Baargaal e Eil, na Puntlândia, Hobyo e Harardhere, já mais perto de Mogadíscio, são algumas das principais bases da pirataria ao largo das costas somalis e iemenitas, conforme se pode constatar na Hérodote, revista francesa de geografia e geopolítica.
Por outro lado, existem bases navais antipirataria nas localidades iemenitas de Hoddeida, Áden e Al-Mukalla, bem como em Djibuti, pequeno país situado junto ao Estreito de Bab-el-Mandeb, pelo qual se transita entre o Mar Vermelho e o Golfo de Áden.
Só no ano passado, o corso teria rendido 30 milhões de dólares (20 milhões de euros) à Puntlândia; ou seja o dobro do orçamento desse Estado autónomo situado precisamente na ponta do Corno de África, entre a Somalilândia e o resto da Somália.
A reconversão de antigos pescadores em piratas começou a ser notada após o fim da ditadura de Mohamed Siad Barre, cuja derrota significou, em Janeiro de 1991, o fim da unidade somali. E desde então nenhuma entidade internacional, desde as Nações Unidas à União Africana, foi capaz de acabar com a anarquia reinante num vasto espaço de 637.661 quilómetros quadrados, habitado por mais de nove milhões de pessoas.
Entretanto, o problema da pirataria também está a preocupar outras regiões da África, como o Golfo da Guiné, onde os Camarões, o Gabão e a Guiné Equatorial criaram este mês uma força conjunta constituída por nove navios.
Um grupo de sete piratas de diferentes nacionalidades assaltou terça-feira um petroleiro alemão ao largo do Benim, o Cancale Star, matou um tripulante ucraniano e levou os valores que havia no cofre do navio.
21.9.09
Objectivo do Banco Mundial quanto a Timor-Leste
Washington, D.C. - infoZine - The overall objective of the 18-month strategy, which was developed through a broad process of consultation with government, civil society and other stakeholders, is to support the Government of Timor-Leste to convert its oil wealth into policies and programs that preserve stability while laying the foundations for sustained growth in non-oil sectors.
It targets four key areas of support to Government to achieve this: formulating a new national development strategy; building capacity to implement the new strategy; putting in place short-term social and economic stabilization activities; and securing long-term economic growth. This includes a multi-year public employment program; health and education support aimed at increasing public service delivery; further support for the management of petroleum revenues and programs to enhance private sector activity.
“Timor-Leste has achieved solid economic growth over the last two years,” said World Bank Vice President Jim Adams. “This is no small achievement in difficult times - nationally and globally. Through the dedicated efforts of all sectors of Timorese society, social stability has been restored and an environment of economic growth is being fostered. Government spending has increased markedly and this is bringing benefits to poor people across the country.
“There is of course a long path ahead but with the dedication of the people of Timor-Leste being applied to address the challenges, we see a bright future.”
With three quarters of the population engaged in subsistence farming and the majority of the population aged under 24, the Bank’s “Interim Strategy Note” puts particular emphasis on helping the country improve agricultural productivity and tackling youth unemployment and alienation.
It highlights the need to bring short and long-term approaches together in a disciplined and accountable development process “that addresses the roots of conflict and prevents a further relapse of the kind experienced in 2006”.
Mr Adams noted that Timor-Leste had implemented its national recovery strategy even in the face of assassination attempts on the President and Prime Minister in 2008. As a result:
Thousands of internally displaced people have been resettled using Government-provided funds to reconstruct housing and rebuild livelihoods
Hundreds of schools have continued to be built, rehabilitated or expanded allowing for tens of thousands more children to attend school
Job creation programs are beginning to bring about much-needed local income generation, especially in poorer rural areas
A pension scheme for veterans has been put in place as well as pensions for the elderly and disabled
Non-oil GDP growth reached an impressive 12.8 percent in 2008
Budget execution accelerated from US$65 million in 2005 to US$551 million in 2008, reflecting stronger financial management and strategic planning systems in the Ministry of Finance and other agencies.
It targets four key areas of support to Government to achieve this: formulating a new national development strategy; building capacity to implement the new strategy; putting in place short-term social and economic stabilization activities; and securing long-term economic growth. This includes a multi-year public employment program; health and education support aimed at increasing public service delivery; further support for the management of petroleum revenues and programs to enhance private sector activity.
“Timor-Leste has achieved solid economic growth over the last two years,” said World Bank Vice President Jim Adams. “This is no small achievement in difficult times - nationally and globally. Through the dedicated efforts of all sectors of Timorese society, social stability has been restored and an environment of economic growth is being fostered. Government spending has increased markedly and this is bringing benefits to poor people across the country.
“There is of course a long path ahead but with the dedication of the people of Timor-Leste being applied to address the challenges, we see a bright future.”
With three quarters of the population engaged in subsistence farming and the majority of the population aged under 24, the Bank’s “Interim Strategy Note” puts particular emphasis on helping the country improve agricultural productivity and tackling youth unemployment and alienation.
It highlights the need to bring short and long-term approaches together in a disciplined and accountable development process “that addresses the roots of conflict and prevents a further relapse of the kind experienced in 2006”.
Mr Adams noted that Timor-Leste had implemented its national recovery strategy even in the face of assassination attempts on the President and Prime Minister in 2008. As a result:
Thousands of internally displaced people have been resettled using Government-provided funds to reconstruct housing and rebuild livelihoods
Hundreds of schools have continued to be built, rehabilitated or expanded allowing for tens of thousands more children to attend school
Job creation programs are beginning to bring about much-needed local income generation, especially in poorer rural areas
A pension scheme for veterans has been put in place as well as pensions for the elderly and disabled
Non-oil GDP growth reached an impressive 12.8 percent in 2008
Budget execution accelerated from US$65 million in 2005 to US$551 million in 2008, reflecting stronger financial management and strategic planning systems in the Ministry of Finance and other agencies.
31.7.09
Entrevista de Malam Bacai Sanhá ao PÚBLICO
Presidente eleito da Guiné-Bissau promete combate sem tréguas ao narcotráfico
O Presidente eleito da Guiné-Bissau, Malam Bacai Sanhá, disse numa entrevista por email ao PÚBLICO, hoje, dia em que os resultados provisórios das eleições se tornaram definitivos, ter sido surpreendido, na hora da vitória, “com uma dose excessiva de emoção, que não conseguiu conter nem disfarçar". "Afinal de contas, os antigos combatentes também choram”, referiu Malam Bacai Sanhá, que tomará posse dia 8de Setembro.
