I read yesterday that approval has been given to commence construction on a new Presidential Palace, with work to commence in February.  I admit to confusion on this as the current President works out of very modest premises in Caicoli right next door to the burnt-out “Palace of the Ashes”.

Meanwhile up the hill towards Dare is what I thought was the Presidential Palace – the Portuguese-style “pink building” which was renovated not so long ago but seems rarely used.

So the new plan is to build a Presidential Palace on the heliport facing Comorro Road.  This area is currently being used by Australian military forces, and who have not so long ago, erected a large warehouse in the prime position.

The new palace will be built (and funded ?) by the Chinese government.  This follows the Chinese government funded (and currently under construction) new Timorese Foreign Ministry building and new Chinese Embassy.  This possibly makes the Chinese government the initiator of the 3 biggest building projects in Dili and all (?) with Chinese funding.

Yep, the political environment is a little more complicated than just a forthcoming local election.

Just an aside : one problem that concerns me greatly is the massive effect of environmental problems in China and their impact on China and the rest of the world (northern hemisphere in particular).  It really is a huge problem guys and I can not see things turning around in the near future.  If you worry about leaving a light switch on or not taking your own shopping bag to the supermarket, take a deep breath before reading the following :

http://www.chinadialogue.net 

During the week, the Fretilin party President, Francisco Guterres (more commonly known as Lu-Olo) suggested that foreign military and police were treating their mission here as a holiday by the sea.

Although I can understand that the continued gang violence in the face of the foreign security presence may be frustrating, perhaps a few things need clarification.

The foreign military forces are mainly Australian and New Zealand (and earlier, Malaysian).  These guys are on-duty 24×7 and carry arms at all times according to normal practice.  These guys are not permitted to eat or drink in local establishments, nor do I believe they have any down-time in TL itself.  So these guys are off the hook.

Initially, the police presence was an international contingent of OZ, NZ and Portuguese (perhaps Malaysian) but has now morphed into a UN Police force from numerous countries.  Initially, the police were not allowed out in their down-time but that has been relaxed now.  In the early days when the Portuguese military police were barracked in the Hotel Dili 2000, they were a common sight down at the Cristo Rei beaches.  When most expats had been evacuated, it was pretty obvious but it is a bit harder to detect now that there are a huge number of foreign aid workers here.

But you do get the impression that there are a lot of UN police vehicles moving around not actually doing much.  Someone told me that there are a number of UN police who are not actually police back in their home country.  And for the more professional officers from OZ and NZ, this is known to be a frustration.

While I was out of town for a few days, the security situation seemed to get worse. The on-again off-again gang fights seemed to have turned into a full-on conflict. IDP numbers are going up and medical facilities are handling a large number of hand-to-hand combat injuries. I was told at least 5 have died over the last 4 days.

Not being around, I asked many questions regarding where not to go and who is involved etc. A lot of the information is still based on piecing together news from several sources to come up with a personal assessment of things. While looking up the parliamentary pension thing, I came across a site which is the first I am aware of that re-publishes the (now almost daily) UN security briefings reports in historic fullness. The security reports are on the East Timor Legal Information site.

Up until now, I had been looking at the Ministry of Work and Community web site which only gives you the last 2 reports. It also gives a bit of info on other security and humanitarian issues.

The current trouble is an escalation of gang fighting in the Bairo Pite area which has been going on for over a week now. At the end of last week, it seemed to be between the Setia Hati (PSHT) and 77 gangs which have bedded down each side of the road between Ailoklaran and Hudilaran (ie heading south-west from the Vila Verde cathedral). I think it is still the same.

I have been out of town for a few days doing a bit of touring around which has been off the agenda for a while. It is a different world out there, and the capital is a long way away.

While away, one of my group casually mentioned that the parliament had passed legislation giving parliamentarians quite extraordinary pension allowances. I had never seen it, so I have since asked a local just when did this happen (3 weeks ago) and how come I had not come across it. Was it on the radio ? No. Was it on the TV ? No. Was it is the Dili papers ? Yes, but on page 5 amongst other government news. It didn’t seem to raise any great concern.

So I look it up on the internet when I got back here. “Lao Hamutuk” seems to be taking up the case and reports that the parliamentarian’s pension bill includes :

A pension for life at 100% of final salary with money for healthcare (both in TL and overseas) and

• A government house, a government car with fuel, a private secretary, an adviser, two telephones, internet access and a security person.

• Tax exemption on car imports and building material for private use (for up to two houses)

• A diplomatic passport and a VIP travel treatment (even when not on an official mission)

• Two times a year, a paid intercontinental trip with two other people, and more…

Outside of Dili, the generally lower living standards are fairly obvious so it was fairly hard for me to rationalise this smorgasbord of benefits with the living conditions of many Timorese. To be honest, this sort of stuff is why politics turns me off and why I struggle to decide who to talk to – a politician or a car salesman.

The interesting side event to this is that the President has vetoed the bill but if it is handed back a second time, he must either pass it or resign. (This was also new to me.) Then it hits you. The Timorese President has almost no power so comparing the position to George Dubya is misleading. I am no expert in politics or the (or any) constitution but the President’s power seems more like a Queen/Governor-General in the Commonwealth system.

It almost makes me think that this bill was out to test the President’s mettle.

With the ex-Minister of the Interior, Rogerio Lobato, going to court today to answer charges of conspiracy and arms offences, it has been expected that there may be security issues this week.

A romp around today seemed to indicate that many locals have avoided un-necessary travel.  The queue at the ANZ bank was absent and I take that as my best guide.  (The ATM machine still didn’t work !)  It seemed that 5% of shops were shut for the day and people numbers on the streets were down.
Although it has been referred to as a demonstration, the bits I saw of about 25 trucks full of Lobato supporters suggested more of a rally than a demonstration.  No suggestion of aggro but a hint of a well-organised, stage managed production.  As I didn’t trail around after them, I can say little more than that.

But I did see road closures near the UN military HQ at Camp Phoenix and evidence of a large number of people having consumed water from sealed plastic cups – these were littered in their hundreds on the grass verge outside the Camp.

Some say these rallies will ramp up over the next 3 or 4 days.