East Timor prosecutor blames president over trial delay

ABC Online

[This is the print version of story http://www.abc.net.au/ra/programguide/stories/200810/s2387632.htm ]

Updated October 10, 2008 13:10:59

East Timor's President and chief prosecutor are at odds over the prosecution of senior military figures for their role in illegally arming civilians during the 2006 crisis. Last week, the prosecutor general said it was the president's fault he'd not yet been able launch the action, while Jose Ramos Horta says there are other priorities.

Presenter:Stephanie March

Speakers: Longuinhos Monteiro, East Timor's Prosecutor General; Jose Ramos Horta, President; Mari Alkatiri, former Prime Minister; Luis Oliveira, Judicial System Monitoring Program

MARCH: A United Nations commission of inquiry into the 2006 crisis recommended Brigadier Taur Matan Ruak- known in East Timor as TMR - be prosecuted for illegal weapons transfer, along with former defence minister Roque Rodrigues.

As members of the superior defence council the pair enjoy an immunity that the President has the power to lift.

Prosecutor General Longinous Montiero asked the President four months ago to waive the immunity, but has not yet received a response.

He says he is frustrated his office gets blamed for failing to launch an investigation into Brigadier Ruak's actions.

MONTIERO: Everybody is demanding 'the office of the PG do nothing, all cases are pending, nothing is updated when we asking no answer' - so what can we do…..(cut off by JOURNALIST)

JOURNALIST: So you hope to try TMR? You hope to bring him to court?

MONTIERO: Well I don't want to say that we will try or not but at least we need to hear, I cannot accuse anyone before we hear.

MARCH: Last week the Prosecutor General caused a stir in Dili when he sent summons to three other high-ranking military officers.

Colonel Lere Anan Timor, Major Mau Buti and Colonel Falur Rate Laek are now considered formal suspects in the investigation into the military's role in arming civilians during the 2006 crisis.

Brigadier Ruak says he will cooperate with investigators once his immunity is lifted,

…but President Jose Ramos Horta, says the prosecutor general should focus on other things.

HORTA: Because in the mean time there are other priorities facing him, facing the nation, that the nation is very concerned about and that is the assassination attempt on the President and the Prime Minister. These were not attempts of assassination of individuals but of the President and the Prime Minister, these must have absolute priority.

MARCH: In February this year the President and Prime Minister were attacked by a gang of former soldiers who had defected from the military during the political crisis in 2006.

He has said previously that he doesn't care if the investigation into the February attacks takes up to two years.

HORTA: And once that is concluded we can move on, backtrack to others like 2006 and others - there are many cases - 2000, 4000 case on his desk. The priorities are yes, February 11 2008 and then we go back to 2006.

MARCH: But Luis Oliveira, acting deputy director of watchdog NGO the Judicial System Monitoring Program says failing to lift the immunity will reinforce East Timor's strong culture of impunity and send the wrong message to the people.

OLIVEIRA: (translation) It sends political message, it sends the message to the East Timor society is that justice is politicised because the State says it is not urgent. But for our position justice is urgent and must be open to all of people so all people can feel justice, justice must be done for all of people not for one side only.

MARCH: He says the president is not correct when he says the attempted assassination case is more important than those from two years ago when tensions between the police and military erupted into violence, killing 37 people.

OLIVEIRA: (translation) The 11 February case is related to the 2006 cases, that why the prosecutor general is trying to use authority to deal with these cases from 2006 as well.

MARCH: Brigadier Ruak, was the leader of the Falantil armed resistance when East Timor became independent in 1999 and still has many supporters both in and outside the military.

Senior Fretilin opposition party members - including former Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri - have said they are prepared to act as lawyers on his behalf.

But some observers fear even an investigation, may lead to trouble.

Mari Alkatiri:

ALKATIRI: the problem is not with those people who are being called now to make their own testimony to justice system the problem is their supporters, the army as a whole. We have to manage this very carefully.

MARCH: Luis Oliveira from Judicial System Monitoring Program says it is possible the President is preventing Brigadier Ruak from being investigated to avoid instability.