O antigo Presidente interino de 1999/2000 gostaria de dizer que foi com naturalidade que encarou o triunfo sobre Kumba Ialá, “mas não foi". E explica: "O nível de ansiedade era bastante elevado, dado que já tinha experimentado grandes desapontamentos eleitorais [com as derrotas à segunda volta nas presidenciais de 2000 e de 2005].” Passada, porém, a fase da emoção, sentiu “o peso da responsabilidade dos números que lhe dão legitimidade e responsabilidade perante o povo, na mesma proporção”.
PÚBLICO - Confirmada a sua eleição, está pronto a trabalhar lealmente com o Governo saído das legislativas do ano passado?
Malam Bacai Sanhá - A lealdade e a fidúcia são pressupostos constitucionais do regular funcionamento das instituições da república que me caberá garantir. Não vejo quaisquer constrangimentos que possam condicionar o trabalho com o Governo de Carlos Gomes Júnior. Aliás, o Governo é nosso, é do PAIGC partido pelo qual fui candidato, por isso, ele terá o meu apoio pessoal e institucional para cumprir a legislatura, coisa que nunca aconteceu a um Governo constitucional.”
Pensa manter ou reformular o comando das Forças Armadas, chefiado pelo comandante Zamora Induta?
O nosso sistema é semi-presidencial, com um sofisticado equilíbrio entre as competências entre orgãos de soberania. Embora o Presidente da República seja o comandante em chefe das Forças Armadas, a escolha das chefias militares, nomeadamente o Chefe de Estado Maior General das Forças Armadas, compete, em primeira linha ao Executivo. Assim, o manter ou substituir as chefias militares é uma formulação a ser proposta pelo Governo. E qualquer juízo meu antecipado sobre essa matéria, pode condicionar a acção do executivo, o que não gostaria de fazer
Como deve a Guiné-Bissau lidar com o problema da pobreza e dos salários em atraso?
A Guiné-Bissau não é um país pobre, é rico em recursos humanos e recursos naturais. É, isso sim, um país subdesenvolvido. O desenvolvimento do país é um desafio que requer o concurso de todas as forças vivas da nação. Por isso, estou empenhado em imprimir uma presidência aberta e de inclusão, onde todos, sem excepção, serão chamados a dar o seu contributo e assumir as suas responsabilidades. É esta a fórmula, é este o segredo do sucesso.
Como pode o país deixar de ser conotado com múltiplos tráficos, incluindo o de droga, mas também outros?
A conotação é uma questão de imagem. Se é verdade que o nosso país é vítima desse fenómeno [tráfico de droga], não é menos verdade que a qualificação de “narco-Estado” é exagerada. Estamos cientes da existência do problema e estamos empenhados em encetar-lhe um combate sem trégua. Contudo, o sucesso do nosso esforço interno não é suficiente porque, por um lado, não temos meios suficientes e, por outro, o problema não é um exclusivo nosso. Requer uma acção concertada com os países vizinhos e a comunidade internacional. Só assim poderemos minimizar o seu impacto global. A Guiné Bissau não é um país de consumo, é um dos países por onde também passa a droga. Vamos empreender um combate sem tréguas a todos os tráficos nocivos à sociedade e às instituições.
O Presidente e o Governo guineenses vão conseguir manter boas relações com Portugal?
Portugal não é um mero parceiro no concerto das nações, é um país irmão com o qual partilhamos um passado comum. Por isso, entendo que manter as boas relações é pouco ambicioso, vamos intensificar e reforçar as relações quer a nível bilateral quer no plano multilateral, nomeadamente nos fóruns internacionais em que podemos e devemos ter acções concertadas com benefícios mútuos para os nossos países e povos.
E como será o relacionamento com Cabo Verde?
À semelhança do que acontece com Portugal, Cabo Verde está intimamente ligado por laços de sangue com a Guiné-Bissau. Por isso, o sentimento de irmandade que nutrimos fará com que tudo o mais nas nossas relações venha por acréscimo.
O Presidente eleito da Guiné-Bissau, Malam Bacai Sanhá, disse numa entrevista por email ao PÚBLICO, hoje, dia em que os resultados provisórios das eleições se tornaram definitivos, ter sido surpreendido, na hora da vitória, “com uma dose excessiva de emoção, que não conseguiu conter nem disfarçar". "Afinal de contas, os antigos combatentes também choram”, referiu Malam Bacai Sanhá, que tomará posse dia 8de Setembro.
O antigo Presidente interino de 1999/2000 gostaria de dizer que foi com naturalidade que encarou o triunfo sobre Kumba Ialá, “mas não foi". E explica: "O nível de ansiedade era bastante elevado, dado que já tinha experimentado grandes desapontamentos eleitorais [com as derrotas à segunda volta nas presidenciais de 2000 e de 2005].” Passada, porém, a fase da emoção, sentiu “o peso da responsabilidade dos números que lhe dão legitimidade e responsabilidade perante o povo, na mesma proporção”.
PÚBLICO - Confirmada a sua eleição, está pronto a trabalhar lealmente com o Governo saído das legislativas do ano passado?
Malam Bacai Sanhá - A lealdade e a fidúcia são pressupostos constitucionais do regular funcionamento das instituições da república que me caberá garantir. Não vejo quaisquer constrangimentos que possam condicionar o trabalho com o Governo de Carlos Gomes Júnior. Aliás, o Governo é nosso, é do PAIGC partido pelo qual fui candidato, por isso, ele terá o meu apoio pessoal e institucional para cumprir a legislatura, coisa que nunca aconteceu a um Governo constitucional.”
Pensa manter ou reformular o comando das Forças Armadas, chefiado pelo comandante Zamora Induta?
