For further information please contact UNMIT on +670 7230453

UNMIT - Security Situation

This is a broadcast of the UN Police in Timor-Leste to provide you with information about the security situation around the country.


Thursday, April 19, 2007

The security situation around the country is stable, but yesterday there was serious fighting in Bairo Pite, Dili.

At approximately 1930hrs last night, UNPol received reports of around 50 people fighting in Bairo Pite junction. UNPol and Formed Police Units arrived on the scene and dispersed the crowd, but not before three people were injured by shots fired from a pistol and another two were injured by steel darts. The wounded are all are reported to be in a stable condition. One person was arrested for possession of an illegal weapon.

Today in Dili, UNPol attended four incidents and conducted a total 44 patrols. This morning, UNPol and the National Investigation Division attended the office of Timor Telecom to investigate a suspected break in. In the afternoon, the windscreen of UNPol car was smashed by unknown assailants in Bairo Pite junction.

Yesterday in the Districts, a 16-year-old girl discovered a suspected grenade in Los Palos. The PNTL are now in possession of the item, and the Portuguese Formed Police Unit has been dispatched today to deal with it.

In Baucau, three people threw rocks at a house in Trilolo village. The suspects ran away as UNPol and PNTL arrived, but have been identified and will be called into questioning today.

In Bobonaro, there was fighting between rival groups on 17 April in the Sibuni area of Bobonaro subdistrict, and tensions have remained high. To counter the problem, UNPol and the PNTL are engaging in community policing discussions with key members of the community. They also plan to bring in political coordinators of opposing parties to negotiate peaceful solutions to the conflict.
Separately, the National Investigation Division and the Forensics Unit are investigating the murder of a young girl that occurred in Manatuto on 10 April. The crime scene has been examined, and three witness statements have been obtained.

The Police advise to avoid traveling during the night to the most affected areas. Report any suspicious activities and avoid traveling the areas affected by disturbances. Call 112 or 7230365 to contact the police 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

This has been a daily broadcast of the UN Police in Timor-Leste, for the people of Timor-Leste

O primeiro-ministro e o antigo guerrilheiro

“Former guerrilla leader Francisco ‘Lu’Olo’ Guterres of the ruling Fretilin Party won 28 percent of the vote while his opponent, Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta, received only 22 percent.”


Que tal os jornalistas lembrarem-se que os candidatos não "são" primeiro-ministros? Por essa ordem de ideias, Lu-Olo teria de ser referido como presidente do parlamento, por acaso, segunda figura do Estado...

Tribunal Recurso aprecia casos difíceis das presidenciais

Díli, 19 Abr (Lusa) - O Tribunal de Recurso de Timor-Leste começou hoje a apreciar as queixas e reclamações enviadas pela Comissão Nacional das Eleições ou apresentados directamente pelos candidatos às presidenciais de 09 de Abril.

A CNE entregou formalmente ao Tribunal de Recurso a acta conjunta de apuramento e as actas finais de cada uma das 705 estações de voto de todo o país.

As situações em análise não envolvem um número de votos suficiente alterar o resultado provisório anunciado no dia 18 de Abril pela CNE: Francisco Guterres "Lu Olo" lidera com 27,89 por cento dos votos, seguido de José Ramos-Horta, com 21,81 por cento, afirmou à Lusa uma porta-voz da CNE, Maria Angelina Sarmento.

Cláudio Xímenes, o juiz que preside ao colectivo de magistrados que aprecia as queixas e reclamações, não se limitou a receber os documentos mas questionou o presidente da CNE, Faustino Cardoso, e os restantes comissários.

O juiz foi persistente nas origens da diferença entre número de votantes e número de votos em várias estações de voto.

Faustino Cardoso começou por responder aludindo a "inconsistências" mas, perante a insistência de Cláudio Xímenes, admitiu que houve casos em que desapareceram os envelopes dos votos nulos e dos votos reclamados.

Na acta de apuramento nacional há cerca de 600 votantes a mais do que o número total de votos.

Maria Angelina Sarmento explicou à Lusa no final da sessão que "em alguns distritos, Baucau, Covalima, Ermera, Manatuto e Manufahi os fiscais dos candidatos apresentaram directamente queixas para o Tribunal de Recurso".

No caso de um sub-distrito em Ermera, os votantes não puderam exercer o seu direito porque os boletins de voto acabaram antes das 16:00, hora do encerramento das urnas.

"Os eleitores continuaram lá e ninguém apareceu com os boletins para que eles pudessem exercer o seu direito de voto".

Há queixas de estações de voto em que os fiscais dos partidos foram convidados a assinar a acta antes mesmo de se iniciar a contagem dos votos.

Há alguns casos, poucos, de "cidadãos indonésios que foram obrigados por um administrador a votar usando o seu cartão de eleitor".

Dois dos candidatos, Fernando "Lasama" de Araújo, do Partido Democrático, e Lúcia Lobato, do Partido Social Democrata, estiveram durante a tarde na sede da CNE para colocar várias questões relacionadas com a queixa apresentada pelo primeiro directamente no Tribunal de Recurso.

"'Lasama' e Lúcia Lobato questionaram muitas coisas mas finalmente foi dito que este é um processo que acontece pela primeira vez e que os casos podem ser resolvidos no Ministério Público e pelo Tribunal de Recurso", explicou Maria Angelina Sarmento.

"Há cerca de sete queixas apresentadas directamente ao Tribunal de Recurso", disse Maria Angelina Sarmento, mas até hoje à noite a CNE ainda não tinha recebido cópia desses processos.

A divulgação final dos resultados das presidenciais não está pendente da conclusão das investigações do Ministério Público.

O juiz Cláudio Xímenes anunciou para sexta-feira de manhã o sorteio da ordem no boletim de voto dos dois candidatos à segunda volta das presidenciais, marcada para 09 de Maio.

PRM-Lusa/Fim

Timor-Leste/Eleições: Confrontos entre partidos rivais em Gleno e Bobonaro

Díli, 19 Abr (Lusa) - Confrontos entre militantes de partidos rivais em Gleno, distrito de Ermera (a sudoeste de Díli), provocaram hoje um ferido e obrigaram à intervenção e permanência de militares da GNR, declarou à Lusa fonte oficial das forças de segurança.

