Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08DILI107
2008-04-15 03:57:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Dili
Cable title:  

ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL'S APRIL 6 - 7 VISIT TO TIMOR-LESTE

Tags:  PREL PGOV TT 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO7524
OO RUEHCHI RUEHCN RUEHHM
DE RUEHDT #0107/01 1060357
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 150357Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY DILI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3958
INFO RHEHAAA/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC
RUEFHLC/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC
RHMFISS/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RUEHZS/ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN NATIONS
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA IMMEDIATE 1162
RUEHKO/AMEMBASSY TOKYO IMMEDIATE 0853
RUEHUL/AMEMBASSY SEOUL IMMEDIATE 0024
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON IMMEDIATE 0936
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK IMMEDIATE 1055
RUEHDT/AMEMBASSY DILI 3396
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 DILI 000107 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MTS
DHS FOR COAST GUARD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 4/15/2018
TAGS: PREL PGOV TT
SUBJECT: ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL'S APRIL 6 - 7 VISIT TO TIMOR-LESTE

DILI 00000107 001.2 OF 003


CLASSIFIED BY: Henry M. Rector, Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S.
Embassy Dili, Department of State.
REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)



C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 DILI 000107

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EAP/MTS
DHS FOR COAST GUARD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 4/15/2018
TAGS: PREL PGOV TT
SUBJECT: ASSISTANT SECRETARY HILL'S APRIL 6 - 7 VISIT TO TIMOR-LESTE

DILI 00000107 001.2 OF 003


CLASSIFIED BY: Henry M. Rector, Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S.
Embassy Dili, Department of State.
REASON: 1.4 (b),(d)




1. (SBU) Summary. In an April 6-7 visit to Timor-Leste, EAP
Assistant Secretary Hill emphasized continuing U.S. support in
the wake of the February 11 attacks on President Ramos-Horta and
Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao. He urged the GOTL to move forward
on strengthening the judiciary system and resolving land and
property rights disputes, noting that these were crucial to
Timor-Leste's future stability and development. He reiterated
the USG's willingness to provide assistance in the security
sector, based on the GOTL's priorities. GOTL leaders said their
most pressing short term priorities are reintegrating the
internally displaced persons (IDPs) from the 2006 crisis and
resettling the 600 ex-military petitioners currently encamped in
Dili. They said that although they had encouraged Gastao
Salsinha, the surviving ringleader of the February 11 attacks,
to surrender voluntarily, they would soon direct that he and his
followers be apprehended by force if necessary. During his
visit, A/S Hill visited the Don Bosco IDP camp, received
briefings from the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT)
and International Stabilization Force (ISF),and met with Acting
President Lasama, Deputy Prime Minister Guterres, Acting
President of Parliament Guterres, and opposition leader
Alkatiri. End summary.

Lasama Promises Prompt Arrest of 2/11 Attackers

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


2. (C) EAP Assistant Secretary Christopher R. Hill met with
Timor-Leste Acting President Fernando "Lasama" de Araujo on
April 7. Assistant Secretary Hill said the U.S. condemned the
assassination attempts against President Ramos-Horta and Prime
Minister Xanana Gusmao last February 11 and commended the GOTL
for its handling of the situation. Lasama said that the GOTL's
most pressing short-term priorities were apprehending the
February 11 attackers still at large and reaching a settlement
with the "petitioners," the 600-plus group of former military

personnel encamped in central Dili. Lasama said the GOTL had
attempted to negotiate a non-violent surrender with Lieutenant
Gastao Salsinha, the surviving leader of the would-be assassins.
Since Salsinha has this far refused to turn himself in, the
GOTL's joint military-police task force would begin operations
on April 8 to apprehend Salsinha by force if necessary. Although
a curfew remains in effect in Dili, Lasama said, society and
government are functioning normally.


3. (SBU) On the petitioners issue, Lasama said that the 664 men
currently living in an encampment in Dili were mostly
ex-military and veterans of the FALENTIL resistance movement,
many of whom had been supporters of Major Alfredo Reinado, who
was killed during the attack on President Ramos-Horta. Lasama
said the GOTL was looking for ways to re-integrate the men into
the workforce, both in Timor-Leste and also by including them in
groups of Timorese laborers who work temprarily overseas.


4. (SBU) Assistant Secretary Hill told Lasama about his April 6
visit to the Don Bosco IDP camp. He observed that although there
had been some progress since the IDPs first appeared during the
political crisis of 2006, their continued presence in large
numbers was symptomatic of deeper problems such the absence of a
functional judiciary and a reliable framework of land and
property rights. A/S Hill said he was pleased that USAID was
supporting a land law project, and urged that the GOTL move
forward on this to create a basis for economic growth and
foreign investment. A/S Hill said the U.S. was pleased to
continue its economic assistance to Timor-Leste, but stressed
that urban land reform would be necessary for future economic
development. Lasama agreed, and said that the Ministry of
Justice was working on the problem. He added that the GOTL was
developing a public housing scheme to accommodate some of the
IDPs who could not return to their previous homes.


4. (C) On security sector reform, Lasama said that the joint
military-police operation to apprehend the perpetrators of the
attacks on the President and Prime Minister resulted in improved
cooperation between the two organizations. A/S Hill reiterated

DILI 00000107 002.2 OF 003


that the U.S. was willing to provide assistance to Timor-Leste's
security sector once the GOTL indicates its priorities. Lasama
replied that the GOTL urgently needs to improve its ability to
stop illegal fishing in its waters, and would welcome U.S.
assistance in maritime security. The Armed Forces' naval element
only has two patrol boats, Lasama noted.

