The Reinado Tapes

The Australian - Friday, August 22, 2008

Features: The Reinado Tapes
Paul Toohey

Jose Ramos Horta and Alfredo Reinado had reached an impasse at their final encounter, writes Paul Toohey

A SECRET recording of the last meeting between East Timor's President Jose Ramos Horta and rebel leader Alfredo Reinado reveals that the two men had run out of ways to end a stalemate that had held the country moribund for almost two years.

The recording, obtained by The Australian, was made by Reinado on January 13 on a small digital recorder hidden in his top pocket at a meeting in the western hilltop town of Maubisse.
Just before Reinado died, he handed it to a friend for safekeeping.

Reinado was gunned down at almost point-blank range inside Ramos Horta's villa on February 11, while the President survived after being shot twice, apparently by Reinado's rebels. The rebels say Reinado told them he had a 6am appointment with Ramos Horta and point out they dawdled on the way to Dili, stopping in places to kill time to arrive at the appointed hour.

Although no one suggests Ramos Horta made the appointment, the January meeting reveals how frustrated he and senior government figures had become with Reinado. It is possible that Reinado, who was relying on Ramos Horta to solve his problems, lost patience and stormed Ramos Horta's villa.

An alternative theory is that Reinado had been falsely informed the President wanted to see him and was set up for his death by powerbrokers who sought his elimination.

Ramos Horta had warned Reinado that if an agreement was not reached on that day, then ``there are no more other opportunities. If the President of the republic has come and a
solution is not found, then what other solution is there? These are my words.''

Four men attended the meeting: Ramos Horta, Economy and Development Minister Joao Goncalves, Reinado and Reinado's second-in-command Gastao Salsinha, who is now in jail.

Waiting outside was Major Mike Stone of the Australian Defence Force, now assigned to Ramos Horta's staff; and Reinado's lawyer, Benevides Correia Barros.

The meeting was a failed final attempt to end a two-year impasse that plunged the country into civil strife after about 600 soldiers from western Timor deserted and fled to the hills, claiming the army leadership was favouring soldiers from the east for promotion. Reinado eventually joined the petitioners, but his case was different: the courts had issued an arrest warrant for him on murder charges, after he had engaged in a deadly firefight with the army in 2006.

Ramos Horta went to the meeting believing that the group acting as mediators between him and Reinado, the Movement for National Unity and Justice (MUNJ), had secured a commitment from the rebel to surrender weapons he had unlawfully seized from border police in early 2007.

Ramos Horta discovered that Reinado had made no such promise.

The rebel argued he had shown good faith in 2006 by surrendering his weapons to then president Xanana Gusmao. He said Gusmao had promised that the surrender was just a formality intended to restore public faith and that he would get his weapons back.

Reinado told Ramos Horta that Gusmao had betrayed him by not returning the weapons, and this led him to raid the border posts to obtain guns.

Ramos Horta regarded the surrender of weapons as essential for him to offer Reinado a guarantee of amnesty in the context of the murder charges.

``You told MUNJ you accepted the solution of compromise that I have presented,'' the President said.

Reinado said: ``I have the right, as military, to protect myself.''

Ramos Horta, angrily: ``We have spoken of this many times, major.''

Reinado: ``And I have never changed my position, Mr President.''

Ramos Horta reminded Reinado that he, not Reinado, was supreme commander of the army. ``The command does some things wrong but there is in no country or any state which, after such efforts, would accept your attitude,'' he said.

``Many opportunities have been given to you. Many opportunities. I have said many times already that during these months that good, positive behaviour will help to stabilise the situation.

``Many people don't understand; many suspect that I would also support you from behind. I don't. I only look to do dialogue and dialogue and dialogue. I try to look at the problems from each side.

``However, major Alfredo Reinado, the moment has come that we must go forward, meet each other, to bow to each other, because the reason is not 100 per cent on your side or 100 per cent on the side of the Government or FFDTL (the Timorese defence force). If you want to show the community that we can find solutions for the problem and show that only you are right, then there is no solution.''

The recording adds force to the argument that Reinado's lover, Angelita Pires, who has been accused of being Reinado's puppeteer, was not as influential as has been claimed. Pires was
not at the meeting and Reinado's stubbornness is clearly of his own making.

Reinado had earlier written to the President saying he was prepared to be placed under house arrest in Dili, with a New Zealand guard, while awaiting his trial in a military court. (Timor has no such court.) He no longer trusted Australian troops because he felt they were encroaching on his turf.

The President said it would be better if Reinado stayed out of Dili and that he would have to surrender to the authorities for house arrest while awaiting trial. But ``that is only a formality'', he added. He said he would use ``indirect pressure'' to persuade the prosecutor-general to allow Reinado to remain free while awaiting trial.

However, Ramos Horta warned that he had no power over the courts, even though he had infuriated them by ignoring the warrants and issuing freedom-of-movement letters that ordered
the security forces not to arrest Reinado. Ramos Horta said an amnesty law would be passed on May 20 that could lead to his freedom. But Reinado was aware the President had no legislative
power and could guarantee no such outcome.

Salsinha insisted he and the petitioners were still serving members of the army. However, Salsinha and his men had been sacked in early 2006 and Ramos Horta made it clear that the
army's head, Brigadier General Taur Matan Ruak, did not want them back. ``Taur says we will not accept them to come back because we already sacked them,'' the President told the rebels.
He said he would return to Dili and try to persuade Matan Ruak that the soldiers could reapply to join the army or be paid out to go away.

Reinado retorted that all serving members of the military -- not just the rebels -- should be put through a triaging process to reapply for the military and to prove their worth. He challenged
serving soldiers to a physical test to see who was better.

Ramos Horta was contemptuous of Salsinha and did not address him by his rank.

He took a different view of Reinado, regarding him as a serving officer who needed to face justice.

In a strange aside, the President said to Reinado: ``While we are in this process, I ask yourselves to please keep an eye. I heard that from the border the Indonesians are bringing weapons in.''

Reinado agreed this was the case and asked the President to give him the authority to raise a battalion to protect the border. Ramos Horta did not respond.

The meeting ended after one more attempt by Ramos Horta to persuade Reinado to surrender his weapons. ``No, Mr President,'' Reinado responded. ``It's like this. I also have the right to
protect myself.''

Ramos Horta made a half-hearted suggestion that they meet again in a few days, but no date was set. It appears as though Ramos Horta had given up on Reinado. The two men never saw each other again.

Goncalves told a reporter after the shootings that Reinado had agreed to surrender and submit to justice on January 13. ``He agreed. A deal was essentially done,'' Goncalves was reported as
saying. That clearly was not the case.

Three days after the meeting, Leon de Riedmatten from the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue wrote to Reinado on behalf of Ramos Horta, informing him that the military was reluctant to
reintegrate the petitioners into the army but reassuring him that he would remain free and that no military operation would be conducted against him.

Gusmao, the East Timorese army, the Australian-led International Stabilisation Force and the courts had all tired of Reinado and regarded him as a common criminal.

Ramos Horta, the Nobel peace laureate, was the only one who saw hope. The President was the only one Reinado would listen to.

But after two years of Reinado demanding justice but refusing to face the courts, it is clear that Ramos Horta, too, was running out of patience.

De Riedmatten told Reinado the President had to travel overseas in January and would not be able to meet him that month. He promised that Ramos Horta would meet him again ``before the
middle of February''. However, the President made further plans to travel overseas in mid-February and again cancelled the meeting with Reinado.

On February 6, Australian troops entered Reinado's hilltop zone, which led to a three-hour stand-off, with the rebels firing shots in the air. It is possible that Reinado thought he was
close to being arrested and that his one hope in the world, Ramos Horta, had left him for dead.

Novos políticos preparam futuro

Rádio Renascença
19-08-2008 10:00

A historia do país escreve-se com nomes ligados à resistência, mas agora há uma nova geração de dirigentes timorenses a preparar-se para liderar o país.

Ramos Horta, Xanana Gusmão, Mari Alkatiri e os irmãos Carrascalão. Há varias décadas que são estes os rostos da politica timorense, antes e depois da independência. Mas há caras novas à espreita.

“A nossa geração, dentro em breve, terá de ser reformada e eles estão mais preparados do que nós, quando tínhamos a sua idade, inclusive alguns já são ministros”, afirma Mário Carrascalão, líder do PSD timorense.

É o caso do actual chefe da diplomacia, Zacarias da Costa, mas, também, de Arcangelo Leite, o ministro da Administração Estatal, agora com 42 anos. Aos poucos vai-se afirmando uma nova geração de políticos, incluindo o líder do PD, que é também presidente do Parlamento e assumiu interinamente a chefia do Estado, após o atentado contra Ramos Horta. Fernando Lassama Araújo, diz que não faltam novos políticos. “A nova geração está a formar-se com o seu envolvimento no Parlamento Nacional e no Governo. Está mostrar competências e capacidades elevadas”.

Também a Fretilin, na oposição, está a preparar novos quadros. Mari Alkatiri lembra, por exemplo, que Arsenio Bano já é vice-presidente do partido aos 33 anos.

Cx/Pedro Mesquita

Informação Imprensa: Visita a Timor-Leste de S. Ex.ª o Ministro da Justiça de Portugal

Embaixada de Portugal em Díli - 21 de Agosto de 2008

A Embaixada de Portugal informa que S. Ex.ª o Ministro da Justiça de Portugal, Dr. Alberto Costa, realizará entre 21 e 23 do corrente, uma Visita à República Democrática de Timor-Leste, a convite da sua homóloga, Dra. Lúcia Lobato, com o objectivo de estreitar os laços de amizade e cooperação existentes.
S. Ex.ª o Ministro da Justiça de Portugal manterá encontros com Suas Excelências o Presidente da República, o Presidente do Parlamento Nacional, o Primeiro Ministro, o Presidente do Tribunal de Recurso, o Procurador-Geral da República, o Provedor dos Direitos Humanos e Justiça, o Secretário-Geral da FRETILIN, e com o Representante Especial do Secretário-Geral das Nações Unidas.