"Este incidente ficou, por enquanto, resolvido" e está a ser investigado para apurar responsabilidades e, porventura, confirmar a filiação partidária dos grupos rivais, disse a mesma fonte.

Na terça-feira, um confronto semelhante entre dois grupos ocorreu na área de Sibuni, no subdistrito de Bobonaro (oeste), "e a tensão continuou alta", segundo o relatório de segurança diário da Polícia das Nações Unidas.

"Para inverter a situação, a UNPol e a Polícia Nacional estão envolvidos em discussões com os membros mais importantes da comunidade".

"A UNPol e a PNTL pensam também trazer à discussão os coordenadores dos partidos políticos rivais para negociar soluções pacíficas para o conflito", acrescenta o relatório da polícia internacional.

A situação de segurança por todo o país tem sido em geral calma no período pós-eleitoral, desde as presidenciais de 09 de Abril, incluindo na capital.

O incidente mais grave ocorreu na noite de 18 de Abril, quarta-feira, no Bairro Pité, na periferia sul da cidade, onde confrontos de rua envolvendo cerca de 50 pessoas provocaram três feridos por arma de fogo.

A Polícia das Nações Unidas dispersou a multidão e deteve um indivíduo por posse ilegal de arma.

PRM Lusa/Fim

Notícias em inglês

Reuters - Thu 19 Apr 2007 10:57:15 BST

East Timor resumes talks with rebels
By Tito Belo

Dili - East Timor Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta met with a rebel representative on Thursday to discuss an end to a military operation against a fugitive army renegade.

Lawmaker Leandro Isaac, who abandoned his job in parliament to join former army major Alfredo Reinado in a mountain hideout in Manufahi district, said he had asked Ramos-Horta to end a military operation against Reinado and his supporters.

"People's fundamental rights have disappeared since the operation began," Isaac said.

"We asked the prime minister to establish calm and peace in Manufahi. Law and order should be implemented."

Ramos-Horta said on Tuesday the government would resume talks with Reinado, wanted for his alleged involvement in the violence last year which left more than 30 people dead.

Last August, Reinado escaped from a prison where he had been held on charges of murder during the unrest in May, which was triggered by the sacking of 600 rebellious soldiers.

Australian troops, dispatched to East Timor to help restore order, launched a major manhunt to apprehend Reinado after government efforts to negotiate with him failed.

Five of Reinado's followers were killed during an operation to capture him last month.

Ramos-Horta said he had decided to resume talks with Reinado because the rebel did not disrupt the April 9 presidential elections.

Ramos-Horta was one of eight candidates in that vote, and will face the candidate of the Fretilin party, Francisco Guterres, in a run-off poll on May 8 after neither won an absolute majority in the first round.

Some analysts said Ramos-Horta's popularity had been hurt because of his decision to arrest Reinado, who enjoys support from many in the impoverished country.

Ramos-Horta became prime minister when his predecessor, Mari Alkatiri, quit after receiving much of the blame for last year's violence.

The unrest displaced more than 150,000 people and led to the deployment of an international peacekeeping force.

Gang violence still occurs sporadically in East Timor. On Wednesday, five people were injured by gunshots and steel darts when about 50 people clashed near the capital, Dili, police said.

East Timor voted in a 1999 referendum for independence from Indonesia, which annexed it after Portugal ended its colonial rule in 1975.

The country became fully independent in 2002 after a period of U.N. administration.


EFE – 19 Abril 2007 - 07:17
Denúncias adiam anúncio oficial do resultado de eleições no Timor

Díli - A proclamação do resultado oficial das eleições presidenciais no Timor Leste, previsto para hoje, foi adiado até a apuração das denúncias de irregularidades apresentadas por três candidatos.

O presidente do Tribunal de Apelações do Timor Leste, Claudio Ximenes, disse à agência Efe que recebeu o relatório final da Comissão Eleitoral Nacional e vários recursos apresentados hoje.

Ximenes informou que vai investigar as denúncias antes de proclamar o resultado, o que pode acontecer amanhã ou no sábado.

Lucia Lobato, do Partido Social Democrático (PSD); Fernando de Araújo, do Partido Democrático (PD); e Francisco Xavier do Amaral, da Associação Social Democrática Timorense, apresentaram as denúncias de irregularidades.

Não foi revelado o conteúdo concreto das reivindicações dos três candidatos. Eles teriam ficado em terceiro, quarto e quinto lugar segundo os dados oferecidos pela Comissão Eleitoral Nacional.

O candidato mais votado, segundo os dados divulgados, foi Francisco Guterres, da Frente Revolucionária do Timor Leste Independente (Fretilin), o partido com maioria no Parlamento, que obteve 112.676 votos (27,89%). Em segundo lugar ficou o atual primeiro-ministro interino e prêmio Nobel da Paz em 1996, José Ramos-Horta, que concorreu como independente, com 88.102 votos (21,81%).

Como nenhum candidato conseguiu mais da metade dos votos válidos, haverá um segundo turno entre os dois mais votados em 8 de maio.

O índice de participação chegou a 81,77%.


Agence France-Presse - April 19, 2007 12:00

Losing candidates appeal election results
From correspondents in Dili

Three losing candidates in East Timor's presidential election appealed the result today, their lawyer said, a move that further delays the official outcome of the first round.

Results from the April 9 election released yesterday confirmed Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta and the ruling Fretilin party's Francisco Guterres will contest a runoff next month.

But a lawyer for the three candidates said the April 9 poll had been manipulated and he had protested to the appeal court, in a bid to have it declared void. "We have appealed the results that were announced yesterday by the CNE (national election commission) because it was invalid and full of manipulations," lawyer Benvides Correia said.

Neither leading candidate won 50 per cent of the vote required to secure an outright win to replace charismatic president Xanana Gusmao in the first election since the country gained independence in 2002.

Yesterday's results were final pending a 24-hour window for candidates to appeal, the national election commission said.