O nosso sistema é semi-presidencial, com um sofisticado equilíbrio entre as competências entre orgãos de soberania. Embora o Presidente da República seja o comandante em chefe das Forças Armadas, a escolha das chefias militares, nomeadamente o Chefe de Estado Maior General das Forças Armadas, compete, em primeira linha ao Executivo. Assim, o manter ou substituir as chefias militares é uma formulação a ser proposta pelo Governo. E qualquer juízo meu antecipado sobre essa matéria, pode condicionar a acção do executivo, o que não gostaria de fazer
Como deve a Guiné-Bissau lidar com o problema da pobreza e dos salários em atraso?
A Guiné-Bissau não é um país pobre, é rico em recursos humanos e recursos naturais. É, isso sim, um país subdesenvolvido. O desenvolvimento do país é um desafio que requer o concurso de todas as forças vivas da nação. Por isso, estou empenhado em imprimir uma presidência aberta e de inclusão, onde todos, sem excepção, serão chamados a dar o seu contributo e assumir as suas responsabilidades. É esta a fórmula, é este o segredo do sucesso.
Como pode o país deixar de ser conotado com múltiplos tráficos, incluindo o de droga, mas também outros?
A conotação é uma questão de imagem. Se é verdade que o nosso país é vítima desse fenómeno [tráfico de droga], não é menos verdade que a qualificação de “narco-Estado” é exagerada. Estamos cientes da existência do problema e estamos empenhados em encetar-lhe um combate sem trégua. Contudo, o sucesso do nosso esforço interno não é suficiente porque, por um lado, não temos meios suficientes e, por outro, o problema não é um exclusivo nosso. Requer uma acção concertada com os países vizinhos e a comunidade internacional. Só assim poderemos minimizar o seu impacto global. A Guiné Bissau não é um país de consumo, é um dos países por onde também passa a droga. Vamos empreender um combate sem tréguas a todos os tráficos nocivos à sociedade e às instituições.
O Presidente e o Governo guineenses vão conseguir manter boas relações com Portugal?
Portugal não é um mero parceiro no concerto das nações, é um país irmão com o qual partilhamos um passado comum. Por isso, entendo que manter as boas relações é pouco ambicioso, vamos intensificar e reforçar as relações quer a nível bilateral quer no plano multilateral, nomeadamente nos fóruns internacionais em que podemos e devemos ter acções concertadas com benefícios mútuos para os nossos países e povos.
E como será o relacionamento com Cabo Verde?
À semelhança do que acontece com Portugal, Cabo Verde está intimamente ligado por laços de sangue com a Guiné-Bissau. Por isso, o sentimento de irmandade que nutrimos fará com que tudo o mais nas nossas relações venha por acréscimo.
28.1.09
Hissene Habré
Addis Ababa, January 28, 2009) – More than 30 months after it asked Senegal to prosecute the former dictator of Chad, Hissène Habré, the African Union should ensure that the trial moves forward, five African and international human rights groups said today. African heads of state will come together in Addis on Sunday, February 1 for an AU summit.
At a summit meeting on July 2, 2006, the AU mandated Senegal, “to prosecute and ensure that Hissène Habré is tried, on behalf of Africa,” and called on the AU Commission, “to provide Senegal with the necessary assistance for the effective conduct of the trial.” Habré is living in exile in Senegal.
But Senegal has taken no action and the AU has given it no support, said a joint statement by the Chadian Association for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (ATPDH), the Chadian Association of Victims of Political Repression and Crime (AVCRP), the African Assembly for the Defense of Human Rights (RADDHO), Human Rights Watch, and the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH).
“We expect the African Union to respect its commitment to see that this prosecution moves forward,” said Dobian Assingar of the FIDH, who is also honorary president of the Chadian League for Human Rights. “The AU’s credibility is on the line. Both Senegal and the AU have just stalled and stalled.”
Habré ruled Chad from 1982 until he was deposed in 1990 by President Idriss Déby Itno and fled to Senegal. His one-party regime was marked by widespread atrocities, including waves of ethnic campaigns. Files of Habré’s political police, the DDS (Direction de la Documentation et de la Sécurité), which were discovered by Human Rights Watch in 2001 (http://www.hrw.org/justice/habre/habre-police.htm), reveal the names of 1,208 persons who were killed or died in detention. A total of 12,321 victims of human rights violations were mentioned in the files.
Faced with Senegal’s inaction, on September 16, 2008, 14 victims filed new complaints with a Senegalese prosecutor, accusing Habré of crimes against humanity and torture. The authorities have said they will take no action on the complaints, however, until they receive full international funding for all the costs of the trial, which Senegal puts at €27.4 million.
The rights groups note that such trials are usually funded year-by-year and the European Commission has already offered €2 million for the first stages of the investigation, but is waiting for Senegal to present a budget. Chad has offered €3 million. Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Switzerland have also agreed to help finance the trial. The African Union, however, has offered no assistance.
“The African Union and Sénégal risk being seen as accomplices in Hissène Habré’s efforts to escape punishment,” said Jacqueline Moudeina, the victims’ Chadian lawyer and president of the ATPDH. “This is a shame on Africa. We are still at point zero. Does the political will exist to bring Hissène Habré to justice?”
Speaking for the victims, Souleymane Guengueng, founder of the AVCRP, said: “First we were tortured by Habré’s dictatorship and now for 18 years we have been mocked by Senegalese and African leaders who refuse to hear our pleas for justice. Unless Senegal and the AU act soon, there won’t be any victims left at the trial.” Guengueng almost died of dengue fever during almost three years of mistreatment in Chadian prisons.
At a summit meeting on July 2, 2006, the AU mandated Senegal, “to prosecute and ensure that Hissène Habré is tried, on behalf of Africa,” and called on the AU Commission, “to provide Senegal with the necessary assistance for the effective conduct of the trial.” Habré is living in exile in Senegal.
But Senegal has taken no action and the AU has given it no support, said a joint statement by the Chadian Association for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (ATPDH), the Chadian Association of Victims of Political Repression and Crime (AVCRP), the African Assembly for the Defense of Human Rights (RADDHO), Human Rights Watch, and the International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH).
“We expect the African Union to respect its commitment to see that this prosecution moves forward,” said Dobian Assingar of the FIDH, who is also honorary president of the Chadian League for Human Rights. “The AU’s credibility is on the line. Both Senegal and the AU have just stalled and stalled.”