Durante a deslocação a Timor-Leste, com o objectivo de aprofundar o apoio ao fortalecimento do sistema de Justiça, encontra-se prevista a assinatura de um protocolo de cooperação bilateral entre os Ministérios da Justiça de Portugal e de Timor-Leste, e de um protocolo definidor do enquadramento das futuras missões de magistrados portugueses em Timor-Leste, entre o Ministério da Justiça de Portugal, o Ministério da Justiça de Timor-Leste e o Programa das Nações Unidas para o Desenvolvimento (PNUD).
S. Ex.ª o Ministro da Justiça de Portugal prestará igualmente homenagem às vítimas do massacre de Santa Cruz e deslocar-se-á ao Museu e Arquivo da Resistência Timorense. Manterá também contacto com juristas e técnicos portugueses, e com representantes das Forças de Segurança e Forças Armadas de Portugal que exercem funções em Timor-Leste.
No quadro do Programa Indicativo de Cooperação 2007-2010, celebrado entre os Governos de Portugal e de Timor-Leste, a cooperação no sector da Justiça constitui um dos eixos prioritários de intervenção da Cooperação Portuguesa. O apoio e o desenvolvimento de projectos de cooperação no sector da Justiça resulta da definição prévia de prioridades e necessidades pelas autoridades timorenses, donde tem decorrido a necessária articulação com os demais parceiros internacionais, com o intuito de contribuir para o fortalecimento do Estado de Direito e o respeito pelos Direitos do Homem em Timor-Leste.

Science doesn't back Ramos Horta story

The Australian
Comment Paul Toohey August 19, 2008

EAST Timor President Jose Ramos Horta has delivered a furious tirade against The Australian, accusing it of inventing an article.

The story in The Australian said rebel leader Major Alfredo Reinado was shot dead at almost point-blank range inside his compound on February 11.

Ramos Horta told the Timor Post that this newspaper and Australian forensic authorities were trying to destabilise his nation by suggesting Reinado and his offsider, Leopoldino Exposto, were shot at close range.

The President and the Timor Post have misunderstood the story. They seem to think The Australian commissioned an independent report from the Victorian Institute of Medicine on Reinado’s wounds.

The story was in fact based on the Reinado autopsy conducted first-hand by East Timor’s head forensic pathologist, Dr Muhumad Nurul Islam.

Dr Nurul reported that Reinado had blackening and burning around each of his four bullet wounds and said he had been shot with a high-velocity rifle “at close range”.

Dr Nurul said Leopoldino was shot in the centre of the back of his head, also at close range.
Dr Nurul’s report raised questions of reported claims that Reinado had been shot at a distance of 10m to 15m by a guard who had taken up a sniper position.

The Australian went to Professor David Ranson, of the Victoria Institute of Forensic medicine to ask about the general nature of gunshot wounds. Professor Ranson said that blackening and burning only appeared when a gun was fired at almost point-blank range.

This was not just Professor Ranson’s view. Forensic pathologists across the world agree this only occurs when rifles are fired at near-contact, or point-blank, range.

One inference to draw from this is that Reinado and Leopoldino were executed or possibly detained before being shot.

The President has reason to be angry, but not at The Australian or the Victorian Institute of Medicine.

He should be angry that he was left lying wounded on a road outside his compound for 30 minutes before help arrived.

Where were his guards when he was fighting for life?

He should be angry that his personal security guard who accompanied him for his morning jog along the beach allowed him to return to his home with gunfire ringing out across the valley.

He should be angry that security forces – local and international - did not catch the rebels that morning as they raced off and hid in the nearby hills.

He should also be angry that UN and police investigators allowed people to tramp all over the crime scene, even answering Reinado’s phone as he lay dead inside the President’s compound.

He should look again at the photos of the dead Reinado, and ask himself why Reinado’s body can be seen in different positions. The body has been tampered with.

Because the rebels escaped, they had time to stash or switch weapons, meaning reliable ballistics information pertaining to the weapons used that morning has been lost.

Most of all, the President should be angry with himself.

It was Ramos Horta who acted unconstitutionally in drawing up “letters of comfort” that allowed the armed rebels with arrest warrants to remain free, despite the repeated demands of the Dili Court that they be detained.

This deeply annoyed the Australian-led International Stabilisation Force, who believed Reinado was a common criminal who needed to be brought to justice.

But Ramos Horta had an unflagging self-belief that he, and he alone, could resolve the crisis. Events show that he could not.

Ramos Horta maintains that Reinado and Leopoldino were shot from a distance. Science suggests otherwise.


NOTA:

As forças militares australianas pactuaram com Ramos-Horta e não o aconselharam nunca a deter Reinado.

East Timor/Indonesia: 'Restorative Justice' is Justice Denied?

Inter Press Service - Monday, August 18, 2008
Analysis by Stephen de Tarczynski

MELBOURNE - East Timor’s most prominent independence leaders -- currently holders of the young nation’s two highest political offices -- may now be the main obstacles to obtaining justice
for victims of the 1999 referendum-related violence.

The final report by the Indonesia and East Timor Commission of Truth and Friendship (CTF) -- established by the two countries in 2005 with the objective of obtaining "the conclusive truth in
regards to the events prior to and directly after the popular consultation in 1999" when, according to the United Nations, some 1,000 people were killed -- was handed to East Timor
President José Ramos Horta and his Indonesian counterpart Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Jul.15 in Bali.

East Timor, a former Portuguese colony, was invaded and occupied by Indonesia in 1975 but won independence through a referendum organised by the United Nations in 1999. It became fully independent in 2002 after a period under U.N. administration.

While the CTF found that gross human rights abuses were committed by both pro-autonomy and pro-independence Timorese around the time of the independence referendum -- in which close to 80 percent of voters rejected the proposed "special autonomy" status as part of Indonesia -- the report alluded to the Indonesian military (TNI) as an institution which was
particularly complicit in the violence.

"The commission concluded that Indonesia also bears state responsibility for those gross human rights violations [such as murder, rape, torture, illegal detention and forced mass deportations] that were committed by militias with the support and/or participation of Indonesian institutions and their members," states the CTF.

While Yudhoyono expressed his "deepest regret" for the victims, Indonesia was quick to quash any idea that those responsible would be brought to justice. The President ruled out prosecutions of the perpetrators, stressing that the CTF was about institutional rather than individual responsibility.

Prior to the report being presented to the two leaders, Indonesian defence minister Juwono Sudarsono said that the aim of the CTF was "restorative justice."

It was a point also made by Ramos Horta, who added that the victims’ legacy would be the avoidance of repeating atrocities like those of 1999 as well as creating stronger bonds between
the two countries. He said that East Timor (also known as Timor Leste in the Portuguese) would not be seeking an international tribunal to try those responsible.

Ramos Horta and Yudhoyono were joined by East Timor’s Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão -- Ramos Horta’s fellow independence hero -- in signing a joint statement declaring "we are determined to bring a closure to a chapter of our recent past’’.

While the reactions of Indonesia’s leaders are politically expedient given the possible ramifications if investigations for individual responsibility of human rights violations were
carried to their full extent, the desire to bring about "closure" on the part of East Timor’s leaders means they are complicit in denying the rights of the victims.

Effectively, the leaders’ desire to brush-over past injustices undermines earlier reports on the occupation, such as the Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation of East Timor
-- whose recommendations for accountability remain largely unimplemented -- and inquiries backed by the United Nations.

The support of the CTF by Ramos Horta and Gusmão lends a false sense of legitimacy to the process. It provides Indonesia with a justification for not implementing the recommendations of
previous reports and mitigates the chance of reforming the powerful TNI.

Their support also enables other governments to back the CTF, rather than heeding calls for the perpetrators to face judicial justice.

And such calls are being made. Several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) -- including the two nations’ leading human rights groups, Association HAK of Timor-Leste and Indonesia’s
KONTRAS -- issued a joint statement on the same day the CTF released its report to the two presidents.

"Those who committed crimes against humanity throughout Indonesia’s invasion and occupation of Timor-Leste must be identified and prosecuted, for the sake of justice for past victims in Timor-Leste and for a future in which human rights are respected in Indonesia," said the NGOs, calling for a further judicial mechanism in order to assign individual responsibility for those crimes.

Among the concerns raised by the NGOs was that the CTF "put a priority on rehabilitating the names of accused perpetrators over justice or compensation for victims". The organisations
were critical of the commission’s lack of power to recommend prosecutions and the "inadequate" protection of witnesses, as well as its "narrow" focus on the events of 1999.

The East Timor National Alliance for an International Tribunal (ANTI) -- a grouping of several rights groups which includes victims’ families -- also opposed the CTF. "The process of
creating the CTF did not follow the Constitution of Timor-Leste because the agreement signed by the presidents of Timor-Leste and Indonesia was not ratified by the national parliament of
Timor-Leste, in accordance with article 95 (3f) of the Timor-Leste Constitution," said ANTI.

Additionally, ANTI argues that the assigning of institutional, instead of individual, responsibility for human rights violations "is contrary to the principles of international laws which were ratified by the state of Timor-Leste and to Article 160 of its constitution which says that there must be a justice process for crimes against humanity."

But opposition to the CTF has not only been voiced by civil society. The U.N. did not support the process as it opposed the CTF’s ability to recommend amnesty for those who committed gross
human rights abuses.

Given their past support of the process, the responses from Ramos Horta and Gusmão were not surprising. However, it means that East Timor’s relations with its massive neighbour are
taking precedence over justice for victims of the Indonesian-sponsored violence.

Essentially, by viewing the CTF as the "final word" on the 1999 bloodshed, the two most highly respected leaders of Timor-Leste’s struggle for independence are allowing the perpetrators of the violence to literally get away with murder.

"CTF is only one mechanism of addressing or looking at what atrocities may have happened in the country… there is also something called prosecution," Allison Cooper, spokeswoman for
the U.N.’s mission in East Timor was quoted as saying at a press conference in Dili on Aug. 6.

In 2003 Indonesia’s former armed forces chief, Gen. Wiranto, was indicted by U.N. prosecutors for his role in the violence surrounding East Timor’s independence.

An attempt to "move on" from the past might make economic and political sense to leaders of the fledgling nation, but as men who have known their own share of injustice at the hands of
Indonesia -- four of Ramos Horta’s eleven siblings were killed during the brutal occupation while Gusmão spent seven years in an Indonesian prison following his 1992 capture -- they, like
many of their compatriots, can understand that "restorative justice" is, in fact, justice denied.

Conto: O SEGREDO DOS PASSARINHOS

Carlos Correia Santos*

Há meses, muitos meses, Deco não conseguia mais sonhar. O menino caía na cama, fechava os olhos e acordava no dia seguinte com a certeza de que não vivera nenhuma aventura durante o sono. As coisas ficaram ainda mais esquisitas quando percebeu algo curioso: tinha parado de sonhar exatamente no dia em que ganhara um especial presente: a gaiola com o bonito passarinho que enfeitava seu quarto. O bichinho parecia triste. Não cantava. Vivia mofino.

Esquisito. Muito esquisito. Veio outra noite e lá estava Deco sem conseguir pregar os olhos e descansar. Desolado, começou a falar sozinho: "Que chato isso! O que está acontecendo, afinal? Por que não consigo mais ter sonhos? Nem um sonhinho! Nada!".