The candidates who are appealing include opposition Democrat Party chairman Fernando "Lasama" de Araujo, who placed third with 19.18 per cent, and 77,459 votes, as well as Lucia Lobato, who won 8.86 per cent of the vote, and Fransisco Xavier, with 14.39 per cent.

Voter turnout in the April 9 poll was high and Timorese are hoping the election stalemate will not plunge the impoverished nation into more turmoil and bloodshed.

Yesterday's result had been delayed after a technical error was discovered and also because of concerns of irregularities. The runoff for the largely ceremonial post is due to be held on May 8.


UN Praises East Timor Election, Offers Support for Second Round
By Aaron Sheldrick

April 19 (Bloomberg) - The United Nations said it welcomed the results of voting in East Timor's first presidential election last week and offered support for a second round after no candidate achieved enough votes to win the poll outright.

Former guerrilla leader Francisco `Lu'Olo' Guterres of the ruling Fretilin Party won 28 percent of the vote and will run against Prime Minister Jose Ramos Horta, who received 22 percent. East Timor, also known as Timor Leste, declared independence in 2002 after 24 years of Indonesian occupation. The second round will be held on May 9.

The UN is “particularly pleased that the first round of the election was completed without any serious incidents of violence and intimidation during the campaign,'' spokeswoman Michele Montas told reporters in New York yesterday.


A court will rule on disputed vote counting after candidates protested the results. The court has about 72 hours to review and decide the final result, Gusmao Martinho, spokesman for the Southeast Asian nation's electoral committee, said on April 16.

A revision won't affect preparations for the second round of voting because no candidate “got anywhere near the 50 percent plus one required'' in the first round, Gusmao said.

The UN welcomed the fact “that candidates have made full use of the appropriate legal channels to raise their concerns about the process,'' Montas said. “These elections will have the benefit of considerable assistance from the international community, including through the United Nations.''

Facing Challenges

The new president will face the challenge of trying to reverse a contraction in the economy in 2006, cutting the country's 50 percent unemployment rate and improving conditions for East Timor's more than 1 million people, 42 percent of whom live below the poverty line.

Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon “calls on the international community to continue providing assistance as Timor-Leste works to complete this year's electoral process and to address challenges related to the security sector, the rule of law, governance and development,'' Montas said.

The court may decide to hold ballots again in districts where inconsistencies were recorded, Gusmao said on April 13. Most of the candidates for president lodged protests with the committee alleging the election was unfair.

There won't be as full recount of votes, Gusmao said. “There is no recommendation as such.''

More than 300,000 votes were recorded in the Bacau district, where only about 100,000 voters are registered, Gusmao said.

“It was a human error,'' he said. “The polling staff put the wrong code in the box and we got a record of more votes than there were in that district.''

Candidates Complain

Fretilin members complained about election officials in rural districts accepting registration cards or photocopies of passports as identification, party spokesman Arsenio Bano said last week. The more than 522,000 registered voters had to present either a passport or official identity card issued by the committee in order to be allowed to vote.

Nobel peace prize winner Ramos Horta, who is running as an independent, said last week 30 percent of registered voters hadn't cast a ballot and demanded an investigation and recount.

Democratic Party candidate Fernando De Araujo came third with about 18 percent of the vote and protested to the committee about the balloting.

“I suspect a lot of manipulation,'' he said on April 11.

More than 2,000 observers monitored the election, including teams from the European Union, Australia and Japan. Australian Prime Minister John Howard said in Canberra last week he was concerned at reports of “voter irregularities.''

Providing Security

UN police and members of an Australian-led peacekeeping force, which includes soldiers from New Zealand, provided security at the 504 polling stations and for candidates.

East Timor, which lies about 500 kilometers (310 miles) north of Australia, has been unstable since former Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri, a Fretilin member, fired a third of the army last May, a move that provoked clashes between people from the eastern and western regions, resulting in 37 deaths.

In the past year, fighting between factions of the security forces and gang violence drove 150,000 people from their homes. The Australian-led contingent has been stationed in Dili since shortly after the unrest began.


Radio Australia - 19/04/2007, 21:34
East Timor PM has talks with rebels

East Timor's Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta has held discussions with a rebel representative over a fugitive army renegade.

Leandro Isaac says he asked the Prime Minister to stop military operations against former army major Alfredo Reinado.

Mr Ramos-Horta says the government is ready to resume talks with Reinado.

Last August, Reinado escaped from a prison where he was being held on charges of murder during the unrest in May 2006, which was triggered by the sacking of 600 rebellious soldiers.

Australian troops, dispatched to East Timor to help restore order, tried to apprehend Reinado after government efforts to negotiate with him had failed.

Five of Reinado's followers were killed during an operation to capture him last month.


The Manila Times – Friday, April 20, 2007

Light candles for E. Timor
By Rene Q. Bas

Pray that elections, democracy and governance in East Trimor - the only other country in Asia with a majority of Catholics - do not turn up as bad as ours.

Also known officially as Timor L’Este (which is the Portuguese patois way of saying East Timor), it had its first presidential election last week. For a while the tension was like what we have here. Then cooler heads prevailed. The contested count was accepted by all. Former guerrilla leader Francisco ‘Lu’Olo’ Guterres of the ruling Fretilin Party won 28 percent of the vote while his opponent, Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta, received only 22 percent.

Ramos-Horta is known all over the world. He shared the Nobel Peace Prize with East Timor’s Catholic Bishop Carlos Belo for their nonviolent and successful struggle for independence from Indonesia.

Since no candidate has won a straight victory (50 percent of the registered voters plus 1 vote) there will be a second round of voting.

The United Nations has welcomed the results. It has offered its support for a second round of voting which will be held on May 9.

Bloody history

Invaded by Indonesia in 1975, and made an Indonesian province, East Timor, for 24 years, struggled for independence. Between 100,000 and 250,00 people, mostly East Timorese, died in Indonesia’s pacification campaigns in Timor L’Este. On August 30, 1999, in a UN-supervised popular referendum, an overwhelming majority of the people of East Timor voted for independence from Indonesia.

Between the referendum and the arrival of a multinational peacekeeping force in late September 1999, anti-independence Timorese militias—organized and supported by the Indonesian military—commenced a large-scale, scorched-earth campaign of retribution. The militias killed approximately 1,400 Timorese and forcibly pushed 300,000 people into West Timor as refugees.

