SECOND CONFERENCE ON DEFENCE FORCE

The second international conference of countries willing to help develop the future East Timor Defence Force (ETDF) will take place on 25-26 June in Dili. Fourteen countries have confirmed their participation in the meeting and two of them, Angola and Mozambique, are taking part for the first time. The purpose of the conference, chaired by SRSG Sergio Vieira de Mello, is to present a progress report on the development of the ETDF and request further assistance in the establishment and development of the Force. The meeting will focus on advisor support, training support, logistic support, equipment and material and financial donations. The East Timor Transitional Administration hosted the first conference on 20-21 November 2000.

MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION STARTS

Motor Vehicle Registration will start on 18 June in East Timor. This follows the signing of two regulations designed to enhance road safety by SRSG Sergio Vieira de Mello on Wednesday. The regulations, which were approved by the East Timor National Council on 29 May, establishes a Regime Governing Road Traffic and a Motor Vehicle Office responsible for registration of motor vehicles, the issuing of vehicle registration cards and license plates. Subject to the regulation establishing a Motor Vehicle Office the owner of every motor vehicle in East Timor is required to register that vehicle. A ceremony to mark the beginning of the process will be held at the Motor Vehicle Office in Comoro, Dili, on 18 June. The Motor Vehicle Office shall maintain a complete, current and accurate list of information on the vehicle fleet and their owners in East Timor. Application forms for registration of a vehicle will be available at the Motor Vehicle Office and all district police stations from 18 June.

NEW FORMAL ROUND OF TIMOR SEA TALKS

A new formal round of talks on Timor Sea between UNTAET/East Timor Transitional Administration (ETTA) and the Australian Government will be held in Canberra 12-14 June. Cabinet Member for Political Affairs and Timor Sea Peter Galbraith and Cabinet Member for Economic Affairs Mari Alkatiri are the lead negotiators for UNTAET/ETTA. The Australian delegation will be led by David Ritchie, First Assistant Secretary of International Organizations and Legal Division of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. A future treaty governing the resources of the Timor Sea is expected to be signed by East Timor’s Independence day.

REGISTRATION IN WEST TIMOR

UNTAET’s observer of the registration exercise that the Government of Indonesia has undertaken in the refugee camps in West Timor, Head of UNTAET’s Kupang Office Timothy Hudner, is returning to East Timor tomorrow, 9 June. UNTAET has not received any official results of the registration as of today, 8 June. East Timorese refugees living in camps in West Timor, Indonesia, were asked whether they wanted to remain in Indonesia or return to East Timor. SRSG Sergio Vieira de Mello said today that UNTAET is interested in knowing the number of refugees still in West Timor. “But given the coercive circumstances the refugees have been living under for almost 20 months, the Transitional Administration will not take the results of the choices made by the refugees as necessarily reflecting their true and definite desires,” SRSG added.

NEW SERIOUS CRIMES PROSECUTOR SWORN-IN

Charles Nsabumana from Burundi was sworn-in by SRSG Sergio Vieira de Mello as new Serious Crimes Prosecutor today. Nsabumana, an advisor for the Office of Foreign Affairs in Burundi, has almost 12 years experience as prosecutor in his home country. He served five and a half years as deputy chief of Burundi’s mission in Rwanda and six years as legal advisor in the regional organization Kagera, which comprises Burundi, Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania. There are currently eight prosecutors – seven internationals and one East Timorese – in the Office of Serious Crimes of the Dili District Court.

UDT APPLIES FOR PARTY REGISTRATION

The party União Democrática Timorense (UDT) submitted an application for registration to the Independent Electoral Commission today, 8 June, in order to present candidates to the elections for the Constituent Assembly. This is the thirteenth party to submit an application. All party registration applications are available for public inspection at the Independent Electoral Commission headquarters in Dili for two weeks after having been submitted. Any person eligible to vote who has documents to support their claim may file an objection to an application. The objection can be based only on the premise that the items in the application are deficient or inaccurate, and must be supported by documentary evidence.

OVER 668,000 EAST TIMORESE REGISTERED

Eighty-two per cent – more than 668,000 people – of East Timor’s population have been registered by UNTAET’s Civil Registration Unit as of yesterday, 7 June. All 13 districts have now crossed the 70 per cent mark and only four are below 80 per cent. Three districts, Ainaro, Suai and Same, have registered over 90 per cent of its population. Eighty-three per cent of the population in the capital Dili has been registered. Ataúro Island, part of Dili district and where the pilot project for the registration exercise was conduced, has completed its registration.