De repente, para a sua total surpresa, a ave presa na gaiola se pronunciou: "Se tu conhecesses o segredo dos passarinhos, saberias por qual razão paraste de sonhar...". Nosso amigo pulou da cama, assustado. Santa Maria, estava tendo pesadelo, era isso?! O pequeno ser trancado na gaiola voltou a se manifestar: "Quando nossas asas são presas, os sonhos param de voar". O garoto tremia. Não conseguia reagir. Tremia e tremia. Estava ouvindo um animal falando!!! Tremia e tremia. Cheio de suavidade, o pássaro achou graça e fez um sereno pedido: "Tire-me daqui... Tire-me daqui e eu explico tudo". Deco foi, voltou. Olhou para o ser falante, afastou-se. No final, bastante nervoso, abriu a portinhola e trouxe para fora a criaturinha com todo cuidado.

Apertada entre os dedos de seu suposto dono, a ave fez novo pedido: "Deixe-me solto. Vais entender o que esta se passando. Deixe-me solto". O jovem atendeu a solicitação. Abriu as mãos. Viu seu companheiro atravessar a janela e partir no rumo do céu noturno. Mas o passarinho não foi embora. Não. A incrível criatura parou no ar e fez um inesperado convite para Deco: "Venha enxergar o que quase ninguém enxerga. Venha conhecer o nosso segredo". O outro se aproximou das persianas escancaradas e descobriu uma cena belíssima. No silencio da madruga, milhões de pássaros indo de lá para cá. Eles entravam nos quartos das casas e prédios, paravam sobre as camas de todo mundo, ouviam os desejos de cada um e zarpavam em direção às nuvens, levando todas aquelas informações.

Quando chegavam no ponto mais distante de todas as alturas, encontravam os anjos e para eles entregavam as vontades e mistérios que haviam coletado. Sentados em torno da lua, os anjinhos transformavam tudo aquilo em imagens cheias de fantasia. As aves, então, voltavam para a terra e plantavam todos aqueles sonhos nos corações dos adormecidos. Deco estava emocionado com aquele espetáculo. O antigo prisioneiro que morava em seu quarto falou: "Esse é o segredo dos passarinhos. É, sim. Temos a missão de transportar o sonhar de todo mundo. As pessoas que nos prendem perdem a capacidade de fazer a imaginação bater asas por aí".

O bichinho voltou para perto do menino. Pousando em seus dedos, continuou a conversa: "Agora a escolha é tua. Vais me colocar de novo na gaiola ou vais me deixar livre?". O rapazinho suspirou profundamente, sorriu e respondeu: "Quero que meus sonhos nunca parem de voar. É claro que eu te liberto. Para sempre!". Assim, como quem espalha poesia pelo universo, o passarinho se foi.

Seu canto encantado ecoou por todos os lugares, por todas as dimensões. Deco fechou a janela, deitou-se em sua cama e adormeceu tranqüilamente.

Carlos Correia Santos é poeta, contista e dramaturgo premiado pela Funarte na categoria infanto-juvenil em 2003 e 2005 e no Edital Curta Criança do Ministério da Cultura. Contatos: carloscorreia.santos@gmail.com

Ilustração: Wendell Pimenta. Contato: wendellpimenta@gmail.com

Doubt over Timor shooting

Sydney Morning Herald
Lindsay Murdoch, Darwin August 19, 2008

EVIDENCE has emerged that challenges the belief that East Timor President Jose Ramos Horta was shot by a member of rebel leader Alfredo Reinado's gang.

Investigators now believe the shooter was wearing a different uniform from that of Reinado's men - a uniform gang members used to wear, The Age has learnt.

The revelation will fuel fresh speculation in Dili that Reinado was lured to Mr Ramos Horta's house, where gunmen were waiting.
Mario Carrascalao, a key member of East Timor's ruling coalition, said yesterday that more than six months after the attacks "we still don't know what happened".

"For me, all the stories that have been told here - I don't trust them," he said.

Mr Carrascalao called for the immediate release of a prosecutor-general's report into the attacks and the establishment of an independent inquiry into "what happened and more importantly why it happened".

Fretilin, the main opposition party, has made similar demands.

"We can't put aside the possibility that Alfredo was set up," said Mr Carrascalao, head of the Social Democrat Party.

A post-mortem report released last week showed that Reinado and one of his men were shot dead at close range inside Mr Ramos Horta's house compound, which led to speculation in Dili that they were executed.

For months after the attacks, Timorese were led to believe that Marcelo Caetano, one of Reinado's men, shot Mr Ramos Horta twice at the front gate of the President's home.

But Mr Ramos Horta realised that Caetano was not the gunman when he met him in Dili after the rebel had surrendered in April.

Caetano, who is in jail in Dili with 21 other rebels, has admitted he was at Mr Ramos Horta's house but denied he shot the President.

Other rebels have signed statements claiming that Reinado told them he was taking them to Dili for a pre-arranged meeting with Mr Ramos Horta, who knew nothing about it and was taking his morning walk when the rebel group arrived at his house on February 11.

Mr Ramos Horta was wounded when he hurried back to the house after hearing shots. He spent two months recovering at Royal Darwin Hospital after life-saving surgery.

Mr Carrascalao, an Indonesia-era governor and one of East Timor's most powerful politicians, said he did not believe that Reinado would have gone to Mr Ramos Horta's house to kill him or harm him.

"It makes no sense … the President was the one person who was trying to save Alfredo," he said.

Mr Carrascalao said an independent inquiry, which is being resisted by Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao, should be conducted by Timorese with the support of international technical advisers.

Magistrados portugueses vão passar a ter melhores condições de trabalho

Lisboa, 19 Ago (Lusa) - Os magistrados portugueses que forem trabalhar para Timor-Leste vão passar a ter melhores condições de trabalho, mantendo o vencimento e os subsídios a que têm direito em Portugal, disse hoje à Lusa o ministro da Justiça.

Alberto Costa, que inicia quinta-feira uma visita oficial de três dias a Timor-Leste, referiu que aquela matéria será objecto de um protocolo a assinar com as autoridades timorenses e que "cria um quadro para o desempenho de funções por parte de magistrados judiciais e do Ministério Público em Timor-Leste".

"Esse quadro, até ao momento, não estava definido e vai, com este acordo, passar a estar, designadamente as condições de trabalho para garantir que os magistrados que tenham interesse desempenhem as suas funções para uma ordem jurídica que carece do seu contributo", afirmou Alberto Costa.

O estabelecimento deste quadro, que abrange desde as carreiras profissionais até à remuneração, vai preencher o vazio que existia e que se traduzia no desinteresse de magistrados portugueses em ir trabalhar para Timor-Leste, ao serviço das Nações Unidas.

"Até agora, não existia um quadro jurídico pré-definido. Existiam diversas soluções casuísticas que às vezes geravam problemas, nomeadamente a continuidade de um ou outro juiz. Agora, o que passa a existir é um processo de recrutamento regulado, desencadeado por iniciativa das autoridades de Timor-Leste, com intervenção de órgãos em Portugal, como o Conselho Superior de Magistratura ou a Procuradoria-geral da República", explicou.

Alberto Costa precisou que o protocolo que vai ser assinado passa a definir as condições que são concedidas a estes magistrados, que incluem, da parte portuguesa, "o respectivo vencimento e os subsídios a que têm direito, tal como aconteceria se estivessem em Portugal".

"Todos os seus direitos e deveres são acautelados", frisou.

Do lado das Nações Unidas e do Governo timorense ficam as responsabilidades de garantia de habitação, alimentação e transportes.

O segundo protocolo que vai ser assinado nesta deslocação oficial abrange todas as actividades tuteladas pelos ministérios da Justiça de Portugal e Timor-Leste.

"O objectivo é promover a colaboração em toda a área da justiça. Desde a formação até à disponibilização de peritos, passando pela transferência de boas práticas neste domínio, elaboração de legislação, e as formas de colaboração à distância, nomeadamente através do uso de correio electrónico e de videoconferência para resolver problemas que se colocam no plano jurídico, através da colaboração de profissionais dos dois países", destacou.

"A cooperação entre Portugal e Timor-Leste estava a precisar que fosse assegurado um quadro alargado de cooperação, que incluísse elementos de modernização da ordem jurídica, não apenas os tão importantes elementos da formação de juristas e de técnicos e oficias de justiça", defendeu.

"Pretendemos dar continuidade e valorizar a cooperação judicial. A justiça é mesmo a prioridade da nossa cooperação com Timor-Leste", garantiu.

Durante os três dias que permanecerá em Timor-Leste, a convite da sua homóloga, Lúcia Lobato, Alberto Costa tem previsto encontros com o Presidente de República, José Ramos-Horta, o primeiro-ministro, Xanana Gusmão, e o presidente do Parlamento Nacional, Fernando "Lasama" Araújo.

Reuniões de trabalho com o presidente do Tribunal de Recurso, Cláudio Ximenes, o Procurador-Geral da República, Longuinhos Monteiro, e o representante especial do secretário-geral da ONU, Atul Khare, estão igualmente agendadas.

EL.
Lusa/Fim

Longuinhos Monteiro nega execução de Alfredo Reinado

EFE - 18 Agosto 2008

Sydney (Austrália) - O procurador-geral do Timor-Leste, Longuinhos Monteiro, negou hoje que o líder rebelde Alfredo Reinado tenha sido executado quando, em Fevereiro, tentou assassinar o presidente timorense, José Ramos Horta.

Monteiro disse à imprensa que os resultados da autópsia revelados na semana passada por um jornal australiano não são definitivos, porque a investigação sobre o atentado ainda não terminou.

O jornal "The Australian" informou que Reinado e Leopoldino Exposto, outro soldado rebelde, levaram tiros à queima-roupa na nuca, local que teria sido muito difícil atingir em uma troca de disparos.

Segundo os médicos australianos que realizaram a autópsia, é impossível que as marcas de bala do cadáver de Reinado tenham sido causados por disparos de soldados a mais de dez metros de distância, como sustenta a versão oficial.

Caso seja confirmada, a execução do líder rebelde pode gerar novas tensões no Timor-Leste, que desde que obteve a independência, em 2002, luta para conseguir uma estabilidade política que lhe permita se concentrar no desenvolvimento económico.Os fatos ainda estão sendo investigados pela Procuradoria Geral e por um comité especial das Nações Unidas.

Em 11 de Fevereiro, Ramos Horta ficou gravemente ferido no atentado cometido em frente à casa dele e no qual Reinado morreu, enquanto o primeiro-ministro, Xanana Gusmão, saiu ileso do ataque contra ele.