After the new president of Timor L’Este is elected on May 9, the East Timorese would still not be out of the woods. They still have to build their nation. May they have better luck than us Filipinos in creating a nation and a republic that is as truly just as a Christian nation should be.


AlJazeera – Thursday, April 19, 2007

East Timor to hold run-off in May

East Timor's prime minister and the head of the country's parliament will contest a presidential run-off next month, after none of the eight candidates in the April 9 ballot managed to win an absolute majority.

The election commission said on Wednesday that Jose Ramos-Horta, the premier, will face off against Francisco Guterres on May 8.

Guterres, also known as Lu'Olo, got 28 per cent of the vote, while Ramos-Horta, placed second with 22 per cent, said Faustino Cardoso Gomes, chairman of the National Election Commission (CNE), citing official provisional results.

The vote counting process had been marred by complaints of irregularities and technical errors.

"CNE has revised all the documents from all the vote centres in all the districts and provisional results show that Lu'Olo and Jose Ramos-Horta will go to the second round vote," Gomes said.

Gomes said the commission would hand over the results to the court of appeal and there would be a 24-hour period when candidates could lodge complaints.

Disputes and allegations

The April 9 polls were mostly peaceful but were followed by a stream of disputes and allegations over the way the process was carried out, prompting demands for a recount by five candidates.

Election organisers were accused of failing to educate voters and train officials.

However, international monitors said the poll was generally open, orderly and peaceful despite fears of unrest after gang violence last year left at least 37 people dead.

"The opinion of the EU observation mission in general is that the level of violence and intimidation is not enough to change the opinion of a peaceful and orderly process," Javier Pomes Ruiz, the European Union's chief observer, said.

The drawn-out elections have raised concerns about fresh instability in the impoverished nation, still suffering from deep divisions five years after independence.

Guterres is a former resistance fighter and also president of the ruling Fretilin party, which rebels against Indonesian rule from 1974 to 1999.

Ramos-Horta, who won the Nobel prize for championing East Timor's cause during Indonesian occupation, has expressed concerns that a Fretilin victory would damage relations with other countries in the region.

"The Fretilin government has little sensitivity toward the region," he said of the party he founded as a resistance movement.

Along with the outgoing president, Xanana Gusmao - who will run for prime minister in June - Ramos-Horta has been hoping to end Fretilin's dominance of East Timorese politics.

Source: Agencies


The Coloradoan (EUA) – 19 April 2007

A tremor of hope - East Timorese seek training, aim to take skills back to country
By Lyndsey Struthers

Jose Miguel Madeira's smile is shaded as he wipes the tear sliding down his cheek with the collar of his T-shirt.

The tear, which could be explained by any number of the hardships that touch the lives of many East Timorese, falls instead for his three daughters, Natalia, 7, Nenévia, 5, and Lizzia, 2.

"I hope that my children go to school," said Madeira, whose own education was cut short when Indonesia relinquished control of East Timor.

Madeira traveled to Colorado from East Timor seeking training, insight and inspiration from fish harvesters, coffee experts, dairy farmers - and teachers at Bennett Elementary.

"America is good. It is very, very important for me, because we are a new country and here it was a long, long time ago they (became) a country," said Madeira.

He hopes the guidance will help East Timor to rise above hard times one small step at a time and shine light on the futures of Natalia, Nenévia and Lizzia - and the rest of the country's children.

Beatriz DaSilva, a volunteer at a clinic in East Timor, and Bernardo Alberto Maia, 25, a builder, are also touring Northern Colorado, looking in the shadows of nurse practitioners and vocational experts for the tools to mend their country.

DaSilva works in the clinic at the Saint Bakhita Center in East Timor, sometimes seven days a week, getting patients' vital signs, wrapping wounds and administering medical advice - with no doctor or nurse at her side.

"I think my clinic needs a nurse or doctor, it needs some medicine" said DaSilva. "I have a doctor from Australia but not everyday. Sometimes for one week, sometimes for one month, sometimes one day."

DaSilva got a taste of American medical practice with Dr. Fiona Wilson at Associates in Family Medicine and from Laurie Lee, a nurse practitioner in Boulder.

Maia hopes the skills he takes back to East Timor will help him tear down the barriers standing in the way as the country makes strides in piecing itself back together.

"In my life I just feel a wall," he said. "(Indonesia) left and destroyed everything. ... We want to try to rebuild our country."

Maia, who received training in construction in 2002 and 2003 in Australia, said that 85 percent of the country's infrastructure, including a large portion of its electrical grid, was demolished as Indonesia exited.

Maia spent his time in the area with plumbers from Pryor Plumbing and Heating and an electrician from Merit Electric.

"While I've been here, I am seeing a lot of stuff," said Maia. "But when I am back (in East Timor) it's a little bit different . ... It's just a new country so it's a little bit harder to get something like electricity or aquaculture."

DaSilva, Maia and Madeira's time in Northern Colorado was made possible by Peace Jam, a program of the Fort Collins International Center. The small group of students, inspired by José Ramos-Horta, now the prime minister of East Timor and a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, originally planned to make their way to East Timor to volunteer at a community center.

The students met Ramos-Horta at a Peace Jam Youth Conference held at the University of Denver in 2005.

"He made an invitation to all the high school students that they should come to East Timor and visit, to volunteer, that he would welcome them and be happy for them to come to his country," said Nancy Murray, Peace Jam group leader.

But when the students' trip was disrupted by an outbreak of civil unrest, they turned around and used the $8,000 gathered through the sale of East Timorese coffee, roasted by the Bean Cycle, and brought East Timor to Fort Collins.

In bringing DaSilva, Maia and Madeira to Fort Collins and exposing them to more than 40 occupational experts, Peace Jams effort carried more weight, said Murray.

"We had a lot of enthusiasm to offer and a lot of interest, but what people here in Fort Collins had to offer these guys is more than we could have given," said Murray. "Our community can give much more than the six of us could have given."