OLIVEIRA: (translation) There could be a political reason behind this. Because if they open the case it could have a negative impact on the current situation. So our president doesn't prioritise the case - maybe he has his own reasons but from my point of view for the social aspect of the justice system, there should not be any exception for anyone to face justice.

FRETILIN guarantees stability in Timor-Leste; calls on all to do same for March of Peace

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN
Media Release
October 10, 2008

FRETILIN leaders yesterday reconfirmed that the proposed March of Peace will take place, and rebuked a government minister for alleging that the March would destabilize the young nation. FRETILIN President Francisco Guterres Lu’Olo said that it was the de facto Minister for Economy and Development who had to answer for his support for rebel soldier Alfredo Reinado in 2006, when political violence engulfed the capital.

FRETILIN has guaranteed that the proposed March of Peace will be peaceful and lawful, but is yet to determine when the March will go ahead, despite repeated rumors and clear attempts by some to whip up emotion on the issue. Other parties like PPT and Kota, and ASDT who have withdrawn from the AMP government, will join the March of Peace.

On September 27, 2008, the Prime Minister, Mr Gusmao, said during a speech in Ainaro, “I hear from here that you are preparing a March of Peace to Dili. I will wait for you there and put you all in jail.” FRETILIN has called this an attempt to intimidate people from exercising their constitutional and democratic rights, and shows his dictatorial tendencies yet again.

“FRETILIn is the political party that ushered in Timor-Leste’s historic and successful struggle for national liberation and independence, and today is the largest political party. We will continue to make every effort to promote and maintain peace, stability and democracy in Timor-Leste and for the people of Timor-Leste, said Lu’Olo yesterday.

“I myself spent 24 years in the mountains and rivers and valleys of Timor-Leste, fighting the invader in our country. We no longer have anyone to fight. I have a young family, I want this country to be peaceful and stable so that my children can grow up with peace and can gain an education to continue to realize the dream I carried during all the years in the struggle. I have read a media release from the de facto Minister for Economy and Development in the AMP. I have to say that I don't need someone who spent the whole struggle in the comfortable surrounds provided by Australia, and financial benefits just for being a Timorese in the diaspora, to lecture me on peace and conflict,” he said.

Lu’Olo was elected to the Constituent Assembly that drew up Timor-Leste’s constitution in 2001, to which he was then elected as President. He then served as the President of the National Parliament between May 20, 2002 and August 7, 2007.
“It was people like the de facto Minister who supported criminals like Alfredo Reinado and those demonstrators who burnt the houses of FRETILIN supporters in 2006. They were the ones who stood clapping whilst the so-called army petitioners marched into Dili to demonstrate in April 2006, which then resulted in a violent end and triggered the suffering and mayhem that came from the violence.

“Just ask the displaced people, they can tell why they were forced from their homes. Ask the families of people still exhuming their sons why they were killed? It’s because of the division of the nation by those whom the de facto Minister supported, Mr Alfredo and the petitioners. So, I ask, who needs to answer for the 2006 crisis? Who was it that had constant contact with Mr Reinado?” asked Lu’Olo.

“FRETILIN will do everything to ensure that there will be no violence resulting from the proposed Peace March. That is precisely what it is, a Peace March. That is the intention and the goal: a reaffirmation of FRETILIN as a force for Peace, Democracy, the Rule of Law and Justice, all things people are thirsting for in this country.
“FRETILIN as a party has since 2001 held the largest demonstrations and rallies in Timor-Leste, involving hundreds of thousands of people without violence and respecting law and order and the rights of others. That’s more than we can say for the demonstrations organized by people now in the de facto government and their allies in the National Parliament, including the President of the Parliament himself, whose supporters brought down to Dili in May - August 2006 attacked FRETILIN supporters and even killed many,” said Lu’Olo.

“Despite having been the victims of the 2006 violence, organized and orchestrated to bring down the then FRETILIN Prime Minister Dr Alkatiri, FRETILIN and its supporters will never do to them what they did to us. We respect them as fellow Timorese and part of the human family. We have suffered too much from conflict to do that ourselves,” Lu’Olo stressed.

“We ask the National Police, the UN Police, the International Stabilisation Force, who have the role of maintaining law and order, to ensure that when the Peace March is held, it proceeds in peace and without attack from others who don’t agree with it. We ask them to be remain totally independent and just follow the law, whatever attempts the government is currently engaged in. We undertake to fully cooperate with PNTL and UNPOL.