Jailed E Timor rebels hiding the truth

The Australian:
Jailed E Timor rebels hiding the truth
Paul Toohey August 18, 2008

INSIDE the Hotel Becora, as they call Dili's prison, some of the 22 men who face spending the rest of their lives behind bars for the attempted murders of East Timor's President Jose Ramos Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao are starting to talk.

The Australian has obtained the first accounts from rebels inside Becora. None of them admits to shooting the President, even though Mr Ramos Horta had identified Marcelo Caeteno as his attacker.

The rebels, who spent weeks on the run before surrendering, had plenty of time to work on their story. Because they are all condemned by the deed, they all deny it. They admit one group went to the President's compound and another went to the Prime Minister's house but say, no, they never shot nor ambushed anyone.

Many East Timorese believe the whole thing was a set-up; that rebel leader Alfredo Reinado was invited down to Dili to be killed, to end the two-year stand-off in which he and his rebel band remained armed and roaming the hills in the country's west.

The Australian revealed last week that autopsy reports showed Reinado and fellow rebel Leopoldino Exposto were shot dead at almost point-blank range inside Mr Ramos Horta's villa.

The shootings had the hallmarks of executions, causing the main opposition party, Fretilin, to demand an international investigation into the events of February 11.

"What The Australian has reported reinforces our calls," Fretilin MP Jose Teixeira said. "It cannot be ignored any longer."

If the authorities have anything to hide, so do the rebels, who are protecting themselves and a hazy political group called MUNJ, or the Movement for National Unity and Justice, whose members spent the day before the shootings with the rebels and had supplied vehicles that were used to drive down to Dili.

On that morning, Reinado's second-in-command, Lieutenant Gastao Salsinha, positioned a second group of men in ambush below the Prime Minister's house. Some of Salsinha's group have admitted to firing shots in the air, but none has confessed to firing into Mr Gusmao's vehicle, which was reportedly hit by six bullets fired from four directions.

The rebels were part of a larger group of about 600 Western-born soldiers or military police who abandoned barracks in early 2006, claiming there was discrimination in the army leading to eastern-born soldiers being favoured for promotions.

The dispute took the country close to civil war.

The interviews with the rebels inside Becora, conducted by someone who must remain anonymous, are with key rebels Amaro Suarez da Costa, better known as Susar, and Gilberto Suni Mota, and Egidio Lay, who were part of the group that went to Mr Ramos Horta's home.

Susar was the first rebel to surrender after 19 days on the run. He says he was sleeping in a shack a few kilometres away from Reinado's mountain hideaway at Luala, in the western district of Ermera, when Reinado woke him at 3.30am.

"Suddenly, the major, he came to get me in my house," Susar says. "He just said to me, 'We're going to Dili. The President called us to talk'."

Twelve men went with Reinado in two cars, while 10 were with Salsinha in another two cars.

Susar says: "When we left Luala we drove really slow, because the meeting was at 6am. The idea was for us to go there, meet at 6am, talk, talk, talk, then go back to Ermera."

Susar says Reinado stalled for time so as not to be too early to the meeting.

Upon arrival, at 6am, they found two guards at the President's gate.

"When we got out of the vehicle, (guard) Kelimut started to arm his weapon," Susar says. "I started to think: 'What's going on? We came to meet the President and the security is acting in this manner.' So the major said: 'Calm down, calm down'. Major said: '(Where's) The President?'

"Kelimut said: 'Oh, the President's gone to exercise'."

Susar says he stood by the gate, apparently preventing those guards from raising the alarm while Reinado, Leopoldino, Lay and Suni Mota went in.

Susar claims the men were not wearing balaclavas, which is at odds with the accounts of the presidential guard.

Susar admits that two of the rebels - he does not say who - returned from inside the compound having taken a machinegun and an automatic rifle from apparently sleeping guards.

Susar says he never stepped inside the compound. "No. I didn't even ... go slightly in. My weapon, it was pointed down. We didn't go for a shootout. If we went there for a shootout, obviously I wouldn't come."

It was not until Susar heard shots that he loaded his weapon.

So how many minutes from when you arrived at the gate till when you heard the shots, from when the car parked till the major died, he is asked.

"Five minutes, maybe less," he says. "It didn't even get to five minutes. I can tell you it was really fast."

Was there an exchange of fire after Reinado was shot? "We never shot at anybody," Susar says.

"We retreated. I only shot up, as warning shots. Because if we just waited there, the Australian forces and the tanks would've closed all the ways. We didn't go there to shoot. I had to shoot up, to warn the boys to get out. They were shooting at us."

Did he see Ramos Horta returning? "I didn't even see his holy spirit. Never," Susar says.
Susar says he cannot explain how the tragedy happened.

"I don't know," he says. "It was the major. We came because of him. And then he died."

Suni Mota's and Lay's accounts of the morning of the shootings are similar: they say Reinado was shot inside the President's home, after which they ran like crazy, not looking back. They say they don't know who shot the President.

Suni Mota and Lay were with Reinado on February 10. Both men insist no MUNJ representative was with Reinado the day before the attacks. They focus on a visit from Reinado's lover, Australian-East Timorese citizen Angelita Pires, who has been blamed by Mr Ramos Horta and the prosecutor-general for influencing the events of February 11.

Ms Pires brought four people with her to Reinado's on the day before the shooting: her Australian-Timorese friends, Teresa and Victor de Sousa, and their small son; and an older woman, Eliza Morato, who had arrived from Australia with greetings for Reinado from his relatives. Ms Morato took photos of Reinado and his group, which now form part of the investigation case.

When shown one of Ms Morato's photos, both Suni Mota and Lay identify a MUNJ representative, Cancio Pereira, standing with Reinado and the rebels.

MUNJ had acted as the negotiator between Reinado and Mr Ramos Horta, who was attempting to solve the standoff. MUNJ was pro-Reinado, and on January 7, resigned from a taskforce set up to deal with Reinado, claiming the Government was not showing sufficient will to end the crisis.

As the interviews reveal, MUNJ was indeed there, which raises questions as to whether it played a role in influencing Reinado to go to Dili.

No MUNJ member has been charged over the shootings, though Mr Pereira and fellow MUNJ member Lucas Soares have been questioned and have had their passports confiscated.

MUNJ co-ordinator Augusto Junior Trinidade declined to speak to The Australian.

FRETILIN, opposition parties and some AMP MPs join forces to increase budget allocation for poverty stricken veterans

FRENTE REVOLUCIONÁRIA DO TIMOR-LESTE INDEPENDENTE
FRETILIN
Media Release
August 18, 2008


FRETILIN, KOTA-PPT, PUN, ASDT and other AMP MPs joined forces to amend the budget presented by the Gusmao de facto Government, to immediately start paying the liberation war veterans' pensions, at a cost of US$20 million. "Our proposal succeeded despite strong opposition by de facto Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao and Finance Minister Emilia Pires to the very end," said Josefa Soares Pereira, FRETILIN Parliamentary Party Secretary and MP.

Soares and FRETILIN MP Osorio Florindo put forward the proposal during the budget debate which ended on 31 July 2008, in the Timor-Leste National Parliament, because the government could not explain why veterans were going to be made to wait a further six months or more for payment of their much needed pensions.

"It seemed to us unjust and unnecessary for the government to continue to deny these impoverished veterans their pensions, when they have been quite prepared to make a priority of special payments to deserters from the defence force. These veterans in contrast sacrificed themselves and their families so that we can have the freedom and sovereign nation we have today," she said.

In 2006 the FRETILIN dominated parliament passed a law establishing the criteria and mechanism to determine payment of pensions to veterans and their families, but the collection and verification of data as to who is a veteran was the task of three commissions established since 2002 under the auspices of then president Xanana Gusmao. The then President continued to insist that there was insufficient verification for the database compiled by the commissions to be used as the basis for commencing payment of pensions to veterans.

"It was a source of frustration for us who have tried to promote the cause of the veterans, that there was this constant proposition coming from the then president, now de facto Prime Minister, that the database was not ready. Yet in late 2006 and in the first half of 2007, before the parliamentary elections it was good enough to use the database to award around 17,000 medals of honor to veterans and their survivors. This issue was politicized by political figures in the campaign, including Mr Gusmao, and FRETILIN was painted as neglectful and mean for not paying the veterans," added Soares.

"But when it comes to an outrageously high spending budget on largesse such as luxury cars for MPs, overseas travel for Ministers and others in government, rehabilitation of homes for ministers and others, they forget about the veterans and keep saying the database needs to be fixed. We don't accept that anymore and are happy that the majority of the parliament agreed with us. Now it is a matter for the government to cut out the fat it has for travel, entertainment and other luxuries to make sure the veterans are paid," Soares stressed.

To date only 238 or so veterans have received any payments whatsoever, with a tens of thousands still awaiting any payment, whilst living in extreme poverty. The FRETILIN government's attempts to pay the veterans in the time prior to the elections in 2007 were also met with a dead end response from the veterans commission, which was under the control of Mr Gusmao.

"We do not want any more excuses from Mr Gusmao and Mr Virgilio Simith, the Secretary of State who is the chair of the veterans commissions. They have had five years to come up with the numbers for the veterans. They have done a poor job and we need to have an investigation into the numerous complaints that have been made by both veterans and development partners who gave millions of dollars towards the process. Mr Gusmao and Mr Simith have to be held responsible.

"We insist on this, but most of all, it's the Veterans, including MPs who are veterans and supported our proposal for amendment, who spoke out in these terms. It's time to act. The government must act or be held further responsible for the neglect of the veterans, for which Mr Gusmao and his appointees must carry their share of the responsibility," Soares said in closing.

The budget which was rammed through by the AMP de facto government is currently the subject of a constitutional appeal by FRETILIN, and is awaiting promulgation by President Jose Ramos-Horta who has held back from proclaiming it subject to the court's decision. FRETILIN MPs believe that one of the few areas warranting a revision was in the case of the additional US$20 million, which can be accommodated in the revised budget, by cutting extravagant and wasteful items, and without any need to withdraw in excess of the sustainable income set by the Petroleum Fund Law rules.

For more info, contact Jose Teixeira: +61 438 114 960 (Australia), +670 728 7080 (Dili, Timor-Leste)

É TUDO UMA QUESTÃO DE APRENDERMOS

In Blog Timor Lorosae Nação:

Segunda-feira, 18 de Agosto de 2008
É TUDO UMA QUESTÃO DE APRENDERMOS
Por KLAUDIO BEREK

ABENÇOADO TIMORENSE EMIGRADO

Os comentários, a face oculta dos blogues que se abre com um clique e nos pode mostrar uma vastidão de opiniões sobre o artigo correspondente ou divagações que às vezes nos conseguem baralhar ou até indispor.