Habré ruled Chad from 1982 until he was deposed in 1990 by President Idriss Déby Itno and fled to Senegal. His one-party regime was marked by widespread atrocities, including waves of ethnic campaigns. Files of Habré’s political police, the DDS (Direction de la Documentation et de la Sécurité), which were discovered by Human Rights Watch in 2001 (http://www.hrw.org/justice/habre/habre-police.htm), reveal the names of 1,208 persons who were killed or died in detention. A total of 12,321 victims of human rights violations were mentioned in the files.
Faced with Senegal’s inaction, on September 16, 2008, 14 victims filed new complaints with a Senegalese prosecutor, accusing Habré of crimes against humanity and torture. The authorities have said they will take no action on the complaints, however, until they receive full international funding for all the costs of the trial, which Senegal puts at €27.4 million.
The rights groups note that such trials are usually funded year-by-year and the European Commission has already offered €2 million for the first stages of the investigation, but is waiting for Senegal to present a budget. Chad has offered €3 million. Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Switzerland have also agreed to help finance the trial. The African Union, however, has offered no assistance.
“The African Union and Sénégal risk being seen as accomplices in Hissène Habré’s efforts to escape punishment,” said Jacqueline Moudeina, the victims’ Chadian lawyer and president of the ATPDH. “This is a shame on Africa. We are still at point zero. Does the political will exist to bring Hissène Habré to justice?”
Speaking for the victims, Souleymane Guengueng, founder of the AVCRP, said: “First we were tortured by Habré’s dictatorship and now for 18 years we have been mocked by Senegalese and African leaders who refuse to hear our pleas for justice. Unless Senegal and the AU act soon, there won’t be any victims left at the trial.” Guengueng almost died of dengue fever during almost three years of mistreatment in Chadian prisons.
21.1.09
The Obama boy and his dreams
Perante a gigantesca tarefa que tem à sua frente, depois dos ignominiosos anos Bush, Barack Hussein Obama agradeceu no dia 20 de Janeiro ao povo norte-americano a confiança nele depositada, bem consciente dos muitos sacrifícios que algumas gerações enfrentaram para que fosse possível construir uma grande potência. Ao tomar posse, ele falou com humildade da crise e da perda de confiança do mundo numa terra que durante a segunda metade do século XX se procurou assinalar como a mais importante do mundo, mas que fez muitas outras sofrerem. Falou do medo enorme que muitos têm nos States de assistir ao declínio inevitável da América, que daqui a 50 anos poderá já não estar mais na primeira linha do desenvolvimento universal. Reconheceu que os desafios são reais, mas prometeu que eles serão resolvidos.
Ao lado de uma Primeira Dama que vestiu em discretos tons de verde, a cor da esperança, Barack Obama proclamou o fim dos ressentimentos entre republicanos e democratas, entre brancos e negros. Reafirmou a grandeza da nação norte-americana e pediu a sua reformulação, de modo a lançar novas bases de crescimento, mais emprego e mais justiça. Estendeu a mão ao mundo muçulmano e deixou no ar a promessa de que não mais haverá presídios como o de Guantánamo, nem cadeias secretas em qualquer lugar remoto do mundo.
Foi um discurso denso, o feito pelo filho de um queniano que um dia tentou a sua sorte longe da África. Distanciou-se do século passado e abriu caminhos para o futuro, as novas veredas que será necessário e urgente percorrer para que daqui a oito ou 10 anos muita coisa esteja decerto melhor do que o está hoje. Nas Américas, mas também no Médio Oriente e noutras regiões do globo. Esteve à altura das circunstâncias e deu um exemplo a todos os que nos governam ou que em breve poderão vir a governar.
Barack Obama e a sua secretária de Estado, Hillary Clinton, vão agora lançar-se ao trabalho para refazer a relação dos States com o resto do mundo, de modo a que grande parte do mundo não veja mais Washington como sinónimo de opressão e de iniquidade. Jorge Heitor 21 de Janeiro de 2009
Ao lado de uma Primeira Dama que vestiu em discretos tons de verde, a cor da esperança, Barack Obama proclamou o fim dos ressentimentos entre republicanos e democratas, entre brancos e negros. Reafirmou a grandeza da nação norte-americana e pediu a sua reformulação, de modo a lançar novas bases de crescimento, mais emprego e mais justiça. Estendeu a mão ao mundo muçulmano e deixou no ar a promessa de que não mais haverá presídios como o de Guantánamo, nem cadeias secretas em qualquer lugar remoto do mundo.
Foi um discurso denso, o feito pelo filho de um queniano que um dia tentou a sua sorte longe da África. Distanciou-se do século passado e abriu caminhos para o futuro, as novas veredas que será necessário e urgente percorrer para que daqui a oito ou 10 anos muita coisa esteja decerto melhor do que o está hoje. Nas Américas, mas também no Médio Oriente e noutras regiões do globo. Esteve à altura das circunstâncias e deu um exemplo a todos os que nos governam ou que em breve poderão vir a governar.
Barack Obama e a sua secretária de Estado, Hillary Clinton, vão agora lançar-se ao trabalho para refazer a relação dos States com o resto do mundo, de modo a que grande parte do mundo não veja mais Washington como sinónimo de opressão e de iniquidade. Jorge Heitor 21 de Janeiro de 2009
13.1.09
Timor-Leste no relatório 2009 da Freedom House
Following an inconclusive first round, former prime minister Jose Ramos Horta won the presidency by a landslide in May 2007. Legislative elections in June yielded a political impasse between incumbent ruling party Fretilin and a coalition led by former president Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao’s new National Congress for Timorese Construction (CNRT), with both sides claiming the right to control government. President Ramos Horta granted authority to the coalition, known as the Alliance of the Parliamentary Majority (AMP), and appointed Gusmao prime minister in August, prompting violence in Fretilin strongholds that added to the numbers of internally displaced East Timorese. Fretilin lawmakers ultimately took up their seats but refused to recognize the new government.
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Portugal abruptly abandoned East Timor in 1975, after four centuries of ineffective colonial rule. Indonesia, under the staunchly anti-Communist regime of General Suharto, invaded when the leftist Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (Fretilin) declared independence later that year, and East Timor became Indonesia’s 26th province in 1976.
