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 :
very interesting, indeed…
hi, just to say that in some parts of China, there are already bans on using plastic bags and styrofoam boxes, for example in Shangri-la which is located in northern Yunnan. there you can only get to use the fibre bags and you get charged for them too. There was not a single plastic bag in sight. There, everyone use woven baskets to carry all their groceries, or for large purchases, they use the boxes at supermarkets that had originally carried tin cans etc. I think that China for having 1.1billion people will definitely have a large footprint environmentally. but there are efforts underway and it’s not always fair to point an accusing finger at it all the time, when more developed countries themselves have gone through the same phase of industralisation, pollution, extreme consumerism & waste.
The one up the ill is the Official Residence of the President, not the Office. It is being rebuilt by Lisbon City Council. It will be used for official cerimonies (some already happen there), and for the President to live if he is willing to. The other one, that the chineses will built will substitute the Palacio das Cinzas, as the place where the presidency works. It will be the office.