You would have had to be wired to your iPod all afternoon to miss yesterday’s chopper spectacular. I would think it was the biggest chopper display I have seen here since their arrival last year.
I couldn’t make head or tail of where they came from or where they were going to. If they were indeed circling, they must have been very big circles as they appeared from the east and disappeared towards the heliport then around by the hills. It went on for about 1/2 an hour – maybe centred around the Vila Verde/Colmera area with the occasional sprint down the esplanade. I counted 3 choppers but there could have been more.
I asked some Timorese if they knew of any trouble spot (they usually know) but no-one knew. I am none the wiser but it certainly was a spectacle with a fair bit of swooping, coming to a halt then speeding off again. Better than TV.
Otherwise, this last week has been very quiet and very wet.
Is this related? Although I just noticed these were “morning flights” and apparently planes not choppers. This caught my eye. (From STL via UNMIT media monitoring via East Timor list on Rise Up: https://lists.riseup.net/www/arc/east-timor/2007-03/msg00198.html)
Morning Flight–Clementino: people have to have its clarification from the Government
Vice President Committee B (Security, Defence and Foreign Negotiation), National Parliament Clementino dos Reis Amaral reportedly called for Government to clarify the three morning flights at International Airport Nicolau Lobatu Comoro. He said that the State has to clarify for people regarding from which country the plane is coming. He said that people are now traumatized and shouldn’t be further terrified. (STL)
Perhaps they got wind of something and decided to put on a show to discourage the potential trouble makers? Just an idea…
I didn’t know about any extra OZ troops until yesterday. I would have thought the TL govt. would have been told. I don’t think the plane arrivals and chopper workout were related – unless there was some rapid re-deployment going on.
The chopper work was mid-Sunday afternoon.
It feels like info has closed down another notch, which I could understand if Major Alfredo is to be believed about knowing of the raid to capture him one hour before it happened. So some reports say. (For completeness of picture, one hopefully spurious rumour is that Alfredo was picked up and taken to Australia. Or the one about him being in Dili. Or the one about …)
Pingback: Global Voices Online » Blog Archive » East Timor: Airshow in East Timor
The Age reports today that an ABC (AU) journalist & cameraman interviewed Reinado up in the foho on Sunday and mentioned there were 3 Blackhawks trying to follow them to his hidden camp. The two were successful in being led to their man, and Reinado apparently was dressed fashionably in an OZ army uniform for the interview. This wily guy certainly has some gall, as well as balls! Very happy to hear that things are still quiet and life goes on in little Timor. W.M.
The ABC have repeated this interview in several radio and TV news and current affairs programmes. That is, via the local Radio Australia FM station and the Indovision broadcasted Australia Network.
I would be gob-smacked if the ADF did not know Reinado’s whereabouts to +/- “x” hundred metres. But I think an unarmed journalist would be permitted within this perimeter, whereas armed soldiers would just provoke trouble.
Otherwise, there is not much going on outside of the closed doors. But I wish news sources wouldn’t catch onto my unfortunately flippant title to beat up the whole chopper thing. The point is life goes on between rock fights – the ant plague in the kitchen, more farewells this week, the 10 hour power cut yesterday, thinking I had lost $250 of someone else’s money, running out of limes again … For me, it has been a slow news week.
Guys, I am flippant and the only person allowed to call me “Sir” is the dentist’s receptionist.
PS Shihad appearing in Canberra Friday 23 March and Brisbane Saturday 24 March.
I bought a 2000 dollar generator 3 weeks ago. I’ve had 1 yes bloody 1 power cut since then. I feel very shortchanged. But at least I’ve got the ants.