Notícias - Traduzidas pela Margarida

Timor-Leste: Democracia dividida
Quarta-feira, Abril 18, 2007
John Martinkus

Já se contaram os votos da primeira volta das eleições Presidenciais de 9 de Abril em Timor-Leste. Neste estágio só estão disponíveis resultados preliminares, mas estes indicam que será necessária uma segunda volta em 8 de Maio entre o vencedor da primeira volta Francisco ‘Lu Olo’ Guterres (o candidato da FRETILIN, o partido que actualmente controla o Parlamento), e o que ficou em segundo lugar o corrente Primeiro-Ministro, José Ramos Horta, que conquistaram respectivamente 28.8 por cento e 22.5 por cento dos votos.

Destes resultados podemos deduzir que a FRETILIN foi a vencedora clara numas eleições que em Timor-Leste muitos vêem como um indicador crucial se o Presidente, Xanana Gusmão, que agora se retira, tem a força eleitoral para assegurar o controlo do Parlamento e tornar-se Primeiro-Ministro nas eleições parlamentares de 30 de Junho.

As divisões políticas que levaram à crise do ano passado estão a ficar cada vez mais claras. É um conflito entre os que se mantém leais ao antigo Primeiro-Ministro Mari Alkatiri e ao seu partido FRETILIN, que lutou pela independência de Timor-Lesta da Indonésia, e os que acreditam que o futuro está com Xanana, Ramos Horta e o nascente Partido Democrático (PD).
A visão de Xanana para o futuro é simples. Tem afirmado repetidas vezes que como Primeiro-Ministro aprovará a saída dos fundos guardados no ‘Fundo do Petróleo’ do Governo de Timor-Leste — que foi criado em 2005 para gerir os rendimentos petróleo e gás das enormes reservas no Mar de Timor.

Alkatiri e a FRETILIN mantêm que já estão a gastar o dinheiro e que a crise do ano passado (que agora dizem com sinceridade que foi causada por Xanana) os preveniu de gastar o dinheiro já distribuído no Orçamento.

A outra questão principal nesta eleição era se Xanana estava por detrás do movimento para desalojar Alkatiri do posto de Primeiro-Ministro no ano passado. As opiniões aqui estão agudamente polarizadas entre os que acreditam que Xanana, apoiado pela comunidade internacional, foi a força motora por detrás dos eventos violentos do ano passado, e os que acreditam que ele só veio a terreiro contra a FRETILIN para prevenir mais desordens.

A maioria dos analistas na Austrália falharam na apreciação da profundidade do apoio que a FRETILIN retém no leste do país. Tendo sido o único partido político que nunca fez concessões aos Indonésios e que nunca deixou de lutar pela independência, a FRETILIN tem uma enorme carga simbólica nas mentes de muitos que perderam famílias e que sofreram lutando por eles.
A muito pública oposição agora de Xanana à FRETILIN enfureceu muitos que outrora reverenciaram o líder carismático. Como disse um membro de topo da FRETILIN, Harold Moucho, ‘Estas são as pessoas que morreram por Xanana e agora ele traiu-as.’

Esta divisão entre apoiantes de Xanana e leais à FRETILIN atravessa a sociedade Timorense e criou problemas durante estas eleições. A FRETILIN queixou-se amargamente quando Xanana participou num comício do seu candidato Presidencial preferido Ramos Horta, dizendo que não era adequado um Presidente no exercício de funções ser politicamente activo.

A Missão de Observação Eleitoral da União Europeia, o grupo de observação mais experiente e credível em Timor-Leste, anotou no seu relatório preliminar que ‘durante a campanha, algumas personalidades públicas assumiram posições políticas — de chefes de aldeia até às máximas autoridades nacionais.’ O relatório prosseguiu identificando o porta-vos da CNE (Comissão Nacional de Eleições) Martinho Gusmão e as suas declarações públicas de apoio ao candidato do Partido Democrático Fernando ‘Lasama’ Araujo.

Durante toda a semana passada, sendo a pessoa responsável pelo anúncio dos resultados, Martinho Gusmão, um padre católico, foi o centro das atenções. Baseado nos resultados na capital, Dili, basicamente anunciou que o vencedor das eleições fora Ramos Horta, com Araújo em segundo lugar. A maioria dos resultados só foram disponibilizados na última Quarta-feira — causando um choque quando a FRETILIN passou da terceira para a primeira posição, depois da inclusão dos resultados dos distritos de Baucau e Lautem do leste do país.

O grande apoio à FRETILIN no leste espelha as divisões tromboteadas por líderes no ano passado que resultaram na violência este/oeste durante a crise. Mas no passado Sábado, Martinho Gusmão revelou numa outra conferência de imprensa que a contagem em áreas chave de apoio à FRETILIN no leste — Lautem, Viqueque e Ossu, a cidade natal do candidato da FRETILIN Lu Olo — não tinha sido completada. Prosseguiu contando à imprensa que o total de votos na maior cidade do leste, Baucau era em 200,000 superior aos eleitores registados.

Num eleitorado de apenas 520,000, esta foi uma afirmação extraordinária. Contudo, observadores da União Europeia, dizem que nunca houve qualquer ‘excesso de eleitores’ e que Martinho Gusmão estava a destacar uma erro matemático que já tinha sido resolvido.

Porque é que ele fez isto? Como confessado apoiante do candidato Araujo colocado em terceiro lugar, o porta-voz da CNE podia estar a tentar ajudar o apelo deste para que as eleições fossem declaradas inválidas. A FRETILIN apelou repetidamente à remoção do porta-voz, emitindo esta semana uma outra declaração onde diz, ‘A CNE falhou em removê-lo e desde então ele tem feito declarações prejudiciais à FRETILIN e à independência e neutralidade da CNE.’
Quando lhe pediram para responder às acusações sobre a sua própria parcialidade Martinho Gusmão apenas disse, ‘Isso acontece comigo todos os dias. Não responderei a essa questão.’

A erupção de alegações de irregularidade eleitorais de todos os candidatos perdedores — incluindo Ramos Horta — contribuem para uma situação muito delicada onde já há apelos para a recontagem dos votos. É preciso anotar que estes gritos de jogo sujo apenas começaram depois de serem conhecidos os votos da maioria da FRETILIN.

