La'o Hamutuk submission on restructuring petroleum regulation Apr 2007

Printable PDF file: English or Tetum

Follow this link to access additional information and analysis on the restructuring of Timor-Leste's petroleum regulatory bodies.

La'o Hamutuk made a second submission on this topic in July 2007.

Submission to the Ministry of Natural Resources, Minerals and Energy Policy
Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste

from La’o Hamutuk

regarding the Legislative Package on Reorganizing Petroleum Industry Activities in Timor-Leste

5 April 2007

As a Timorese non-governmental organization (NGO), La’o Hamutuk is grateful for the opportunity given by the Ministry for this public consultation. This proposed legislation is essential to the future of our nation. At this point in the process, it is important for the Government to listen to public opinion and to encourage public participation to help develop Timor-Leste as a democratic nation. Therefore, the public consultation should not be done only to meet legal requirements, but to effectively stimulate and understand the views of people across our nation, and to synthesize input from a variety of perspectives and bases of knowledge.

La’o Hamutuk has worked for many years on issues relating to natural resource development in Timor-Leste, together with other organizations. La’o Hamutuk has provided many submissions to Government and Parliament, particularly regarding the laws establishing our petroleum regime and Petroleum Fund. We have campaigned to build support for the Government of Timor-Leste in the negotiations with Australia over the Timor Sea. Over the last seven years, we have developed relationships with experts around the world who have given their skills to help Timor-Leste develop a world-class system to manage petroleum development and revenues.

We would like to continue to support Timor-Leste’s Government and legislators in creating a petroleum activities system which will ensure that Timor-Leste’s petroleum resources benefit our population, rather than inflicting the “resource curse” that condemns most oil-rich, cash-poor countries like ours to economic, environmental and social disaster.

Consequently, we would like to use this opportunity to share our perspectives and offer some comments about the draft decree-laws regarding petroleum activities in Timor-Leste, in response to the announcement on 22 March. We have not been given enough time to submit an article-by-article review as we have in the past. Therefore, we will respond to this consultation as if it was like the first Petroleum Fund public consultation on a discussion paper, and offer general comments on basic concepts.

We understand that many people from civil society and elsewhere have requested more time for this public consultation. If the Ministry listens to these requests and extends or re-opens the process, La’o Hamutuk will provide more detailed, better-informed suggestions.

This public consultation is too short and designed to discourage popular participation.

In principle, we do not question the power of the Government to write laws and regulations for Timor-Leste. As a government based on democratic processes, this Government has the legal authority to regulate development activities in this country, including in the petroleum sector.

In a democratic nation, public consultations are an important way for people can participate in the development process, helping to create laws which will affect the lives of all our citizens. The right to public participation is underlined in the RDTL Constitution, as a necessary component of Article 46.1: “Every citizen has the right to participate in the political life and in the public affairs of the country, either directly or through democratically elected representatives.”

Public consultation must be a mechanism which encourages people to participate in this process, not only for one-way communication from the Government. The Government can learn alternative ideas to improve its laws and decisions. We hope that the Government does not view the process of public consultation only as an exercise to meet a legal requirement, but that you conduct it with good intentions, as a way to implement the spirit and letter of democracy.

In this public consultation process, the Ministry does not appear interested in obtaining input from civil society in Timor-Leste or elsewhere. The Government announced it on 22 March, and allowed only fifteen days for comments. Although some of the draft laws are from nearly five months ago, they were not released to public view until 15 days before the deadline. Other documents indicate that the Government plans to implement the new regulatory authority by 1 April, or to have the decree-laws promulgated by President Xanana Gusmão, whose term of office ends in less than two months. We believe that some involved in this process see it as a mere formality which, as one government advisor wrote, should not “impose unnecessary or undesirable delay” in bringing the proposed legislation into force as quickly as possible.

La’o Hamutuk is a local organization with limited experience, resources and knowledge, although we expand our expertise by consulting with experts from around the world. We feel that fifteen days is insufficient, and that the Government will not receive good ideas from civil society or others. We share concerns expressed by Petroleum Fund Consultative Council and the Core Group that a meaningful consultation on such complex issues requires more time, and hope that the Ministry will decide to re-open or extend the process to receive more complete participation from civil society.

The mechanisms for communication with the public to maximize participation in this process, including organizations like La’o Hamutuk which have long engaged with officials involved in petroleum development in Timor-Leste, were far from sufficient. The Government only published in the Timor Post once, which reaches hardly anyone outside Dili, and which the even majority of people in our capital city would not see. To examine the documents, the consulted public is required to use the internet and e-mail. Although these communications media are not an obstacle for La’o Hamutuk, they are inaccessible to approximately 99% of Timor-Leste’s population. We do not agree that a consultation which relies on these tools can be considered open to the public, or implements the consultation’s stated objective of giving “publicity, legitimacy and transparency” to the Ministry’s reorganization of Timor-Leste’s petroleum sector.