Mas os comentários também podem trazer-nos muita coisa boa, principalmente quando são postados por gente honesta, simples, objectiva, que fazem lembrar a quase totalidade dos timorenses de há mais de um quarto de século.
É o caso do exemplo que se segue, assinado por um timorense emigrado em Inglaterra, que sacrificou o seu “canudo” de um curso universitário para ganhar para si e para a família em Timor e assim proporcionar uma melhor instrução e educação aos seus irmãos na longínqua Pátria. Um sacrifício que gostaríamos imenso de saber que foi compensado. Uma opção de alguém muito grande em tudo, mas principalmente nos laços consanguíneos e no patriotismo.

Um timorense garboso e exemplar.

TIMORENSE EMIGRADO - comentário na mensagem "O ARROZ E O CIRCO EM TIMOR-LESTE ":



Sou um dos timorenses enviados para Portugal para estudar. Em Portugal aprendi a falar e a escrever em português.

Ao fim de três anos o meu português já estava em condições de me servir dele para tirar um curso superior, mas, em vez disso vim para a Inglaterra atrás dos meus conterrâneos porque a bolsa que o governo me dava não era suficiente para fazer uma vida normal de estudante.

O trabalho aqui é duro mas ganho bom dinheiro, que dá para mim e para mandar para os meus familiares que ficaram em Timor-Leste.
Os meus irmãos estão a estudar com o dinheiro que lhes mando mensalmente. Eles vão poder ser futuros líderes do meu país.

Não estou a adquirir grandes conhecimentos mas quero voltar para a minha terra e ser alguém lá.

Através deste "blog" sei que há uma grande discussão sobre quem é melhor, o Governo da FRETILIN ou o Governo da AMP.

Estou muito confuso, por isso eu peço aos entendidos que escrevem neste blog para me dizerem qual é a diferença verdadeira entre esses dois governos.Podem fazer-me esse favor? Eu agradeço do coração. - Timorense Emigrado

QUEM AGRADECE SOMOS NÓS

“Podem fazer-me esse favor? Eu agradeço do coração.”
Somos nós, TLN, que temos de agradecer do fundo dos nossos corações pela franqueza e pela postura deste nosso querido amigo. Agradecemos ainda pela forma como nos sensibilizou com a sua presença tão humana em prosa tão curta num simples comentário.
Muito obrigado por ser como é.

Quanto ao favor que nos pede afirmamos, sem favor, que não sabemos dar-lhe a resposta correcta de modo tão taxativo, como parece pretender.

Pergunta-nos “qual é a diferença verdadeira entre esses dois governos” – Fretilin e AMP.

Sabemos as diferenças, na nossa óptica, mas não sabemos tudo sobre as diferenças, ninguém sabe, nem os próprios intervenientes.

As diferenças visíveis entre a Fretilin e a AMP são abissais porque um é um partido representante de determinado número de timorenses, um partido político histórico - que como todos os partidos históricos tem tido altos e baixos - e a AMP que é quase nada, que tanto quanto parece nem existe legalmente, mas que sabemos ser uma agremiação de partidos políticos que se associaram para com os resultados dos seus votos superarem em número o partido timorense mais votado, formando assim uma maioria parlamentar que proporciona suporte ao governo dito da AMP mas que no fundo é mais um governo de Xanana Gusmão e de flutuantes acordos de conveniência nada transparentes e que algumas vezes acusam de serem inconvenientes para os interesses do país.

Estranhamente, para nós, ao contrário daquilo que se passa em países democráticos – onde o partido mais votado é quem governa, como é o caso de Inglaterra – em Timor-Leste o partido mais votado encontra-se na oposição e Timor-Leste é governado por representantes de partidos que obtiveram percentagens muito menores, minorias.

Minorias essas que, qual manta de retalhos, todas juntas superam em número de votos e de deputados a opositora Fretilin.

Em nossa opinião é um exercício de democracia inconcebível, principalmente porque não se apresentou ao eleitorado como AMP, nem sequer a ventilar essa possibilidade. Fica sempre a pergunta que não terá resposta: o que aconteceria se a AMP fosse legal e apresentada à votação nas eleições legislativas passadas?

As circunstâncias de Timor-Leste logo após a independência e actualmente são completamente diferentes. Não existem paralelos que nos permitam comparar e avaliar com fiabilidade as actuações de um e outro governo.
Actualmente, aquilo que nos é proporcionado saber é que Xanana Gusmão partiu para a corrida a primeiro-ministro através de um acto anti-democrático, com destruição, mortos e deslocados à mistura, e que desde 2006 nos tem trazido de surpresa desagradável em surpresa desagradável.

Ao responsável-mor do governo da AMP foi-lhe retirada a definição de herói e muitas outras lhe foram já dadas de forma negativa: golpista, traidor, etc. Ao seu governo e à sua pessoa, enquanto primeiro-ministro, vão sendo colados rótulos de corrupção como o caso do “negócio do arroz” – negócio realmente muito suspeito e com todos os contornos de corrupção.

Suspeito é, também, para muitos, em Timor-Leste e noutros países, sobre o 11 de Fevereiro e a morte de Alfredo Reinado – que agora se sabe ter sido executado – aventando-se ainda a possibilidade de o seu atentado em Balibar ter sido forjado e não mais representar que um “golpe de teatro”, para não referir suspeições no atentado ao presidente Ramos Horta.
Por favor, com estas evidências e tantas suspeitas quem é que quer um primeiro-ministro de um governo arquitectado sobre pressão… ou chantagem.

Repare-se que quando se fala em AMP, governo AMP, vai-se direitinho a Xanana, portanto quase se pode dizer que a AMP não existe, ou melhor, aparenta existir para dar cobertura e suporte a Xanana Gusmão e à sua democracia mascarada, da qual José Ramos Horta é cúmplice, presumivelmente chantageado.

A Fretilin será melhor, governaria melhor?

Na política, como em muitas outras circunstâncias, não podemos meter as mãos no fogo. Nem pensar nisso.

Aquilo que se pode concluir é que, comparativamente, a Fretilin, ou Mari Alkatiri, seu eleito responsável máximo, não derrubaram governo com golpe de Estado, nem com violência, mortos e desalojados às centenas de milhares.

Na anterior governação da Fretilin, limitada como estava, foi mostrado o inequívoco exercício da defesa da independência do país face aos interesses sobre o Mar de Timor e de outros mais que foram negociados. Aliás, o seu derrube, o derrube daquele governo legítimo, teve por objectivo facilitar aos interesses económicos estrangeiros apoderarem-se de Timor-Leste. Xanana Gusmão é quem acusam de lhes “abrir a porta”. Tudo indica que é isso que temos visto e continuaremos ver… se continuar no cargo de primeiro-ministro e super-ministro dos petróleos e da defesa – tem Timor nas mãos.

A Fretilin é melhor?

Pelo menos não fez tanta “nojeira política” em tão pouco tempo e herdou um país destruído, sem infraestruturas. Aliás, foi derrubada inconstitucionalmente, pela força, pela chantagem política e de perda de vidas, de casas e pequenos negócios, entre outras malfeitorias que aterrorizaram as populações e que estão sempre na ordem do dia como ameaça latente, como se viu há poucos dias na chantagem usada por Xanana para que o Presidente da República assinasse a aprovação de um orçamento composto por parte de um Orçamento Rectificativo deslumbrante que o Tribunal de Recurso deve decidir da sua inconstitucionalidade ou não e que está relacionado com o “negócio do arroz” em que estão envolvidas personalidades que aos timorenses merecem sérias reservas, mas que são do circulo de amizades do primeiro-ministro.

Foi uma resposta longa que não desejo que influencie quem quer que seja sem que antes constate sobre a veracidade dos argumentos, porque é assim que os interpreto.

Esta exposição teve um mérito para mim. Acabei por entender bem melhor porque combato a governação de Xanana Gusmão e os seus métodos de se livrar dos opositores.

Ver sobre esta perspectiva, para mim, é muito mais importante do que neste momento analisar a anterior governação Fretilin, ou fazer vatícinios, porque as actuais circunstâncias são extremamente diferentes.

Como disse: na política não se deve pôr as mãos no fogo… e muito menos em Timor-Leste.

Ao Timorense Emigrante fico muito grato, desejando tudo que de melhor houver para ele e para os seus familiares, fique ou não de acordo com aquilo que opino e exponho com sinceridade e tolerância pelos que comigo discordam e possam contribuir para um melhor esclarecimento, democraticamente.

É tudo uma questão de aprendermos.

Pequim2008: Timor Leste - Inexperiente Mariana Ximénes desiste na maratona

** Rui Barbosa Batista, Agência Lusa **

Pequim, 17 Ago (Lusa) – Apenas um mês de treino resultou no previsível abandono da timorense Mariana Dias Ximénes na exigente prova da maratona dos Jogos Olímpicos, na qual participou a convite do Comité Olímpico Internacional, no âmbito do programa de solidariedade olímpica.

“Pensava que vinha fazer os 10.000 metros. Só treinei um mês para a maratona, por isso foi muito difícil para mim. Tentei acabar a prova, mas não deu. Doíam-me os pés”, contou a atleta, que pediu “muita desculpa ao povo de Timor Leste e ao presidente por ter desistido”.

Mariana Dias Ximénes chegou a Pequim2008 com apenas uma experiência na prova de 42.195 quilómetros, com uma marca na casa das 2:59 horas, quando o recorde do Mundo, da britânica Paula Radcliffe, é de 2:15.25.

Durante o mês de preparação Mariana treinou duas horas de manhã e outra à tarde.

A atleta de 24 anos, que estuda gestão bancária em Bali, Indonésia, onde vive com os pais, está “muito feliz” por ter representado Timor Leste nos Jogos Olímpicos – é acompanhada por Augusto Soares, também maratonista – lembrando que quer “o melhor” para o seu país.

Para futuro, revelou um desejo surpreendente: “Gostava que em Timor pudéssemos ter um estádio como este (“Ninho do Pássaro”), mas não sei quando (será possível)”.

RBA.
Lusa/fim.

E Timor urged to investigate assassination 'execution' claims

ABC News today
15.08.2008

Posted 2 hours 4 minutes ago

East Timor's main opposition party, Fretilin, is calling for an independent international investigation into the assassination attempt on the country's leadership in February.

The call comes after the autopsy report of rebel leader Alfredo Reinado indicated that he was executed rather than shot from a distance by security forces during the presidential assassination attempt.

The report obtained by The Australian newspaper shows Reinado and one of his top rebels were shot at point blank range.