Over the next two decades, Fretilin’s armed wing, Falintil, waged a low-grade insurgency against the Indonesian army (TNI), which committed widespread human rights abuses as it consolidated control. Civil conflict and famine may have killed up to 180,000 Timorese during Indonesian rule.
International pressure on Indonesia mounted following the 1991 Dili massacre, in which TNI soldiers were captured on film killing more than 200 participants in a funeral march. In 1999, 78.5 percent of the East Timorese electorate voted for independence in a referendum approved by Suharto’s successor, B. J. Habibie. The TNI’s scorched-earth response to the vote killed roughly 1,000 civilians, drove more than 250,000 into Indonesian West Timor, and destroyed approximately 80 percent of buildings and infrastructure before an Australian-led multinational force restored order.
In 2001, the country elected a Constituent Assembly to draft a constitution. Fretilin’s representatives fell just short of the two-thirds majority required to give it absolute control. Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao, a former head of Falintil and chairman of Fretilin until he broke from the party in 1988 to form a wider resistance coalition, won the presidency the following year. Independence was officially granted in May 2002. Despite growing frustration with heightened unemployment and corruption, Fretilin’s strong party machinery brought it a solid victory in the country’s first local elections in 2004 and 2005.
The UN Security Council has authorized various UN missions in East Timor since 1999, charged primarily with maintaining security and overseeing reconstruction and institution-building. Responsibility for external defense and internal security was transferred from the United Nations to East Timor in May 2004.
Widespread rioting and violence erupted in the capital in early 2006 in response to the firing of 600 defense force (FDTL) troops as well as frustration over rampant corruption and high levels of unemployment. Clashes with the police resulted in numerous deaths and displaced 150,000 people, necessitating the deployment of Australian-led foreign troops to restore security. Allegations emerged that Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri had formed a hit squad to kill off his political opponents, and after a high-pressure political standoff between the president and prime minister, Alkatiri was forced to step down in late June. Nobel Prize winner and former foreign minister Jose Ramos Horta was then appointed prime minister, and the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) was established to help consolidate stability and rebuild the national police. A UN commission of inquiry blamed Alkatiri for the outbreak of violence, implicated the former interior and defense ministers, and called for those responsible to be prosecuted.
In February 2007, UNMIT’s mandate was extended until February 2008. Charges against Alkatiri were dropped the same month, but in March, former interior minister Rogerio Lobato was found guilty of arming a hit squad in the run-up to the 2006 violence. He was sentenced to 7.5 years in jail.
The 2007 presidential and legislative elections revealed a significant decline in public support for Fretilin. None of the eight presidential candidates who contested the first round on April 9 secured a 50 percent majority, necessitating a runoff on May 9 between the independent Ramos Horta, who secured 23 percent in the first round, and Fretilin party president Francisco Guterres, who won 29 percent. Collecting the lion’s share of votes from backers of the eliminated candidates, Ramos Horta scored a landslide victory in the second round and assumed office on May 20. Fretilin’s Estanislau da Silva assumed the position of prime minister until one could be appointed by the newly elected Parliament.
Outgoing president Gusmao launched a new party, the National Congress for Timorese Construction (CNRT), in April to contest the June 30 legislative elections, which initially yielded no clear victor. While Fretilin received the greatest percentage of the vote (29) and number of seats (21), it fell short of a majority in the 65-seat legislature (and far short of its 57 percent victory in 2001). The CNRT secured 24 percent of the vote and 18 seats. In July, the CNRT announced that it would form a coalition, the Alliance of the Parliamentary Majority (AMP), with three smaller parties to attain a total of 37 seats. Both Fretilin and the AMP claimed the right to control government based on distinct constitutional provisions. Deadlock ensued, and Ramos Horta asked the CNRT to form a government, before incumbent Fretilin, which Fretilin perceived as bias. Neither the AMP nor Fretilin was able to bridge their differences and form a unity national government. In August, President Horta appointed Gusmao prime minister and granted authority to the AMP, ushering in an era of coalition politics. Violence erupted among Fretilin supporters in Dili, Lautem, Manufahi, and Viqueque districts, adding thousands to the number of displaced East Timorese, while Fretilin lawmakers contested the legality of the decision and refused to recognize the new government. However, they took their seats by early fall.
With a 50 percent unemployment rate, 40 percent of the population living under the poverty line, and more than 100,000 displaced persons, East Timor remains the poorest country in Southeast Asia. Revenue from oil and gas is expected to increase in the next few years, and the new government will face the challenge of managing it effectively through the Petroleum Fund, established in 2005. The country’s interest in becoming a full member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), in which Indonesia is a key player, continues to influence relations with the regional organization. Bilateral ties with Australia remain strong, although some East Timorese resent the continued presence of Australian troops, partly because of perceived bias against Fretilin.
Political Rights and Civil Liberties
East Timor is an electoral democracy. The directly elected president is a largely symbolic figure, with formal powers limited to the right to veto legislation and make certain appointments, although President Jose Ramos Horta has pledged to make the post more active. In line with the constitution’s five-year terms, elections for the presidency and the unicameral Parliament were held in April and June 2007, marking the country’s first direct legislative elections since the Fretilin-dominated Constituent Assembly automatically became the Parliament after writing the charter in 2002. Some 3,000 international observers deemed the legislative elections free and fair, although there was some violence; CNRT and Fretilin supporters clashed in May, and a CNRT supporter and a policeman guarding outgoing president Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao were killed following a CNRT rally in June. Personalities and old loyalties tied to the resistance of the 1970s influenced political outcomes more than issues, as evidenced by Gusmao’s and Ramos Horta’s retention of the country’s two top executive posts.
A code of conduct was established among parties in May 2007, and electoral reforms passed that month reduced the total number of seats in Parliament from 88 to 65. Contradictory provisions in the constitution and electoral law regarding control of Parliament led to confusion following the June legislative elections. The constitution ultimately authorizes the president to appoint and swear in the prime minister, but Fretilin immediately claimed that Gusmao’s appointment was unconstitutional and illegal.
