RDTL Government and UNMISET agree continued deployment of F-FDTL in Ermera
UNMISET PRESS RELEASE
1 February 2003
(Dili, 1 February) – The RDTL government and UNMISET have agreed
to extend the
temporary hand-over of defence responsibilities in the Ermera sub-districts
of
Atsabe and Hatolia to the F-FDTL for a further period of 2 weeks. Following
the agreement reached in the wake of the murders in Atsabe early last
month,
responsibility for the defence in the district had been handed over by
PKF to
the F-FDTL on a temporary basis. The F-FDTL was due to hand responsibility
back to PKF yesterday afternoon. But the F-FDTL Commander Brigadier-General
Taur Matan Ruak and the PKF Commander General Tan have now extended their
earlier agreement for another two weeks.
Community leaders and residents of both sub-districts had made strong
pleas
for the F-FDTL to remain in the area. They also put forward their request
to
the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Timor-Leste,
Mr
Sukehiro Hasegawa, who travelled to Hatolia and Atsabe over the last couple
of
days to meet with residents and hear their concerns.
At both meetings, the DSRSG stressed that Timor-Leste was a fully independent
and sovereign country and it was up to its people and government to decide
how
best to maintain security, adding that UNMISET was of course ready to
assist
in whatever manner necessary. Mr Hasegawa told residents that he would
take
the views of both communities to Prime-Minister Mari Alkatiri and to RDTL
President Xanana Gusmão, the Commander-in-Chief of F-FDTL. “If
you and your
government want the F-FDTL to stay here then the UN is ready to consider
such
request”, Mr Hasegawa told Atsabe residents yesterday.