Senior Fretilin MP Jose Texeira told Radio Australia's Asia Pacific program there were more questions than answers surrounding the events of February 11.

He said there should be an international panel investigating the attack on East Timor's President and Prime Minister.

"We need an international investigation in order to overcome all of these questions of impartiality of all those involved in an investigation," he said.

"I think people are looking forward to justice and a credible process to take its course, and I think that for allegations as startling as this to come out is a concern to us all.

"The Parliament has provided an indicator to the Government that it should be an international investigation.

"As long as political leaders figures maintain level heads and insist on a transparent and independent investigation I think that could minimise any political tensions."

Questions continue six months after Reinado's death

also East Timor rebel leader may have been executed: report

Questions continue six months after Reinado's death
By Stephanie March

DILI, Aug 13 AAP - Six months ago Victor Alvez's voice rang out through radios and televisions, appealing for peace and calm from the people of East Timor.

He had just buried his son-in-law, Alfredo Reinado, in the front yard of a home down Dili's back streets, next to the body of Leopoldinio Exposto, who was also shot and killed at the home of President Jose Ramos Horta by military guards.

His calls were prompted by fears of a violent backlash by supporters of the former soldier turned fugitive rebel.

To many people's surprise, the streets of Dili remained calm.

Today, down that dusty backstreet, the sun filters through the vines covering an archway over the two graves, lighting up the dozens of bright plastic flowers left by family and friends over the past week.

The streets of Dili may have remained quiet over the past six months, but Victor Alvez's life is far from peaceful.

"I am so sad; I will never stop thinking of him," he said.

"It's the same for his friends and family - even after six months these feelings remain so strongly."

Alvez has always professed his son-in-law's innocence against allegations he had plotted to kill or kidnap the president.

His spirits have been lifted by a report in The Australian newspaper that top forensic scientists say it was possible Reinado was executed at close range, confirming suspicions he was lured down from his mountain hideout to the president's home.

"If he wanted to kill Horta, he could have done that on February in Maliana when they had a meeting, why he not kill him there?," Alvez said.

"He is trained military; it is easy for him to kill. If he went there to kill people all of Horta's guards would be dead."

Alvez says he has been receiving anonymous phone calls from people who say they witnessed the shooting, and who also believe Reinado was lured into a trap.

But despite the ongoing criminal investigation into the events of February 11, he has little faith that those behind the incident will ever be brought to justice.

""We really do not know yet who was behind it, but I know it's because of the politics."

He is not the only one who is having doubts about the investigation.

A detailed report into the shooting by the UN is complete but unreleased, while the criminal investigation by the prosecutor-general has run overtime and is being seriously questioned in Dili.

The UN had refused to release the report into events immediately following the shootings, so as not to interfere with the criminal investigation.

Charged with leading that investigation is prosecutor-general Longuinhos Monteiro, whose credibility is in serious doubt.

A UN report into the violence of 2006 said Monteiro followed blindly the policy of the president who appointed him, Xanana Gusmao, and as a result he did not "function independently from the state of East Timor."

"The man in charge - the prosecutor-general - has already in our eyes proved himself to be anything but politically impartial," said opposition Fretilin MP Jose Teixeira.

Despite the expertise of dozens of international investigators carrying out the prosecutor general's orders, the chance of uncovering what really happened may have already be lost.

There have been allegations Reinado was high on drugs and had been drinking the night before was killed, but sources close to the investigation say toxicological tests may not have been done during the autopsies.

Alvez says his son-in-law was a person who "doesn't like to drink a lot of alcohol," and would only do so if it were culturally necessary on certain social occasions.

A leaked UN report found the National Investigation Department has encountered "political and military interference" as well as a lack of cooperation. Poor handling of evidence - including the weapons used by the rebels - has also botched the investigation.

A source close to the investigation said the F-FDTL soldiers guarding the president's home took Reinado's cell phone off his body, and continued to receive and make calls for days after his death, before handing them over to investigators.

"They could (also) have deleted some numbers, some messages, we don't know," the source told AAP.

The F-FDTL refused to respond to these allegations, and neither the UN report or those involved in the investigation can say if their actions were the result of malfeasance, or innocent mistakes.

While Alvez's heart aches for his lost son-in-law, and has little hope his name will ever be cleared, he himself is steadfast that Reinado was nothing more than an innocent victim of politics.

""My heart says that is not true, but if the decision comes out saying he is guilty, maybe that is the justice in this world, but for me the decision will be made by God and I hope he will give justice."

--------------------------

East Timor rebel leader may have been executed: report

DILI, Aug 13 (AFP) -- East Timor rebel leader Alfredo Reinado may
have been executed rather than killed in a gunbattle during an attack
on President Jose Ramos-Horta, a report said Wednesday.

The Australian newspaper said it had obtained the autopsy reports for
Reinado and fellow rebel Leopoldino Exposto which showed they had
been shot at very close range at the president's house in February.

Exposto was shot once in the direct centre of the back of his head,
typical of an execution-style killing, the paper said.

The findings suggested that the rebels could have been lured down
from their mountain hideout into a trap or had been held before being
shot, The Australian said.

Official reports of the incident say Ramos-Horta was critically
wounded and Reinado was killed during a firefight in an assassination
attempt at the president's compound on the outskirts of Dili.

But forensic pathologist Muhammad Nurul Islam, who conducted the
autopsies, said Reinado and Exposto were killed "at close range" with
a high-velocity rifle, The Australian reported.

Nurul said there were no toxicological testing facilities at the Dili
morgue and that suggestions that Reinado was either drunk or on drugs
could never be confirmed or denied.

Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao's motorcade also came under attack in
Dili on February 11, but he was unhurt, while Ramos-Horta spent weeks
recovering from his wounds in an Australian hospital before returning
to East Timor.

Ramos-Horta won the Nobel peace prize in 1996 for two decades of work
representing the former Portuguese colony later occupied by Indonesia
and last year became its second president since independence in 2002.

------------------------------------------

Joyo Indonesia News Service

==== ========= ==== =======


[This message was distributed via the east-timor news list. For info on how to subscribe send a blank e-mail to info@etan.org. To support ETAN see http://etan.org/etan/donate.htm ]

Autópsias revelam que autores dos atentados terão sido executados

Jornal Digital
2008-08-13 11:21:17

Díli - As autópsias aos corpos dos autores do atentado de 11 de Fevereiro contra José Ramos Horta apontam para uma execução à queima-roupa e na nuca, local que teria sido muito difícil de alcançar num tiroteio.

De acordo com o jornal «The Australian», as autópsias ao Major Alfredo Reinado e ao soldado Leopoldino, revelam que os tiros foram disparados a menos de 30 centímetros, uma vez que as feridas no corpo de Reinado apresentam hematomas profundos.Segundo os médicos australianos que praticaram a autópsia, é impossível que as marcas de bala no cadáver de Reinado tenham sido causadas por disparos de soldados a mais de dez metros de distância, como afirma a versão oficial.Estes resultados vêm colocar de lado a teoria de os rebeldes terem sido mortos pelas forças de segurança do Presidente Ramos Horta, aquando da tentativa de assassinato.

Caso se confirme, o assassinato do líder rebelde pode gerar novas tensões no Timor-Leste, que desde que obteve a independência, em 2002, luta para conseguir estabilidade política, que lhe permita concentrar-se no desenvolvimento económico.

Citado pela Rádio Renascença, Mário Carrascalão, líder do PSD-Timorense, não se surpreende com a notícia, pois na sua opinião esta história teve sempre contornos anormais. «Aceito isso com normalidade. Para mim este caso do Major reinado é muito estranho. Não é surpresa para mim ter havido este elemento novo e que venha a haver no futuro outros», afirmou sublinhando que há muitos timorenses que não acreditam que Reinado tentasse assassinar Ramos Horta.

Os factos ainda estão a ser investigados pela Procuradoria Geral do Timor-Leste e por um comité especial das Nações Unidas.

(c) PNN Portuguese News Network

Autópsia a Alfredo Reinado indicia execução na casa do Presidente de Timor-Leste

2008-08-13 16:01:00
Público

Segundo as conclusões do patologista forense que conduziu as autópsias, Muhammad Nurul Islam, citado pelo jornal, Reinado e Exposto foram mortos "a curta distância" com uma arma de alta velocidade.

A versão até agora pública era que Alfredo Reinado, um major de 42 anos com formação na Austrália, que liderava um motim há um ano, e Leopoldino Exposto tinham sido apanhados desprevenidos quando entravam no recinto da residência de Ramos-Horta, a 11 de Fevereiro, e tinham sido mortos por um guarda a uma distância de pelo menos dez a quinze metros.

Mas agora veio saber-se que Exposto foi morto com um tiro no centro da nuca disparado de "muito próximo", o que é típico de uma morte por execução, e que os quatro orifícios de bala no corpo de Reinado apresentavam em seu redor queimaduras e um escurecimento significativo.

Novas dúvidas sobre o que aconteceu

"The Australian" cita ainda um especialista australiano do Instituto de Medicina Forense do estado de Vitória que diz ser consensual e muito claro nesta especialidade que "queimado e escurecimento são característicos de tiros a muito curta distância, provavelmente a menos de um pé [cerca de 30 cm]".

A 11 de Fevereiro, o Presidente de Timor-Leste foi atingido por vários tiros quando regressava a casa após a sua corrida matinal, e um dos seus guardas foi morto. Ficou num coma prolongado e esteve às portas da morte em Darwin, Austrália, onde foi tratado.

No mesmo dia e quase à mesma hora, o primeiro-ministro e ex-Presidente, Xanana Gusmão, saiu ileso de um atentado à coluna de veículos que o transporta de casa para o seu gabinete.

"The Australian" diz que estes dados das autópsias permitem concluir que os acontecimentos no recinto da residência presidencial não são tão claros como tinham sido descritos até aqui e que é de admitir que Reinado e Exposto possam ter sido atraídos para uma armadilha ou ter sido feitos prisioneiros antes de serem executados.

"Jornal da Republica" online

"Jornal da Republica" de Timor-Leste já está disponível, para pesquisa, em:

http://www.mj.gov.tl/jornal/

Was East Timor rebel leader executed by presidential guard?

Times Online
August 13, 2008

Anne Barrowclough in Sydney

East Timorese rebel leader Alfredo Reinado and his chief lieutenant may have been executed after the assassination attempt on President Jose Ramos Horta in February, an autopsy report suggests.

The autopsy on Reinado and his fellow rebel Leopoldino Exposto, who were shot dead at President Horta's home, indicates that the men were shot at point blank range according to The Australian newspaper which has obtained a copy of the report.