Despite the initial impasse, the legislative elections ultimately brought greater pluralism to Parliament and an end to Fretilin’s dominance of government. While Fretilin continues to be the largest single party with 21 seats, it is outnumbered by the CNRT-led coalition’s 37 seats—the CNRT has 18, the Democratic Party (PD) holds 8, and the Social Democratic Association of Timor–Social Democratic Party (ASDT-PSD) has 11. However, the new government is less unified and enjoys only a slim majority, giving Fretilin, which continues to deny the new government’s legitimacy, significant leverage as an opposition party.
In 2005, the World Bank identified corruption as one of East Timor’s greatest challenges, particularly as it affects the allocation of oil revenues. Frustration with persistent corruption has been cited as one of the key reasons for Fretilin’s relatively poor showing in the 2007 elections. Transparency International’s 2007 Corruption Perceptions Index ranked East Timor 123 out of 180 countries surveyed.
The slightly improved security situation brought a modest improvement in freedom of expression in 2007, although heightened political tensions yielded some attacks and threats against journalists. In March, Fretilin members beat a Timor Post journalist for photographing them while they were being searched at a checkpoint. In April, a Fretilin lawmaker threatened a journalist and cameraman from National Television of Timor Leste (TVTL) for covering legislative activity following allegations that Parliament members’ involvement in the presidential campaigns was preventing plenary sessions from being held. The office of Suara Timor Lorosa’e, a major newspaper believed to favor the CNRT, was attacked by a group of unknown men in August following Gusmao’s appointment as prime minister. In February, officials reopened the investigation into the deaths of the “Balibo Five”—Australian and British journalists who had been killed in 1975 by Indonesian troops and Timorese paramilitaries preparing to invade the territory. Witness testimony during the year revealed that the Australian government knowingly withheld information proving the Indonesian army’s responsibility; the former army officer in charge of the attack was arrested in March.
A revised penal code that would criminalize defamation and allow fines and jail terms of up to three years for anyone who publishes comments deemed harmful to an official’s reputation has remained with the Ministry of Justice for consideration since February 2006. The criminal defamation provisions of the Indonesian penal code continue to apply until a new East Timorese penal code is promulgated.
East Timor is a secular state, but the Roman Catholic Church plays a central role; 98 percent of the population is Roman Catholic. Church rules prohibit persons living under religious vows from holding political office. There are no significant threats to religious freedom or clashes among the country’s different groups. Religious education is compulsory in schools. There is a small minority of Muslims, mostly from Indonesia, and a growing number of evangelical Christian denominations. The practice of indigenous rituals remains strong, despite the dominance of the Catholic faith. Academic freedom is generally respected.
Freedoms of association and assembly are constitutionally guaranteed, yet the 2004 Law on Freedom, Assembly, and Demonstration regulates political gatherings and prohibits demonstrations aimed at “questioning constitutional order” or disparaging the reputations of the head of state and other government officials. The law requires that demonstrations and public protests be authorized in advance. Thousands of supporters of escaped rebel Alfredo Reinado launched violent protests in March 2007 after international troops raided his hideout. Reinado rose to prominence in 2006, fighting against the Fretilin leadership over the issue of treatment of the military; many East Timorese considered him a hero despite his use of violence.
East Timor’s labor code, which is based on International Labor Organization standards, permits workers other than police and army personnel to form and join worker organizations. It also guarantees the rights to bargain collectively and to strike, although written notice must be given 10 days before a strike. Foreigners are barred from joining unions. Unionization rates are low due to high unemployment and the fact that more than 80 percent of the working population is employed in the informal sector.
The country suffers broadly from weak rule of law, a prevailing culture of impunity, and inadequate security forces. Many of these problems stem from the lack of accountability for abuses committed during the period of Indonesian rule and the country’s struggle for independence. The legal system is fragile, with thousands of cases backlogged. The rights to due process and an expeditious, fair trial are often restricted or denied, largely because of a lack of resources and trained personnel. The conviction and imprisonment of former interior minister Rogerio Lobato in March 2007 was hailed as a victory for the justice system. However, the Fretilin-dominated Parliament passed a clemency law in June that would allow criminals to apply for clemency for “appropriate crimes” committed between April 2006 and April 2007. While justified as an effort to help the country move forward from the 2006 crisis and avoid further overcrowding the country’s prisons, President Ramos Horta opposed the law and in July sent it to the Court of Appeals for constitutional review, where it remained at year’s end.
The UN police force (UNPOL) assumed full control of national policing in September 2006, and UNMIT has been charged with reforming and rebuilding the national police force (PNTL). An additional 140 UN police were brought in to help maintain law and order during the 2007 elections. Neither the PNTL nor the military enjoy the trust or confidence of the population, and significant tensions dating back to the independence struggle persist between the two. An Australian-led International Stabilization Force (ISF) has been charged with supporting UNMIT and maintaining security since May 2006. The Gusmao government has called for the ISF to remain throughout 2008 and UNMIT through 2012 in order to fully restore security and allow the tens of thousands of displaced people to safely return home.
In 2007, ISF efforts focused on capturing Reinado, who led a raid on police posts along the Indonesian border in February, threatening to draw the country back into large-scale violence. The manhunt ceased in May when he agreed to many of the conditions for his surrender. East Timor continues to face the challenge of balancing the interests of justice against the need to reconcile with Indonesia, whose goodwill is essential to the poverty-stricken nation’s economic growth. Efforts to prosecute and convict Indonesian officials for past abuses were halted in 2005, and the Commission on Truth and Friendship (CTF), a body without the power to prosecute, was established. Despite persistent UN pressure to seek accountability, President Ramos Horta agreed in June 2007 to extend the CTF’s mandate for another six months and to grant amnesty for perpetrators of crimes against humanity on the condition that they publicly confess to the commission. CTF hearings were held in September and October and commissioners met with Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono regarding the production of a final report.
Equal rights for women are constitutionally guaranteed, yet domestic violence remains a persistent problem. The country’s weak legal system, coupled with the prevalence of customary law at the local level, means that abuse is rarely prosecuted. While women’s participation in government remains much lower than that of men, women secured 18 out of 65 seats in Parliament in the 2007 legislative elections, one of the highest such proportions in Asia.
