From http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs//2007/ga10624.doc.htm 27 September 2007 General Assembly GA/10624 Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York Sixty-second General Assembly Plenary 8th & 9th Meetings (AM & PM) SMALL ISLAND STATES, LEAST DEVELOPED COUNTRIES SEEK URGENT COLLECTIVE ACTION BY GENERAL ASSEMBLY TO HELP THEM COPE WITH CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS JOSÉ RAMOS-HORTA, President of Timor-Leste, discussing the political situation in his country, said that in April and May of last year, less than five years after Timor-Leste’s accession to full independence, the country had been plunged into its first major crisis. At that time, the President, the Speaker of the Parliament and the Prime Minister had decided to request urgent assistance from the United Nations and the rapid intervention of friendly countries. He thanked all those that had come to his country’s aid, including Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand and Portugal. The Security Council had approved the deployment of the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT). He said that significant progress had been made since those “dark weeks”. Presidential and legislative elections had been held this past spring. The election period had been mostly violence-free, and few irregularities had been reported. At the same time, while the elections results had been welcome, the announcement of the new Government had met with some resistance. The former ruling party, the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor, won most of the votes, but not enough to govern on its own. After several weeks of lobbying, the former ruling party failed to form a coalition, he said. A post-election four-party parliamentary alliance opposed to the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor secured 37 seats in the new 65-seat Parliament, and had been invited to form the Government. Subsequently, there had been violence in a number of locations, in which law enforcement entities had been implicated, but swift United Nations Police and International Security Forces intervention had brought the situation quickly under control. Adding that Timor-Leste’s defence force had played its role in defusing the situation, he also acknowledged that the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor leadership had also helped the situation by restraining their more passionate followers. He went on to say that law and order had been restored, but the relative tranquillity was precarious. That would remain so until Timor-Leste’s police force could be reconstructed and turned into a credible and effective force. He said that would take a minimum of two to five years, but meanwhile, the Timorese Government would continue the national dialogue, so as to heal the wounds of the past. He and other senior Government officials had established a high-level mechanism to address security sector reform. An expert team of national and international advisors currently interface with UNMIT’s own security sector reform group. The shared goal was to ascertain a sound strategy for the appropriate reform of Timor-Leste’s police force and the development of its defence forces. On the social situation, he said that the 2006 crisis had sparked widespread looting and destruction in the capital, Dili. More than 30 people died, some 30 had been wounded and tens of thousands had been displaced. “We are slowly recovering, however,” he said, adding that the Government was nevertheless concerned about the situation of hundreds of thousands of people living in “precarious” camps in and around Dili. On related issues, late rains last year, floods and a locust plague had significantly damaged the agricultural sector. As a result, the Government anticipated an acute food shortage in the coming months and was planning to purchase significant amounts of food items from regional markets to fill the expected gaps. He said that, as of July, Timor-Leste’s petroleum fund had accumulated more than $1.4 billion. Monthly revenues of some $100 million were being deposited into the fund, but that had not translated into any visible improvement in the lives of the poor. Among other positive steps, the new Government had accepted his fiscal reform proposal to turn Timor-Leste into a tax-free country. However, those and other initiatives were not enough to improve the living standards of the people, the vast majority of whom had been poor for centuries, and, therefore, could not –- and should not -– wait. Having pledged to be the “President of the Poor”, he said he intended to be their best advocate. Towards that goal, he was establishing, among other instruments, a fast-track mechanism to provide direct assistance to individuals, groups and rural communities. With that initiative, coupled with public investment in infrastructure and the agriculture sector, Timor-Leste should see, in the medium-term, a significant reduction in unemployment and poverty levels. He said his Government was aware that the international community faced several threats that could be considered more critical than the current situation in his country. At the same time, he hoped that the United Nations would consider longer-term engagement to help further stabilize the situation in Timor-Leste, as well as help strengthen national institutions and consolidate peace and democracy. Turning to other issues, he expressed concern and disappointment at current events in Myanmar. He also expressed concern that the Asian region was the most weaponized region in the world, and stressed that its scientists had “Frankenstein monsters” -– nuclear weapons –- “that can destroy us all”. He called on those nations to dismantle those dangerous weapons as soon as possible. Finally, he applauded the Assembly for finally adopting last week the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.