Reinado, an Australian trained major who has waged a year long mutiny against Mr Ramos Horta's government, was shot in the eye, neck, chest and head. The entry wounds show burning and blackening that is indicative of weapons fired at point black range, said experts. Exposto was shot in the back of the head at "close range", typical of an execution style killing, said the autopsy.

Officially, the two rebels were caught unawares inside the President's compound on February 11 and were killed in a gun battle with palace guards after the assassination attempt on Mr Ramos Horta. Mr Ramos Horta was shot and his guard killed after being caught in gunfire after returning from his morning walk to the beachside compound in East Timor's capital Dili. Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao escaped injury in a separate attack on his convoy as it took him to his office.

The official version of events, however, has been thrown into doubt by the autopsy report, carried out by forensic pathologist Muhammed Nurual Islam. The report states that all Reinado's wounds featured "blackening/burning" especially in his left eye, where the size of the discolouration was so large that it could indicate a point blank shot.

Both men were shot with a high powered AR-15 semi-automatic Armalite weapon, with which the presidential guard was issued, reported The Australian.

A forensic expert told the newspaper that it was "well-established" in the forensics world that burning and blackening was a feature of guns being fired at point blank range.

"Blackening is a critical issue to gunshot wounds," he said. "If you see soot-type burning it indicates the barrel of the gun was very close to the skin's surface."

Questions have now been raised as to whether the rebels were lured from their mountain hideout to their deaths.

Mr Ramos Horta was elected last year as East Timor's second president since the country achieved independence in 2002. He narrowly survived the assassination attempt but has indicated that he might not complete his four year term.

Rebelde que tentou assassinar Ramos Horta pode ter sido executado

Globo.com
13/08/08 - 02h09 - Atualizado em 13/08/08 - 02h15

Da EFE

Sydney (Austrália), 13 ago (EFE).- O ex-líder rebelde timorense Alfredo Reinado pode ter sido executado durante o tiroteio que se seguiu à sua tentativa frustrada de assassinar o presidente José Ramos Horta, em fevereiro, segundo revelou a autópsia de seu cadáver.

Reinado foi atingido à queima-roupa e na nuca, local que teria sido muito difícil de alcançar em um tiroteio, informou hoje o diário "The Australian".

Caso se confirme, o assassinato do líder rebelde pode gerar novas tensões no Timor-Leste, que desde que obteve a independência, em 2002, luta para conseguir estabilidade política, que lhe permita concentrar-se no desenvolvimento econômico.

Segundo os médicos australianos que praticaram a autópsia, é impossível que as marcas de bala no cadáver de Reinado tenham sido causadas por disparos de soldados a mais de dez metros de distância, como afirma a versão oficial.

Os fatos ainda estão sendo investigados pela Procuradoria Geral do Timor-Leste e por um comitê especial das Nações Unidas.

Em 11 de fevereiro, Ramos Horta ficou gravemente ferido em um atentado perpetrado em seu domicílio e no qual também perdeu a vida Reinado. O primeiro-ministro Xanana Gusmão também foi vítima de um ataque, mas saiu ileso.

Alfredo Reinado liderou em 2006 uma revolta de 600 soldados demitidos por insubordinação do Exército, que gerou uma onda de violência que deixou 37 mortos e mais de 100 mil refugiados e forçou a renúncia do então chefe do Executivo Mari Alkatiri.

A ex-colônia portuguesa do Timor-Leste alcançou a independência há seis anos, como uma das nações mais pobres do mundo, e após uma sangrenta transição, que acabou, em 1999, com quase um quarto de século de ocupação indonésia. EFE

Autopsy doubt on East Timor rebels

The Australian, 13 August
Paul Toohey

QUESTIONS have been raised as to whether rebel leader Alfredo Reinado was lured down from the mountains of East Timor to be executed after it emerged he was shot dead at almost point-blank range inside the home of President Jose Ramos Horta.

The Australian has obtained the autopsy reports for Reinado and fellow rebel Leopoldino Exposto, who died at Reinado's side.

Exposto was shot once in the direct centre of the back of his head at "close range", typical of an execution-style killing. The skin around Reinado's four entry wounds - to the eye, the neck, the chest and the hand - all featured significant burning and blackening.

David Ranson, of the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, said it was well-established across the forensic world that gunshot wounds that featured burning and blackening came from rifles discharged at point-blank or "near-contact" range: less than 30cm.

"Blackening is a critical issue to gunshot wounds," Professor Ranson said. "The ballistic textbooks are very clear on this. Burning and blackening is a feature of very close-range shots, probably from less than a foot away. If you see burning and soot-type burning, it indicates that the barrel of the gun was very close to the skin's surface."

Burning comes from close-range muzzle flash. The blackening, or tattooing, comes from gunpowder.

The public version to date is that Reinado, a 42-year-old Australian-trained major who had led a year-long mutiny, and Exposto were caught unaware as they entered the presidential compound on February 11 and were shot by a guard from a distance of at least 10 to 15 meters away.

Mr Ramos Horta suffered gunshot wounds when he was caught in gunfire as he returned to the compound from his morning walk, and one of his guards was killed. Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao escaped a separate attack on his convoy as it took him from his home to his office.

But the official version of events has been clouded by the findings of forensic pathologist Muhammad Nurul Islam, who conducted the autopsies. He writes that Exposto and Reinado were killed "at close range" with a high-velocity rifle.

Dr Nurul notes that all Reinado's wounds featured "blackening/burning" especially so in his left eye, where the discoloration covers an unusually sizeable 10cm x 9cm area, which could indicate a point-blank shot.

Despite some reports that Reinado was either drunk or on drugs, Dr Nurul said there were no toxicological testing facilities at the Dili morgue and that question would never be answered.

Mr Ramos Horta has maintained Reinado was an uninvited guest that day and this was an act of aggression.

What is certain is that the events inside the villa that morning are not as clear as previously presented, and may have involved Reinado and Exposto either walking into a trap or being held at close quarters before being shot.

One of Reinado's wounds was to his left hand, suggesting he may have raised it in a defensive gesture knowing he was about to be shot.

The close-range shooting opinion is strongly reinforced by the burning and blackening that appeared on Reinado's chest wound, despite the fact he was shot through a thick ammunition vest.

Reinado and Exposto were shot with a high-powered AR-15 semi-automatic Armalite weapon, or weapons, as issued to the presidential guard.

Accounts from inside Dili jail from Reinado's rebels, obtained by The Australian, have it that Reinado went to Dili for an early-morning appointment with the President.

Reinado's men maintain they had no plan to attack the President but their interviews are riddled with inconsistencies.

Rice and Circus in East Timor

August 11, 2008
Who Eats What?

By DOUGLAS KAMMEN

Since coming to power in September 2007, the new Parliamentary Majority Alliance (AMP) government of East Timor has made rice a central instrument of state policy. The government has spent millions of dollars on the purchase of imported rice. Free rice has been distributed to civil servants, a constituency recruited under the previous Fretilin government and hence of questionable loyalty. Free rice is part of the incentive offered to encourage the tens of thousands of internally displaced people (IDPs) to vacate the camps and return to their places of residence. Subsidized rice is being sold to the populace at large. Lacking a distribution mechanism, the government has also granted the right to sell this subsidized rice to selected veterans, who represent another politically sensitive group.

Intended to address East Timor’s chronic food insecurity, these side-payments, triggered a host of accusations and scandals. There are widespread allegations that government rice contracts were granted without proper tendering processes and involved collusion. The opposition Fretilin bench in parliament questioned the wisdom of providing free rice to civil servants, arguing this would place an additional strain on markets. The sale of subsidized rice has raised questions about overall government expenditures, inflation, and the impact on domestic food production. The sale of subsidized rice via selected veterans has led to charges of profiteering, prompting Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão to instruct the police to seize subsidized rice sold above the set price of $16 for a 38 kilogram sack.

In the face of these allegations, on 9 July Prime Minister Gusmão held a press conference presenting “the facts” about food security and a blistering attack on his critics. But while the political opposition and media have focused on symptoms, the real story lies elsewhere. This article traces the politics of the Gusmão government rice contracts from September 2007 until the present.

Transitional budget rice contracts

The transitional budget passed by the new AMP controlled parliament to cover the period from July-December 2007 included $6,088,000 for food security. How was this money spent? Government contracts for the import of rice can be divided into three categories: (1) rice to be distributed to civil servants; (2) rice for IDPs; and (3) rice for national reserves and/or for sale to the public.

The first piece of legislation passed by the government in September 2007 was a bill to distribute 30 kilograms of rice per month to each of the 16,969 public servants for a period of six months. To this end, in late 2007 the government signed a contract with Oriental Food, a company headed by Germano da Silva. With no prior experience importing rice, Oriental Food turned to a company called Nabilan Food, owned by Singaporean Gerry Kou. A January 2008 news article reported that Oriental and Nabilan had imported 2,790 and 490 metric tons of rice respectively for provision to civil servants. One informant in Dili suggested that the contract awarded to Oriental Food was actually only for 2,000 metric tons of rice at a price of about $420 per ton. Although the exact tonnage and value of the contract are not known, based on the lower figure of 2,000 metric tons at an estimated price of $420 per metric ton, this contract would be worth $840,000.

The government also faced the ongoing problem of providing humanitarian assistance to IDPs. Much of this assistance came from international agencies, led by the World Food Programme. However, the government also sought to secure rice for this purpose. According to sources the government granted a contract to the Timor Food Company, owned by Mr. Jong Fu Kong (alias James Jong and Jaime dos Santos). It has not been possible to obtain specific information about either the total volume of rice or the price for this contract. However, according to informants in late March 2008 Timor Food received a shipment of 4,000 metric tons of rice, approximately half of which was to fill the government contract for humanitarian assistance and the other half for sale on the open market. Again assuming a contract for 2,000 metric tons of rice and a price between US$400-450 per ton, the Timor Food contract would have also been worth about $840,000.

The third category of contracts was for the purchase of rice for national reserves and/or the sale of subsidized rice to the public. Granted without an open tender process, three contracts were signed in November 2007. Star King, headed by Lay Siu Hing, is reported to have been awarded a contract for 3,615 tons of rice at a price of about $400 per ton. People Food Company, headed by Julio Alfaro and Kathleen Gonçalves (the wife of Minister of Economics and Development João Gonçalves) is reported to have received a contract for 4,000 tons at a price just over $400 per ton. Gerry Kou’s Nabilan Food is reported to have received a contract for 3,000 metric tons at a price of $420 per ton. Taken together, these contracts are for an estimated 10,600 metric tons of rice at an average price of $420 per ton, bringing the total value of the three contracts to $4,452,000.