Se irromper qualquer violência em Timor-Leste como consequência desta vitória da FRETILIN será começada não pela FRETILIN mas pelos que já estão a contestar o resultado. A mesma gente que, no ano passado, recorreu à violência para remover Alkatiri do poder.

Acerca do autor
John Martinkus cobriu o conflito em Timor-Leste de 1995 até 2000. Foi correspondente residente em Dili para a Associated Press e Australian Associated Press, de 1998 até 2000.
É autor de A Dirty Little War (Random House, 2001), acerca da passagem violenta do país para a independência. E no ano passado, co-produziu a reportagem ‘Timor-Leste: Queda de um Primeiro-Ministro’ para a Dateline da SBS TV.


Assim se compram votos...
The Jakarta Post
18.04.2007

"Ramos-Horta,ao enfrentar o desertor Major Alfredo Reinado, fez um erro ao usar tecnologia de visão nocturna, franco-atiradores , infra-vermelhos e (helicópteros) Black Hawks, matando com à vontade cinco dos soldados de Reinado, coisa que não lhe conquistarão qualquer simpatia do povo de Same e dos Timorenses em geral."

Público
18.04.2007

“O primeiro-ministro de Timor-Leste, José Ramos-Horta, candidato a Presidente nas eleições que terão uma segunda volta em Maio, declarou ontem que vai dar uma oportunidade à Igreja Católica de persuadir o major rebelde Alfredo Reinado a reatar o diálogo com o Governo, na certeza de que serão interrompidas as operações militares para o capturar.


Alguns analistas, citados pela Reuters, afirmam que, ao desistir de mandar prender Reinado, que tem partidários entre as camadas mais pobres, Ramos-Horta procura fortalecer as suas hipóteses de vencer o presidente da Fretilin, Francisco Guterres, Lu Olo. Este foi o mais votado na primeira volta, apesar de ainda não terem sido divulgados os resultados oficiais, o que se espera possa acontecer no fim desta semana.”


Vale tudo, contra a FRETILIN e Lu-Olo...


Timor-Leste pronto para a segunda-volta
ABC – Transcrição Programa PM – Quarta-feira, 18 Abril , 2007 18:42
Repórter: Anne Barker

PETER CAVE: A Comissão Eleitoral de Timor-Leste está prestes a confirmar que haverá uma segunda volta nas eleições presidenciais entre o Primeiro-Ministro, José Ramos Horta, e o candidato da Fretilin, Francisco Guterres.

A Comissão dará uma conferência de imprensa esta noite em Dili com os resultados finais da eleição da semana passada.

Por causa de nenhum dos candidatos ter conquistado uma maioria absoluta, haverá uma segunda volta das eleições em 9 de Maio. Steven Wagenseil é o funcionário da ONU Chefe Eleitoral em Dili – falou há pouco com Anne Barker.

STEVEN WAGENSEIL: Segundo o que entendi, os resultados confirmarão as notícias divulgadas esta semana dos totais preliminares acumulados de todo o país, de que haverá uma segunda volta entre os dois candidatos da frente, isto é, Francisco Guterres Luolo e José Ramos Horta.

ANNE BARKER: Porque é que tivemos de esperar até agora para saber o que já sabíamos?

STEVEN WAGENSEIL: Bem, a lei requer, e penso que o bom senso manda que se examine cuidadosamente os resultados apurados para ter a certeza que estão certos. Foram apurados em estações de voto de todo o país, algumas vezes os impressos estavam preenchidos incorrectamente. É importante verificar todos os números para se ter a certeza que nenhum votação foi perdida.

ANNE BARKER: Quando se consideram as muitas alegações feitas acerca de fraudes ou manipulação, acerca de irregularidades na contagem, acerca do número de votos inválidos e etc., qual a correcção do resultado que ouvimos agora?

STEVEN WAGENSEIL: Acredito que o resultado que ouvirá hoje é extremamente correcto. A comissão central de eleições trabalhou bastante, montaram turnos rotativos de 24 horas desde a semana passada para verificarem os números, a contagem... verificando os votos inválidos á mão, e acredito absolutamente que este é o melhor resultado, o mais correcto que pode ser produzido.

ANNE BARKER: O que vai acontecer às queixas dos cinco candidatos de há uma semana, que afirmaram que houve um tipo de manipulação dos votos extensiva, que houve intimidação dos eleitores, etc.?

STEVEN WAGENSEIL: Bem, a Comissão Central de Eleições, a Comissão Nacional de Eleições, respondeu á carta desses cinco candidatos dizendo basicamente, como percebi, que a carta não contém nenhuns dados específicos. Se têm dados específicos, por favor avancem com eles, em relação á hora, data, local, quem esteve envolvido, e então podem ser considerados e referidos para procedimento. Houve uma queixa similar feita por um outro candidato em dias recentes que foi examinada pela comissão de eleições com uma resposta similar: se têm factos concretos, por favor avancem, e serão examinados.

ANNE BARKER: E se as suas queixas forem substanciadas mais tarde, iso abre o caminho para contestar o resultado das eleições?

STEVEN WAGENSEIL: Não conheço nada em nenhuma das queixas que contestaria o resultado global das eleições. Poderia ter havido num ou em dois casos, talvez mais, onde os resultados de uma ou duas ou de mais estações de voto podiam ser afectados. Mas não acredito de maneira alguma que fosse o suficiente para virar o resultado, o resultado global à escala da nação das 704 estações de voto.

ANNE BARKER: Acredita que deve haver mudanças no modo de conduzir as eleições da segunda volta no próximo mês?

STEVEN WAGENSEIL: Primeiro de tudo, penso que será muito difícil implementar quaisquer mudanças agora dado que os regulamentos e as leis foram basicamente adoptadas e é difícil mudar de políticas a meio de uma eleição. Houve certas coisas que nós e o Governo aprendemos que com certeza levarão a mudanças antes das eleições parlamentares no fim de Junho.

As questões do processo por meio do qual os votos são contados e difundidos das estações de voto a nível nacional, mais questões sobre como treinar as pessoas para preencherem a papelada, este tipo de coisas.