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Portugal abruptly abandoned East Timor in 1975, after four centuries of ineffective colonial rule. Indonesia, under the staunchly anti-Communist regime of General Suharto, invaded when the leftist Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (Fretilin) declared independence later that year, and East Timor became Indonesia’s 26th province in 1976.
Over the next two decades, Fretilin’s armed wing, Falintil, waged a low-grade insurgency against the Indonesian army (TNI), which committed widespread human rights abuses as it consolidated control. Civil conflict and famine may have killed up to 180,000 Timorese during Indonesian rule.
International pressure on Indonesia mounted following the 1991 Dili massacre, in which TNI soldiers were captured on film killing more than 200 participants in a funeral march. In 1999, 78.5 percent of the East Timorese electorate voted for independence in a referendum approved by Suharto’s successor, B. J. Habibie. The TNI’s scorched-earth response to the vote killed roughly 1,000 civilians, drove more than 250,000 into Indonesian West Timor, and destroyed approximately 80 percent of buildings and infrastructure before an Australian-led multinational force restored order.
In 2001, the country elected a Constituent Assembly to draft a constitution. Fretilin’s representatives fell just short of the two-thirds majority required to give it absolute control. Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao, a former head of Falintil and chairman of Fretilin until he broke from the party in 1988 to form a wider resistance coalition, won the presidency the following year. Independence was officially granted in May 2002. Despite growing frustration with heightened unemployment and corruption, Fretilin’s strong party machinery brought it a solid victory in the country’s first local elections in 2004 and 2005.
The UN Security Council has authorized various UN missions in East Timor since 1999, charged primarily with maintaining security and overseeing reconstruction and institution-building. Responsibility for external defense and internal security was transferred from the United Nations to East Timor in May 2004.
Widespread rioting and violence erupted in the capital in early 2006 in response to the firing of 600 defense force (FDTL) troops as well as frustration over rampant corruption and high levels of unemployment. Clashes with the police resulted in numerous deaths and displaced 150,000 people, necessitating the deployment of Australian-led foreign troops to restore security. Allegations emerged that Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri had formed a hit squad to kill off his political opponents, and after a high-pressure political standoff between the president and prime minister, Alkatiri was forced to step down in late June. Nobel Prize winner and former foreign minister Jose Ramos Horta was then appointed prime minister, and the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) was established to help consolidate stability and rebuild the national police. A UN commission of inquiry blamed Alkatiri for the outbreak of violence, implicated the former interior and defense ministers, and called for those responsible to be prosecuted.
In February 2007, UNMIT’s mandate was extended until February 2008. Charges against Alkatiri were dropped the same month, but in March, former interior minister Rogerio Lobato was found guilty of arming a hit squad in the run-up to the 2006 violence. He was sentenced to 7.5 years in jail.
The 2007 presidential and legislative elections revealed a significant decline in public support for Fretilin. None of the eight presidential candidates who contested the first round on April 9 secured a 50 percent majority, necessitating a runoff on May 9 between the independent Ramos Horta, who secured 23 percent in the first round, and Fretilin party president Francisco Guterres, who won 29 percent. Collecting the lion’s share of votes from backers of the eliminated candidates, Ramos Horta scored a landslide victory in the second round and assumed office on May 20. Fretilin’s Estanislau da Silva assumed the position of prime minister until one could be appointed by the newly elected Parliament.
Outgoing president Gusmao launched a new party, the National Congress for Timorese Construction (CNRT), in April to contest the June 30 legislative elections, which initially yielded no clear victor. While Fretilin received the greatest percentage of the vote (29) and number of seats (21), it fell short of a majority in the 65-seat legislature (and far short of its 57 percent victory in 2001). The CNRT secured 24 percent of the vote and 18 seats. In July, the CNRT announced that it would form a coalition, the Alliance of the Parliamentary Majority (AMP), with three smaller parties to attain a total of 37 seats. Both Fretilin and the AMP claimed the right to control government based on distinct constitutional provisions. Deadlock ensued, and Ramos Horta asked the CNRT to form a government, before incumbent Fretilin, which Fretilin perceived as bias. Neither the AMP nor Fretilin was able to bridge their differences and form a unity national government. In August, President Horta appointed Gusmao prime minister and granted authority to the AMP, ushering in an era of coalition politics. Violence erupted among Fretilin supporters in Dili, Lautem, Manufahi, and Viqueque districts, adding thousands to the number of displaced East Timorese, while Fretilin lawmakers contested the legality of the decision and refused to recognize the new government. However, they took their seats by early fall.
With a 50 percent unemployment rate, 40 percent of the population living under the poverty line, and more than 100,000 displaced persons, East Timor remains the poorest country in Southeast Asia. Revenue from oil and gas is expected to increase in the next few years, and the new government will face the challenge of managing it effectively through the Petroleum Fund, established in 2005. The country’s interest in becoming a full member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), in which Indonesia is a key player, continues to influence relations with the regional organization. Bilateral ties with Australia remain strong, although some East Timorese resent the continued presence of Australian troops, partly because of perceived bias against Fretilin.
Political Rights and Civil Liberties
East Timor is an electoral democracy. The directly elected president is a largely symbolic figure, with formal powers limited to the right to veto legislation and make certain appointments, although President Jose Ramos Horta has pledged to make the post more active. In line with the constitution’s five-year terms, elections for the presidency and the unicameral Parliament were held in April and June 2007, marking the country’s first direct legislative elections since the Fretilin-dominated Constituent Assembly automatically became the Parliament after writing the charter in 2002. Some 3,000 international observers deemed the legislative elections free and fair, although there was some violence; CNRT and Fretilin supporters clashed in May, and a CNRT supporter and a policeman guarding outgoing president Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao were killed following a CNRT rally in June. Personalities and old loyalties tied to the resistance of the 1970s influenced political outcomes more than issues, as evidenced by Gusmao’s and Ramos Horta’s retention of the country’s two top executive posts.
A code of conduct was established among parties in May 2007, and electoral reforms passed that month reduced the total number of seats in Parliament from 88 to 65. Contradictory provisions in the constitution and electoral law regarding control of Parliament led to confusion following the June legislative elections. The constitution ultimately authorizes the president to appoint and swear in the prime minister, but Fretilin immediately claimed that Gusmao’s appointment was unconstitutional and illegal.
