Mr MILLS - 1999-10-19
I understand that East Timorese leader Xanana Gusmao cancelled prior arrangements last Friday so that he could meet with the Chief Minister and key members of his department. Is he able to provide details of this meeting?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I had a meeting with the leader of the CNRT, Xanana Gusmao, in my office on Friday evening. The purpose of that meeting was to gain his input into a very important meeting that is being held virtually at this moment in Canberra, attended by the Secretary of the Chief Minister’s Department.
This conference is being chaired by Hon Mark Vaile, the Minister for Trade. It involves high-level representatives from AusAID, the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank and UN agencies. The Northern Territory government is the only government that has been given a period to provide a presentation at that meeting, which is a recognition of the importance not only of our effort to date but also of our future input.
The scope of the presentation includes the NT government’s assessment of reconstruction needs in East Timor, in particular the immediate needs. I was keen to get from Xanana Gusmao his opinion as to what were the immediate priorities so that we could present that point of view at the meeting in Canberra. We are doing that. The instructions I’ve given to the secretary of my department are essentially that the immediate needs in East Timor now, with the onset of the wet season, are bulk supplies of roofing materials, nails, timber and other construction materials so that the people themselves can undertake a self-help program to get many of the partly-destroyed buildings back into some sort of shape, and that the Northern Territory government stands willing to assemble and ship those materials quickly, providing the money is freed up through the UN or other agencies. I told the secretary to emphasise that, with regard to the longer-term needs for reconstruction, we understand the tender requirements of the UN and other agencies. But immediate support can be organised now. The Northern Territory is capable, but certainly someone has to write the cheque.
I urged Xanana Gusmao to use his status, through the media and in other areas, to present a similar message. Hopefully some positive result will come out of this. To my mind the opportunity is there for those immediate requirements to be shipped quickly to East Timor.
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, I had a meeting with the leader of the CNRT, Xanana Gusmao, in my office on Friday evening. The purpose of that meeting was to gain his input into a very important meeting that is being held virtually at this moment in Canberra, attended by the Secretary of the Chief Minister’s Department.
This conference is being chaired by Hon Mark Vaile, the Minister for Trade. It involves high-level representatives from AusAID, the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank and UN agencies. The Northern Territory government is the only government that has been given a period to provide a presentation at that meeting, which is a recognition of the importance not only of our effort to date but also of our future input.
The scope of the presentation includes the NT government’s assessment of reconstruction needs in East Timor, in particular the immediate needs. I was keen to get from Xanana Gusmao his opinion as to what were the immediate priorities so that we could present that point of view at the meeting in Canberra. We are doing that. The instructions I’ve given to the secretary of my department are essentially that the immediate needs in East Timor now, with the onset of the wet season, are bulk supplies of roofing materials, nails, timber and other construction materials so that the people themselves can undertake a self-help program to get many of the partly-destroyed buildings back into some sort of shape, and that the Northern Territory government stands willing to assemble and ship those materials quickly, providing the money is freed up through the UN or other agencies. I told the secretary to emphasise that, with regard to the longer-term needs for reconstruction, we understand the tender requirements of the UN and other agencies. But immediate support can be organised now. The Northern Territory is capable, but certainly someone has to write the cheque.
I urged Xanana Gusmao to use his status, through the media and in other areas, to present a similar message. Hopefully some positive result will come out of this. To my mind the opportunity is there for those immediate requirements to be shipped quickly to East Timor.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016