DPM Guterres Outlines Progress On IDPs, Petitioners

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


5. (SBU) Deputy Prime Minister Jose Luis Guterres met with
Assistant Secretary Hill on behalf of Prime Minister Xanana
Gusmao, who cancelled due to illness. Guterres expressed
gratitude for the friendship of the United States, and said that
Timor-Leste would soon appoint an Ambassador and defense attache
to its Embassy in Washington. Recalling PACOM Commander Admiral
Keating's September visit, he thanked the U.S. for its offer to
assist Timor-Leste in the security sector. He identified
maritime security as a top priority, and said the GOTL would
welcome further Coast Guard support in this area.


6. (SBU) Guterres reaffirmed that resolving the petitioners
problem and reintegrating the IDPs were the GOTL's highest short
term priorities. He said that the governing coalition had
consolidated its relationship with the opposition FRETILIN party
on these issues, and noted that he consulted regularly with
FRETILIN leader Mari Alkatiri.


7. (SBU) Guterres said that the GOTL had already surveyed the
petitioners to learn about their background, needs, and
expectations. He emphasized that the GOTL would soon finalize an
MOU with Republic of Korea to extend offers of employment
overseas for up to 10,000 Timorese, including petitioners; this
would not only provide skills to Timorese workers, but possibly
also improve Timor-Leste's image and business environment. Some
petitioners, he said, could eventually rejoin the armed forces,
but only after undergoing a screening process.


8. (SBU) Guterres said that the GOTL intended to apprehend
Salsinha and other perpetrators of the attacks against the
President and Prime Minister with a minimum of violence. The
GOTL's preferred approach, he said, had been to encourage
voluntary surrenders, and still hoped that Salsinha would turn
himself in.


9. (SBU) Turning to the IDPs, Guterres said that the GOTL was
moving forward with plans to offer 1,750 subsidized housing
units to IDP families, but faced a $17.5 million funding
shortfall. The GOTL had already selected two sites for the
housing, Guterres said, and the Minister of Justice was
resolving title issues.

Parliament: Institutions Are Works In Progress

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


10. (SBU) In a meeting with Acting President of Parliament
Vicente Guterres, A/S Hill asked about progress in the
development of Timor-Leste's government institutions. He
commended the GOTL for having passed the important tests of the
2007 national elections and the assassination attempts of last
February. Guterres replied that while Timor-Leste was
experiencing difficult times, countries often face such
challenges in the state-building process. He said that the
Timorese people now accept that political differences can be
best resolved by elections and in Parliament. He stressed that
Timor-Leste continues to look towards democratic partners such
as the United States as role models. Guterres explained that
Timorese parliamentarians are still developing expertise, and
for that reason Parliament continues to rely on foreign advisors
for both legal and logistical assistance.


11. (SBU) Guterres agreed with A/S Hill's observation that much
needs to be done on Timor-Leste's judicial system. Only a few
Timorese judges and public defenders had been trained, and
conditions for judges in the outlying districts remain
primitive. The National Parliament was working to implement a
civil code to replace the UNTAET regulations and Indonesian laws
that are currently in effect, Guterres said. He estimated that
putting a fully functional judiciary system in place would take

DILI 00000107 003.2 OF 003


10-15 years.


12. (SBU) A/S Hill said that an important part of this reform
process would be to create a legal mechanism for resolution of
land and property disputes. Guterres agreed, noting that there
were several different kinds of land disputes and that the GOTL
was proceeding by resolving the relatively straightforward ones
first. He pointed out that Timor-Leste has many linguistic and
ethnic groups, each with its own traditions of conflict
resolution, and this complicates the task at hand.

Alkatiri on 2/11 Attacks, Petrol Fund, Indonesia

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


13. (C) In his meeting with A/S Hill, FRETILIN Secretary General
Mari Alkatiri characterized the problem of the petitioners and
the February 11 attacks on the President and Prime Minister as
resulting from the mishandling of the 2006 political crisis.
Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao, he said, had actually encouraged
the petitioners and the Reinado group in 2006. Alkatiri said
that FRETILIN nonetheless fully supported the GOTL's efforts to
apprehend the perpetrators. He said that in his opinion, a
breakdown of command and control mechanisms was the reason that
the would-be assassins were not caught on the day of the attack.


14. (C) A/S Hill commended Alkatiri's foresight in creating
Timor-Leste's national petroleum fund. Alkatiri recalled that
the law had been passed unanimously, and that the fund had been
set up only after a three-year process of consultation. A/S Hill
remarked that this might be a paradigm for creating a mechanism
for resolving land and property disputes. Alkatiri agreed,
adding that this was an urgent priority, but one that required a
popular consensus. Politicization of land and property issues
would be very harmful, said Alkatiri, who encouraged U.S.
assistance in building bipartisan support for reform. He
remarked that Indonesia still had extensive property claims, and
that the report of the bilateral Commission on Truth and
Friendship might contain provisions addressing these issues.
Alkatiri underscored the fundamental importance to Timor-Leste
of good relations with Indonesia, complaining that some foreign
NGOs failed to appreciate this. A/S Hill reiterated a standing
invitation to Alkatiri to visit Washington.
KLEMM