Despite the initial impasse, the legislative elections ultimately brought greater pluralism to Parliament and an end to Fretilin’s dominance of government. While Fretilin continues to be the largest single party with 21 seats, it is outnumbered by the CNRT-led coalition’s 37 seats—the CNRT has 18, the Democratic Party (PD) holds 8, and the Social Democratic Association of Timor–Social Democratic Party (ASDT-PSD) has 11. However, the new government is less unified and enjoys only a slim majority, giving Fretilin, which continues to deny the new government’s legitimacy, significant leverage as an opposition party.
In 2005, the World Bank identified corruption as one of East Timor’s greatest challenges, particularly as it affects the allocation of oil revenues. Frustration with persistent corruption has been cited as one of the key reasons for Fretilin’s relatively poor showing in the 2007 elections. Transparency International’s 2007 Corruption Perceptions Index ranked East Timor 123 out of 180 countries surveyed.
The slightly improved security situation brought a modest improvement in freedom of expression in 2007, although heightened political tensions yielded some attacks and threats against journalists. In March, Fretilin members beat a Timor Post journalist for photographing them while they were being searched at a checkpoint. In April, a Fretilin lawmaker threatened a journalist and cameraman from National Television of Timor Leste (TVTL) for covering legislative activity following allegations that Parliament members’ involvement in the presidential campaigns was preventing plenary sessions from being held. The office of Suara Timor Lorosa’e, a major newspaper believed to favor the CNRT, was attacked by a group of unknown men in August following Gusmao’s appointment as prime minister. In February, officials reopened the investigation into the deaths of the “Balibo Five”—Australian and British journalists who had been killed in 1975 by Indonesian troops and Timorese paramilitaries preparing to invade the territory. Witness testimony during the year revealed that the Australian government knowingly withheld information proving the Indonesian army’s responsibility; the former army officer in charge of the attack was arrested in March.
A revised penal code that would criminalize defamation and allow fines and jail terms of up to three years for anyone who publishes comments deemed harmful to an official’s reputation has remained with the Ministry of Justice for consideration since February 2006. The criminal defamation provisions of the Indonesian penal code continue to apply until a new East Timorese penal code is promulgated.
East Timor is a secular state, but the Roman Catholic Church plays a central role; 98 percent of the population is Roman Catholic. Church rules prohibit persons living under religious vows from holding political office. There are no significant threats to religious freedom or clashes among the country’s different groups. Religious education is compulsory in schools. There is a small minority of Muslims, mostly from Indonesia, and a growing number of evangelical Christian denominations. The practice of indigenous rituals remains strong, despite the dominance of the Catholic faith. Academic freedom is generally respected.
Freedoms of association and assembly are constitutionally guaranteed, yet the 2004 Law on Freedom, Assembly, and Demonstration regulates political gatherings and prohibits demonstrations aimed at “questioning constitutional order” or disparaging the reputations of the head of state and other government officials. The law requires that demonstrations and public protests be authorized in advance. Thousands of supporters of escaped rebel Alfredo Reinado launched violent protests in March 2007 after international troops raided his hideout. Reinado rose to prominence in 2006, fighting against the Fretilin leadership over the issue of treatment of the military; many East Timorese considered him a hero despite his use of violence.
East Timor’s labor code, which is based on International Labor Organization standards, permits workers other than police and army personnel to form and join worker organizations. It also guarantees the rights to bargain collectively and to strike, although written notice must be given 10 days before a strike. Foreigners are barred from joining unions. Unionization rates are low due to high unemployment and the fact that more than 80 percent of the working population is employed in the informal sector.
The country suffers broadly from weak rule of law, a prevailing culture of impunity, and inadequate security forces. Many of these problems stem from the lack of accountability for abuses committed during the period of Indonesian rule and the country’s struggle for independence. The legal system is fragile, with thousands of cases backlogged. The rights to due process and an expeditious, fair trial are often restricted or denied, largely because of a lack of resources and trained personnel. The conviction and imprisonment of former interior minister Rogerio Lobato in March 2007 was hailed as a victory for the justice system. However, the Fretilin-dominated Parliament passed a clemency law in June that would allow criminals to apply for clemency for “appropriate crimes” committed between April 2006 and April 2007. While justified as an effort to help the country move forward from the 2006 crisis and avoid further overcrowding the country’s prisons, President Ramos Horta opposed the law and in July sent it to the Court of Appeals for constitutional review, where it remained at year’s end.
The UN police force (UNPOL) assumed full control of national policing in September 2006, and UNMIT has been charged with reforming and rebuilding the national police force (PNTL). An additional 140 UN police were brought in to help maintain law and order during the 2007 elections. Neither the PNTL nor the military enjoy the trust or confidence of the population, and significant tensions dating back to the independence struggle persist between the two. An Australian-led International Stabilization Force (ISF) has been charged with supporting UNMIT and maintaining security since May 2006. The Gusmao government has called for the ISF to remain throughout 2008 and UNMIT through 2012 in order to fully restore security and allow the tens of thousands of displaced people to safely return home.
In 2007, ISF efforts focused on capturing Reinado, who led a raid on police posts along the Indonesian border in February, threatening to draw the country back into large-scale violence. The manhunt ceased in May when he agreed to many of the conditions for his surrender. East Timor continues to face the challenge of balancing the interests of justice against the need to reconcile with Indonesia, whose goodwill is essential to the poverty-stricken nation’s economic growth. Efforts to prosecute and convict Indonesian officials for past abuses were halted in 2005, and the Commission on Truth and Friendship (CTF), a body without the power to prosecute, was established. Despite persistent UN pressure to seek accountability, President Ramos Horta agreed in June 2007 to extend the CTF’s mandate for another six months and to grant amnesty for perpetrators of crimes against humanity on the condition that they publicly confess to the commission. CTF hearings were held in September and October and commissioners met with Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono regarding the production of a final report.
Equal rights for women are constitutionally guaranteed, yet domestic violence remains a persistent problem. The country’s weak legal system, coupled with the prevalence of customary law at the local level, means that abuse is rarely prosecuted. While women’s participation in government remains much lower than that of men, women secured 18 out of 65 seats in Parliament in the 2007 legislative elections, one of the highest such proportions in Asia.
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