The estimated value of all three categories of contract – rice for civil servants, rice for IDPs, and rice for national reserves and sale -- comes to $6,132,000, a figure that is extremely close to the budget line of $6,088,000 allocated for rice. But cronyism and ersatz importers were only the beginning.

The 2008 rice contracts

In the national budget for the 2008 calendar year, the Ministry of Trade, Commerce and Industry is allocated $4,864,000 for food security goods and services. With national food security reserves running low, on 29 January Minister of Tourism, Commerce and Industry Gil Alves invited rice importers to a meeting. The following day a second meeting, attended by Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão, was held with both rice and cement importers to announce that the government sought bids for the import of 16,000 metric tons of rice. In the wake of these meetings, Germano da Silva of the Três Amigos company, an apparent new-comer to the rice business, submitted a bid to the government to supply rice at a price of $510 per metric ton. The two other “amigos” were Kathleen Gonçalves (director of the Peoplconstruction business, which includes the import of cement, during the Indonesian occupation). e Food Company), and Indonesian businessman Frans Holiwono (who had built his During the rice tender meeting, Da Silva and Holiwono convinced the government that only Três Amigos had the capacity to store the large amount of rice required. According to Prime Minister Gusmão’s account:

The Government decided to accept this bid on three deciding factors: 1) The market search by way of the meetings held with the suppliers of rice indicated lack of ability to import; 2) the bid from Mr. Da Silva was reasonable, represented value for money and offered favourable payment conditions, 3) the country’s need for rice stocks was becoming an urgent issue.

As a consequence on February 29th the Government signed a contract with the Três Amigos Company regarding the purchase of 8,000 tons of rice, at a price of US$510.00 per ton, totaling US$4,080 million (Attachment 3). The balance of 8.000 tons would be bought at the contractor’s risk and paid only after the mid year review (MYR) budget.

The government purchase order, which was leaked, contains several curious features. First, the original quantity of rice has been crossed out, the figure of 10,000 tons has been written in by hand, and this figure has also been crossed out and replaced by a total order for 8,000 tons. Second, although various sources including the UN have stated that this order was supposed to be delivered between April and June, the delivery date on the contract is for the period between 30 June and 30 August 2008. Third, despite the fact that the purchase of rice for food security falls under the budget of the Minister of Tourism, Commerce and Industry, this purchase order was signed by Prime Minister Gusmão.

Sometime in April, according to the Prime Minister’s account, “the contracting company was informed by the Vietnamese supplier that it could no longer supply rice at the price of US$510 as previously agreed. The supplier requested a new price of $800 at origin, with the Três Amigos Company adding US$100 more for transportation costs (adjustments considering rising fuel prices), insurance, operational costs and profit. Therefore the price for the government became US$900 per ton. (Attachment 4)” Concerned about soaring international rice prices, on 7 May the government amended the original 29 February Três Amigos rice contract, increasing the tonnage from 8,000 to 16,000 tons and the price from $510 to $900 per ton with delivery to be made by 30 June 2008. This amended contract worth $14.4 million is signed by Germano da Silva and Prime Minister Gusmão.

Reassessing Gusmão’s “facts”

What actually happened during the 68 days between the time the first contract was signed on 29 February and the amended contract was signed on 7 May? The only experience Germano da Silva and Kathleen Gonçalves had importing rice was a few months before when each had received a contract under the transitional budget; they had filled those orders by sub-contracting to others who knew the business. In 2008 Três Amigos again turned to the experienced Gerry Kou of Nabilan Food. The next step was for the parties involved to visit the supplier in Vietnam. During the third week of March a delegation consisting of Germano da Silva, Frans Holiwono, and Minister of Tourism, Commerce, and Industry Gil Alves (and , presumably, Gerry Kou) traveled to Vietnam to meet with a supplier. In late March the supplier and Três Amigos/Nabilan Food agreed to a contract for 8,000 tons of rice at a price of $430 per ton.

Several sources noted that after insurance, transport, stevedoring, and other operational costs, this left a profit of $30 per ton. When the shipment was due to depart from Vietnam, however, the supplier is reported to have informed Três Amigos that it could only provide 2,700 metric tons of rice and that an additional $50 per metric ton would have to be added. Três Amigos, it seemed, would take a loss on the contract.

Then something strange happened. On 7 May, the government of Timor-Leste amended the Três Amigos rice contract: the original price of $510 per ton was changed to $900 per ton and the total tonnage was doubled from 8,000 to 16,000.

This led to heated charges of corruption. But where? One key lies in the date of arrival for the first shipment of 2,700 tons of rice. On 16 April, Timor Post reported that 8,000 tons of rice ordered by People Food (German da Silva’s own company, not Três Amigos) would arrive at the end of the month. On 14 May, the Suara Timor Lorosae daily reported that the ships carrying the rice for the government contract were on the way to East Timor. On the same day, however, the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste held a press conference at which Acting Senior Representative of the Secretary General Finn Reske-Nielsen stated: “Currently there are 7,500 tonnes of rice in stock in Timor-Leste and a further 16,000 tonnes are being imported. 2,500 tonnes [sic, 2,700] have arrived from Vietnam and a further 2,500 tonnes are expected this week. The remainder is due in the near future.” So had some of the rice already arrived in Timor or not?

On 24 July I walked across the street from Landmark Plaza to an unmarked lot strewn with old construction equipment and asked if Gerry Kou of Nabilan Food was there. He was away in Singapore. Employees explained that the rice in the warehouse is only a fraction of what was purchased; the warehouse had been absolutely full. They said that this rice was “for the government contract.” When I commented on the size of the warehouse, the employees said that the warehouse is one of the reasons Germano da Silva had used Nabilan Food to fill his contract with the government. They said about 3,000 metric tons of rice had arrived several months ago.
So the first shipment of 2,700 tons had arrived. Given the UN statement about the arrival of rice before 14 May and shipping time from Vietnam to Dili (10-11 days), this shipment had to have departed from Vietnam before the government amended the Três Amigos contract on 7 May.

But this raises more puzzling questions. First, was the first ship from Vietnam carrying 2,700 tons of rice sent on the understanding that after receiving an amended contract from the government of East Timor, Três Amigos would also agree to pay the supplier a higher price for this shipment? Or, as it appears, was this rice sold and sent at the price of $430 plus $50 reportedly agreed to in April? If that is the case, then the government was defrauded and/or culpable in corruption to the tune of $1 million for the first shipment alone.

A far worse scenario, supported by two well placed sources in Dili, is that the price from the supplier for the entire order of 16,000 tons was not in fact the $800 per ton reported to the government. Any difference between the actual price from the supplier and the $900 per ton (which provided the basis for the amended contract), is either fraud or corruption. If, as sources suggest, the actual price paid for the entire order of 16,000 tons was the original $435 per ton plus the additional $50 demanded by the supplier in Vietnam, and adding an additional $100 per ton for operating expenses and profit margin (which is what the government readily agreed to in the amended contract), then the actual cost to Três Amigos was $585. That would mean a “mark-up” of $315 per ton, which comes to a total of $5,040,000 for the contract.

Conclusion

East Timor’s parliament recently concluded debates concerning the amended budget proposed by Prime Minister Gusmão that calls for a 122% increase in the 2008 budget from the current total of $347.7 million to $773.8. This includes a modest $15,355,000 for food security, of which $11,867,000 is for goods and services. Serious attention to food security in East Timor is absolutely essential. However, it must be carried out with transparency, efficiency, and to serve the best interests of the East Timorese, a people who know hunger all too well. The possible loss of between $1 million and $5 million in a single contract for food security raises serious questions about the ability and even the willingness of the current government of East Timor to manage the enormous new budget now under debate. That discussion – and indeed all political discussions in Timor – should begin with and be based on one simple question: who eats what?

Douglas Kammen is Assistant Professor in the Southeast Asian Studies Programme at the National University of Singapore. He would like to thank the many individuals (most of whom requested anonymity) who shared their time and provided information used in this article.


“Fos 3280 Toneladas Ba Funsionario To’o TL,” Suara Timor Lorosae, 19 January 2008.

He carries three passports – one from Timor-Leste, one from Australia, and a third from China (Macau?). In February 2007 Mr. dos Santos told the author that he is “Fretilin stand-by.”

An email dated 6 December 2007 that circulated widely reported that Germano da Silva, Kathleen Gonçalves, and Antonio Seisal were each granted contracts for 2,500,000 tons. This grossly inflated figure is presumably the result of the mistranslation of the Portuguese word “mil” meaning thousand. See “Politika Fahe Foos iha Governo AMP – Korrupsaun!! !,” sent by Tatoli, 6 December 2007.

See “Decreto n.o 3/II sobre o Orçamento Geral do Estado da República Democrática de Timor-Leste para 2008,” promulgated 29 December 2007, p. 28.

The following discussion draws on the account provided by Prime Minister Xanana Gusmão, “Press Conference: Food Security – The Facts,” dated 9 July 2008.

Information kindly provided by an AMP member of parliament, 27 July 2008.

“Press Conference: Food Security – The Facts,” p. 3.

República Democrática de Timor-Leste, Serviços de Aprovisionamento, Ordem do Compra/Purchase Order number 81586.

“Press Conference: Food Security – The Facts,” p. 3. $510 per ton was the price of the contract between the government and Três Amigos, not the price from the supplier, as Gusmão claims. The attachments cited were not in fact provided with the press release.

República Democrática de Timor-Leste, Ministério do Finanças, Servicão de Aprovisionamento, “Amendment to Contract RDTL – 81586, ‘The supply and warehousing of white rice’,” number 080508, dated 7 May 2008.

Frans Holiwono of BTK is said to have paid Gil Alves’ travel expenses.

República Democrática de Timor-Leste, Ministério do Finanças, “Amendment to Contract RDTL – 81586, ‘The supply and warehousing of white rice’,” number 080508, dated 7 May 2008.

“Presu Fos Sae: Governu Pronto Halo Prevensaun.” Timor Post, 16 April 2008. This article, based on an interview with the head of the food security department within the Ministry of Tourism, Commerce and Industry, suggests that in mid-April the ministry still expected fulfillment of the total order for 8,000 tons.

See “Pemerintah Sediakan 4.000 Ton Beras,” Suara Timor Lorosae, 14 May 2008.

“UNMIT Press Conference – 14 May 2008 – Near Verbatim Transcript,” on east-timor@lists. riseup.net, dated 14 May 2008. Many of the “facts” presented in an accompanying WFP/FAO/UNMIT “Fact Sheet” (distributed by east-timor@lists. riseup.et , dated 14 may 2008) are incorrect. A source who requested anonymity was certain that the first shipment of 2,700 tons of rice had arrived in April or early May.

http://www.counterp unch.org/kammen08112008. html