Presidency of the Council of Ministers

Eighth Constitutional Government

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Press Release

Meeting of the Council of Ministers of November 6, 2019

The Council of Ministers met at the Government Palace in Dili and heard the presentation of the Natural Disasters Report by the Acting Minister of State Administration, Abílio José Caetano. The report identifies that more than 1,000 people have been affected by natural disasters and reports on humanitarian support needs. The Ministry of State Administration in coordination with other relevant Ministries involved in natural disaster response addressed the mechanisms used and the support being allocated.

The Secretary of State for Equality and Inclusion, Maria José da Fonseca Monteiro de Jesus, presented to the Council of Ministers the first draft of the State Report for the CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Woman) Committee. The CEDAW was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 18 December 1979 and entered into force on 3 September 1981. With 185 States as signatories, it is one of the most ratified human rights treaties, having been ratified by Timor-Leste in 2003. The report presents the national situation, challenges and progress since 2015 with a view to eliminating discrimination against women in different areas in order to ensure the principle of equality between women and men at legal, social, political, economic and cultural levels, as provided for in Article 17 of the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste.

The Prime-Minister, Taur Matan Ruak, presented a proposal for a Government Resolution, approved by the Council of Ministers, on the appointment of former Deputy Prime-Minister, José Luís Guterres, to the role of President of the Authority of the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno.

The Secretary of State for Social Communications, Merício Juvinal dos Reis ‘Akara’ presented a proposal for a decree-law, approved by the Council of Ministers, on the regime of direct State grants of support to the media. Recognizing that the media is an important element in rule of law, and that it contributes to the construction of a free and open society, supported by knowledge and information, this decree establishes the procedural regime for granting financial support to media organizations while determining the criteria, general and objective, to which it must comply, in order to ensure transparency and justice of the decision-making process. This diploma aims to strengthen and intensify, throughout the national territory, the degree of realisation of the right to information, understood as a crucial instrument for building an open, transparent and simultaneously plural and cohesive society.

The Council of Ministers approved the proposal for a memorandum of understanding to be signed between the Republic of Indonesia and the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste. Under this memorandum of understanding, Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Authority and the Timorese authorities will carry out disaster management training activities, exchange information to anticipate occurrences or in response to emergency situations in border areas and in situations of need for assistance and mobilization of resources in response to disasters that occur at the border, or in other parts of the territory of the two countries, when authorization for this is given.

Finally, the Council of Ministers expressed its agreement with the renewal of the current Chairman of the Board of Directors and the Executive Board of Timor Gap – Timor Gás & Petróleo, Francisco da Costa Monteiro, to be confirmed via Dispatch by the Acting Minister of Petroleum and Minerals, Agio Pereira. ENDS