PETER CAVE: Steven Wagenseil, o funcionário da ONU Chefe Eleitoral em Dili, a falar com Anne Barker.

Timor-Leste/Eleições: Plataforma de observadores aconselha "órgão independente"

Díli, 19 Abr (Lusa) - A Missão de Observação Solidariedade com Timor-Leste (SOMET), que reúne várias organizações cívicas e não-governamentais, recomendou hoje a criação de um "órgão independente" para gerir o processo eleitoral.

"Futuras eleições deviam ser administradas por um órgão independente, fora da jurisdição de qualquer ministério do Governo", recomenda o relatório da SOMET às presidenciais de 09 de Abril.

A SOMET observou as eleições presidenciais nos distritos de Díli, Liquiçá e Ermera, tendo 12 elementos da organização, de 12 nacionalidades, visitado 52 locais de voto no dia das eleições.

A SOMET nota que as eleições foram concretizadas pelo Secretariado Técnico de Administração Eleitoral (STAE), que depende do Ministério da Administração Estatal, e pela Comissão Nacional de Eleições (CNE), formada apenas três meses antes do escrutínio. "Neste contexto, estamos impressionados pela forma como as eleições correram tão bem", acrescenta o documento, apresentado por três dos elementos da SOMET.

O documento aponta como "fraqueza" a dependência orgânica do STAE em relação ao Governo, através da Administração Estatal.

"Em resultado [disso], está sujeito a pressões políticas dos titulares nos gabinetes, tornando difícil conduzir uma eleição imparcial sem a influência indevida de partidos actualmente no poder", sublinhou a coordenadora da SOMET, Catharina Maria.

A SOMET é um projecto da ETAN (Rede de Acção para Timor-Leste e Indonésia), organização criada nos EUA após o massacre de Santa Cruz, em 1991. A missão de observação representa também organizações cívicas como a Stichting Vrij Oost Timor, da Holanda, a Initiatives for International Dialogue (IID), a Coligação de Solidariedade Ásia-Pacífico (APSOC), com sede nas Filipinas, e o Fórum Mundial para a Democratização da Ásia (WFDA).

Em Timor-Leste, a SOMET colabora com a Associação Hak, o Fórum Timorense de Ong's, La'o Hamutuk, FOKUPERS e Bibi Bulak.

PRM-Lusa/Fim

Eleições: Nova votação em Timor no dia 9 de Maio - Lu Olo e Ramos-Horta na 2ª volta

Correio da Manhã - 19 de Abril de 2007

Os candidatos Francisco Guterres ‘Lu Olo’ e José Ramos-Horta vão disputar a segunda volta das eleições presidenciais timorenses, anunciou ontem o presidente da Comissão Nacional de Eleições Faustino Cardoso. A segunda volta dessas eleições está prevista para o próximo dia 9 de Maio.

‘Lu Olo’, actual presidente do Parlamento e candidato de Fretilin (partido no poder), foi o vencedor da primeira volta, realizada no passado dia 9, com 112 666 votos (27,89%). O actual primeiro-ministro, José Ramos-Horta, candidato independente, ficou em segundo lugar com 88 102 votos (21,81%). Em terceiro lugar ficou Fernando ‘Lasama’ Araújo, candidato do Partido Democrático, com 77 459 votos (19,18%). Votaram 427 712 dos 522 933 eleitores inscritos, o que se traduz numa abstenção de 18,21%, o que significa que houve uma taxa de participação de 81,79%.

A CNE enviou ontem a cópia da acta final de apuramento dos resultados ao Secretariado Técnico de Administração Eleitoral e cópias das actas dos resultados provisórios ao Tribunal de Recursos. Se não houver queixas e pedidos de impugnação, o tribunal poderá de imediato decidir pela validação do apuramento e os resultados definitivos poderão ser anunciados em breve.

Após validação pelo Recurso, estão encontrados os candidatos da segunda volta a 9 de Maio

Primeiro de Janeiro - 19 de Abril de 2007

«Lu-Olo» e Horta «apurados»

Francisco Guterres «Lu-Olo» e José Ramos-Horta foram os mais votados nas eleições presidenciais do passado dia 9, segundo os resultados finais provisórios anunciados ontem pelo presidente da Comissão Nacional de Eleições, Faustino Cardoso.

Depois de nove dias de espera, com acusações de irregularidades e informações desencontradas ao longo do escrutínio, Francisco Guterres «Lu-Olo» e José Ramos-Horta são os candidatos que passam à segunda volta das eleições em Timor-Leste, marcada para o próximo dia 9 de Maio.

Embora seja necessário esperar pela validação final dos resultados pelo Tribunal de Recurso, os dois candidatos foram os mais votados nas presidenciais do passado dia 9, conforme frisou o presidente da Comissão Nacional de Eleições (CNE) ao anunciar ontem os resultados finais provisórios. Faustino Cardoso falava na sede da CNE, cerca das 17h30 locais (9h30 em Lisboa), onde está afixada desde o final da tarde de ontem informação detalhada sobre a votação nos distritos, além da acta final nacional.

O presidente do Parlamento e candidato da Fretilin, Francisco Guterres «Lu-Olo», obteve 112.666 votos, 27,89 por cento, de um total de 403.941 votos válidos (94,56 por cento) dos 427.712 depositados nas urnas.

José Ramos-Horta, primeiro-ministro e candidato independente, obteve 88.102 votos, 21,81 por cento. Fernando «Lasama» de Araújo, do Partido Democrático, teve 77.459 votos, 19, 18 por cento. Registando uma subida sensível em relação a projecções anteriores, Francisco Xavier do Amaral, da ASDT, obteve 58.125 votos, 14,39 por cento. A seguir ficaram Lúcia Lobato, do PSD, com 35.789 votos (8,86 por cento), Manuel Tilman, do partido Kota, com 16.534 votos (4,09 por cento), Avelino Coelho «Shalar Kosi F.F.», com 8.338 votos (2,06 por cento) e, em último, João Viegas Carrascalão, com 6.928 votos (1,72 por cento). De um total de 522.933 eleitores registados, votaram 427.712, o que significa uma taxa de participação de 81,79 por cento. A CNE enviou já a cópia da acta final do apuramento dos resultados ao Secretariado Técnico de Administração Eleitoral e cópias das actas dos resultados provisórios ao Tribunal de Recurso. O Tribunal receberá, hoje, queixas e pedidos de impugnação, se os houver.