The Ministry also showed bad faith in seeking public participation by providing the draft laws only in Portuguese. Our Constitution says that the official languages of Timor-Leste are Tetum and Portuguese; the Government has adopted English and Indonesian as working languages. Particularly in the petroleum sector, many documents are circulated in English to involve knowledgeable people, especially those working at international oil companies with financial interests in our resources. In the last bidding round, companies were directed to submit their bid materials in Portuguese or English. Although the Government’s function is to serve Timor-Leste’s people, it seems to prioritize the interests of these companies over its own citizenry.

Fewer than five percent of Timor-Leste’s people understand Portuguese. When La’o Hamutuk enquired about availability of the draft decree-laws in English, an international advisor to the Government said that the Government should not spend money on language translations, and that he was afraid somebody would ask for “versions in Italian, French, Norwegian, Hindi, Chinese, etc.”

Drafts of the Petroleum Fund Act and petroleum regime laws were circulated in English as well as Tetum, Portuguese and sometimes Bahasa Indonesia. Of the dozens of submissions made to public consultations on those documents, one was in Tetum, two in both Portuguese and English, and all the rest in English with a few also provided in Bahasa Indonesia. Although La’o Hamutuk has raised concerns about those laws not incorporating all the good ideas which arose during public consultation, we appreciate the adequate time and flexibility of language that enabled many knowledgeable people to analyze and comment on the draft documents.

La’o Hamutuk making this submission in Tetum, the official language of Timor-Leste which is spoken by a large majority of our population. In order that international advisors to the government may understand it, we are providing an English translation.

We appreciate the effort by the Government to improve and regulate petroleum development activities in Timor-Leste, including the creation of these decree-laws. But the current political and social context makes this the wrong time to enact such major changes.

The Timor Sea Treaty requires the Government to transform the TSDA into the Regulatory Authority within three years of April 2003, but it has already been extended by one year and then for three months. It could easily be extended for another nine months until April 2008, when our new Parliament and Government will have had time to establish themselves. The creation of PETROTIL and the National Council on Energy Policy have even less time pressure – there is no reason for them to be enacted this year.

Timor-Leste is in the midst of a crisis, with approximately 10% of our population displaced from their homes and many more living with daily fear of violence. In addition, we are about to have Presidential and Parliamentary elections, with the possibility of changing the structure and policies of our Government. Most people interested in public policy are busy with campaigns, which prevents them from giving attention to this public consultation. Because these decree-laws are not being submitted for Parliamentary approval, there will not be another opportunity for elected Members of Parliament to provide input, making it even more important that this public consultation be conducted at a time when political leaders from all parties can participate.

There is no urgency for Timor-Leste to create these new petroleum administrative structures rapidly, especially when our government is in the midst of a political transition. Likely changes in the structure of our Government later this year will impact on today’s policy decisions. Because of this, even if these laws were rushed through and in force before the Parliamentary election, there is no guarantee that the new government will accept them, as it may have different policies.

During the current security crisis, many people are unable to give attention to this consultation at this time, which reduces public participation. Because of this, we ask the government not to exploit the instability and insecurity to enact laws or policies which could impact on the lives of our entire nation for decades to come.

It appears that our Government and Parliament are the political and social crisis as a smokescreen so that they can make major decisions while people’s attentions are distracted. In the last two months, Parliament has enacted pension laws for ex-parliamentarians and ex-office-holders, ratified the CMATS Treaty, and is about to pass Clemency and Military Service Laws. We hope that what has happened already is not because the organs of sovereignty are taking advantage of the situation to make decisions which will have a negative impact on the future of our nation. But even if it is not intentional, enacting major legislation just before an election and in the midst of a crisis undermines democratic principles and will not produce optimal results for our people.

As a nation which won independence through a popular struggle, Timor-Leste’s government has the responsibility to protect and serve the people of Timor-Leste for the future. All laws and regulations enacted by the Government should reflect this.

Unfortunately, these three proposed decree-laws appear to ignore the lives of our people. These laws respond to the needs of the market, which is dominated by money and international oil companies. Indeed, the invitation to this public consultation is directed to “consumers and economic agents” in the oil sector, rather than to our citizenry. Although the Government has the authority to regulate the entire development process (including energy policies), this process must be based on the interests of Timor-Leste’s people, not the oil companies or oil consumers, who are mainly from rich countries.

The people of Timor-Leste use much less energy than the USA, Japan, or other rich, industrial countries. Today, the production from the JPDA is all exported to Japan and elsewhere, but our people must import fuel from Indonesia.