“Let’s close all avenues to some external to our party who want to open up for violence. There is no place for it. It is important that the March go ahead and that it is peaceful, for the sake of democracy in this country. If the largest party cannot demonstrate peacefully and lawfully, then what of the small parties and civil society? That will mean the end of democracy. We will not permit that to happen,” Lu’Olo concluded.

For information contact:
José Teixeira MP on +670 728 7080
Nilva Guimarães (media officer) on +670 734 0389

Dos leitores

Caro(a) senhor(a) eco_lorosae

Obrigada pelo seu apoio a paz e estabilidade em Timor-Leste.Nao sei se e portugues ou timorense mas sei que esta do lado da AMP.

Indiquei os artigos da Constituicao quanto a minha reivindicacao.

Quais sao os artigos da Constituicao que sao a base da sua reivindicacao de que o governo da chamada Alianca da Maioria Parlamentar e constitucional?

A AMP foi formada depois do acto eleitoral para acambarcou o poder o que abre um grave precedente para o futuro de Timor-Leste. Foi Sua Exa, o PR , Dr. Jose Ramos Horta quem tomou esta decisao com base na interpretacao que fez do artigo referente a formacao do governo. Na altura o assunto foi bastante debatido mas o PR nao recuou na sua decisao. Agora pergunto: Sera que valera a pena fazer eleicoes em Timor-Leste daqui em diante? Qualquer partido que ganhar as eleicoes, nao tera sequer oportunidade de fazer uma proposta de governacao se nao tiver maioria absoluta. Todos os partidecos juntar-se-ao e assim sucessivamente. Veja uma das consequencias da decisao do PR. O lider do segundo partido mais votado e o PM e o partido mais votado esta fora do governo. Acha que isto e justo?


No Parlamento, a dita maioria votou votou no lider de um partido que conseguiu apenas 11% nas eleicoes de 2007. Nao teria mais sentido se estivesse la alguem com maior representatividade? Como os assentos do PN foram ocupados em funcao dos resultados das eleicoes, teria mais sentido que o titular do orgao representasse tambem o resultado das eleicoes, nao acha?

A AMP formou-se depois e a pressa para isolar a FRETILIN. A FRETILIN propos que se formasse um governo de grande inclusao com um PM independente e aproposta foi recusada. Voce acha que um partido que ganhou as eleicoes deve ser isolado de todo o cenario politico e de desenvolvimento nacional? Isto e muito complicado, disse o embaixador brasileiro a chegada a Timor-Leste referindo-se ao isolamento da FRETILIN.

Quem ganhou as eleicoes foi a FRETILIN e nao a AMP. No entanto, atraves de comunicado de imprensa, o Ministro de Economia de facto, Sr. Joao Goncalves, disse que a AMP conseguiu 70% de votos nas eleicoes. Que mentira tao escandalosa! Porque tentam enganar o publico?

Veja ou procure saber sobre o que esta a passar no Parlamento Nacional. Perdeu o seu papel pois tudo quanto vem do governo e apoiado pela tal dita maioria. Quase todas as propostas da oposicao de facto sao rejeitadas. E este tipo de estado que voce deseja para Timor-Leste? Podera o PN fiscalizar as actividades do governo com imparcialidade?

Os timorenses tiveram que sujeitar-se a dois colonialismos. Eramos proibidos de ter espirito de critica. Estamos independentes agora e temos uma Constituicao que nos garante o direito a liberdade de expressao. Pode ter a certeza que o partido FRETILIN prima-se pelas leis e em nenhum momento incitara a violencia. A paz e estabilidade, ainda que frageis, existem porque ha quem se esforce para isso. A FRETILIN esta neste grupo, pode crer.

Os rumores sobre a possibilidade da violencia aquando da Marcha da Paz comecaram a circular fabricados pelos mal intencionados que nao querem que este pais triunfe segundo a actual Constituicao. Espero que voce ajude a inculcar na mente de todos os timorenses que, num pais democratico, todos tem direito a liberdade de expressao nos termos da lei

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