Caso contrário, poderá de imediato decidir pela validação do apuramento e os resultados definitivos poderão ser anunciados, apesar de não ter nenhum prazo legal.

Lu-Olo e Ramos-Horta na segunda volta em Timor

Público – 19 de Abril de 2007

19.04.2007

Acusações mútuas entre os dois candidatos mais votados marcaram o anúncio, ontem, em Díli, dos resultados finais provisórios da primeira volta das eleições presidenciais em Timor-Leste. Os números avançados pela Comissão Nacional de Eleições (CNE), a serem confirmados, como se esperava, pelo Tribunal de Recurso do país, colocam frente a frente, no próximo dia 9 de Maio, duas das três mais altas figuras do Estado: Francisco Guterres, Lu-Olo, presidente do Parlamento Nacional, apoiado pela Fretilin, com 112.666 votos (27,89 por cento); e José Ramos-Horta, independente, mas chefe de um governo com apoio parlamentar da mesma Fretilin, com 88.102 votos (21,81 por cento).

Reagindo de forma vigorosa às afirmações de Ramos-Horta, para quem, caso Lu Olo vença, "as relações de Timor-Leste com os países da região serão enfraquecidas", o candidato da Fretilin retorquiu que as relações entre os países "não se baseiam apenas em ter amigos pessoais. Baseiam-se em Estados e nas instituições interagindo entre elas".

Fernando Araújo, Lasama, líder do Partido Democrático (PD), a força com a maior representação no Parlamento depois da Fretilin, ficou em terceiro lugar, seguido por Francisco Xavier do Amaral, Lúcia Lobato, Manuel Tilman, Avelino Coelho e João Carrascalão.

Votaram nas eleições, cujo processo de apuramento demorou mais de uma semana e foi atravessado por acusações cruzadas de irregularidades, 427.712 pessoas, o que traduz uma abstenção de 18,21 por cento.

O secretário-geral da Fretilin e antecessor de Ramos-Horta no Governo, Mari Alkatiri, assegurou há três dias, numa entrevista ao diário indonésio Jakarta Post, que o seu partido não iniciará a violência, se Ramos-Horta ganhar. Pelo contrário, "tentará cooperar", apesar de estar convencido de que o prémio Nobel "será pior do que Xanana Gusmão naquele lugar", acrescentou Alkatiri.

Timor-Leste: ONU satisfeita com eleições, Ban apela a ajuda internacional

Washington, 19 Abr (Lusa) - As Nações Unidas expressaram hoje satisfação pelo modo como decorreu a primeira volta das eleições presidenciais em Timor-Leste e prometeram apoio para a realização da segunda volta do escrutinio.

Ao mesmo tempo, o secretário-geral da ONU, Ban Ki-Moon, apelou à comunidade internacional para apoiar Timor-Leste no seu desenvolvimento.

Em declarações em Nova Iorque, a porta-voz do secretário-geral das Nações Unidas, Michele Montas, disse que a ONU está "particularmente satisfeita pelo facto da primeira ronda das eleições ter sido completada sem incidentes graves de violência e intimidação durante a campanha, votação e contagem dos votos".

O máximo responsável da ONU mostra-se ainda satisfeito "pelo facto dos candidatos terem feito uso completo dos meios legais apropriados para levantar as suas preocupações sobre o processo".

Montas disse que a segunda volta das presidenciais em Timor-Leste terá o "forte apoio da ONU".

"O secretário-geral apela à comunidade internacional para continuar a prestar ajuda a Timor-Leste no período deste ano em que o país completa o seu processo eleitoral e ainda para ajudar o país a resolver os desafios relacionados com o sector de segurança, da justiça, governação e desenvolvimento", disse a porta-voz.

JP-Lusa/Fim

RI reinforces border security

Jakarta Post - April 19, 2007

Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara: The Indonesian Military (TNI) has deployed two more battalions of soldiers to the East Nusa Tenggara islands of Sumba and Flores in a bid to reinforce security at areas bordering Timor Leste.

Wirasakti Military Commander Col. Arief Rahman said in Kupang on Wednesday that the deployment of new troops would raise the number of soldiers stationed in the province to 4,000.

Besides helping maintain security, the TNI will also build an infantry brigade headquarters in Timor Tengah Selatan regency, where 300 soldiers are posted.

The reinforcement was part of the security strategic plan for the area worked out since 2003, Arief said.

"The reinforcement was done simply for security reasons and has nothing to do with the political upheaval in Timor Leste," he said, adding that delays in the deployment of the new troops were caused mainly by the limited availability of funds

UN welcomes preliminary results of Timor-Leste poll, looks ahead to next round

UN News Centre – 18 April 2007


Welcoming the preliminary results of the presidential poll in Timor-Leste, which took place last week, the United Nations today praised the non-violent nature of the voting as it looked ahead to the second round next month, which will also be strongly supported by the world body.

“The two candidates who have obtained the highest number of votes will now contest a second round, on May 9. Again, these elections will have the benefit of considerable assistance from the international community, including through the United Nations,” UN spokesperson Michele Montas told reporters in New York.

“The United Nations is particularly pleased that the first round of the election was completed without any serious incidents of violence and intimidation during the campaign, vote and the counting of ballots, and that candidates have made full use of the appropriate legal channels to raise their concerns about the process.”

She said that the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) was pleased at the announcement of the preliminary results, adding that the final results would now be certified by the Court of Appeals after consideration of any appeals that are lodged within the permissible 24-hour period.

Last Monday’s poll was the first in Timor-Leste since it gained independence from Indonesia in 2002 and, as well as congratulating the Timorese for participating in the vote, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also commended the national authorities for organizing the election and UNMIT for its support.

“The Secretary-General calls on the international community to continue providing assistance as Timor-Leste works to complete this year’s electoral process and to address challenges related to the security sector, the rule of law, governance and development,” Mr. Ban’s spokesperson said after the landmark vote.

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.