We hope that the new agencies and policies envisioned in these decree-laws will oversee production and distribution to ensure energy security in Timor-Leste. But they must also protect our environment, preserve our communities and safeguard the land rights of our people. In addition to providing revenues for suppliers and the Government, energy must be available throughout Timor-Leste at affordable prices without damaging our environment. The structure of the public consultation and the proposed agencies appear to neglect the majority of our population. For example, article 27 of the National Petroleum Regulatory Authority (ARNP) draft decree-law requires a public hearing for actions which would affect the rights of economic actors or consumers, but nothing in any of the laws provides for public hearings regarding activities which affect the rights of our citizens.

Although the mandates of the new agencies established by the draft decree-laws include clauses about environmental protection, the laws contain no articles explaining how this is to be done. Furthermore, the National Council on Energy Policy does not include a representative from the Environment Ministry or anyone with knowledge about anything other than “energy matters” or business. This reflects the priority of the government to place petroleum economics above all other concerns.

Our nation’s energy policy must include renewable sources and alternative energy, not only fuels which are burned to create waste and pollution. Except for biofuels, these are non-renewable and exacerbate global climate change. The world is increasingly relying on energy resources Timor-Leste has in abundance – sun, wind, waves, tides, rain, and deep seas. If our energy policies are designed by people whose focus is maximizing petroleum revenues and burning fuels, these cleaner, forward-looking alternatives will be ignored, and Timor-Leste will inevitably take the path of hard energy which has led many countries to ruin.

The proposed structure centralizes all petroleum-related decisions in the Government, especially in the Ministry of Natural Resources, Minerals and Energy Policy. La’o Hamutuk raised this concern in our submissions on the Petroleum Regime; it is unfortunate that the Ministry would like to continue along the path of centralization. We would have hoped that the undemocratic changes of our governmental leaders last July would have reinforced our message that the people’s interests must be protected by laws, rather than relying on the good intentions of individual, temporary holders of the public trust.

Such centralization of power can result in corruption, abuse of power, and maladministration. Already, Timor-Leste confronts many problems because of few checks and balances among our public institutions. When institutions with the function of controlling other public institutions are weak, this gives more possibilities for corruption.

The National Council on Energy Policy is responsible to set energy policies for our country, according to concepts proposed from above by the Ministry, which presides over it. However, we are not clear on the regulatory authority embodied in this Council. The diagrams and explanatory documents provided for this consultation say that the Council will “supervise” the ARNP with powers analogous to those of the Joint Commission with regard to the TSDA, but this regulatory and oversight responsibility appears not to be included in the draft decree-laws, which we read as describing the Council as a consultative or advisory body only, with the power to propose policies and directions but not to enforce them.

This structure gives little power to the Council, and we therefore expect that the Council will be unable to change energy policies set by the Ministry.

The proposed laws combine regulation, production and distribution under one Ministry, which is also responsible for regulating activities which will provide more than 90% of government revenues. It is inevitable that keeping the revenue stream flowing will take top priority. Like a Timorese river during a monsoon rain, anything in its path will be washed away. But just as our people need bridges, buildings, roads and ports, we need independent structures which will receive as much attention as petroleum exploitation projects. This can be achieved only if the various functions – production, distribution, regulation and oversight – are independent. In that way, they can check each other and tendencies toward corruption can be prevented before they become endemic.

We are also concerned that PETROTIL – the proposed national oil company – is under the same Ministry responsible for regulating petroleum activities. A valuable opportunity for independent participation in joint ventures with international oil companies is lost if PETROTIL is not independent of the Ministry. An independent publicly owned company, with democratic oversight provided by another part of the Government, could help protect against collusion between companies and the Ministry while preserving whatever confidentiality is necessary.

The draft laws are unclear about regulations which will implement the regulation of the petroleum industry, the development of energy policy, or the management of energy resources. How will these regulations be developed? Who will write them, and what level of transparency, public input, and oversight will be provided?

Although Timor-Leste’s Government has committed the follow the principles of the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative, these draft laws appear to undermine that commitment. Except for vague generalities about “transparency and good corporate governance” in relation to PETROTIL, this concept is totally absent from the proposed decree-laws.

In recent months, the Timor Sea Designated Authority has begun to implement the spirit of “publish what you pay”, which is the title of a page on its website. We hope that these moves toward transparency will be continued and expanded by the ARNP, but there is nothing in the proposed laws which gives substance to our hopes.

At present, the laws of Australian and other stock exchanges require companies to publish information about revenues and production; such information from Santos’ and Woodside’s quarterly filings in Australia is essential to the public’s ability to validate information published by the Government and the BPA about petroleum receipts. Unfortunately, PETROTIL would not be subject to any publication requirements under the proposed legislation, thereby undermining the Government’s formerly laudable commitment to transparency.

It is a well-established international principle that conflicts of interest should be avoided in situations like petroleum industry regulation, a principle that is acknowledged in Articles 7.4 and 7.6 of the draft ARNP decree-law, which prohibit members of the Administrative Council from having financial interests in the activities they are responsible to regulate while they are on the Council and for one year after they leave their positions. (If such a rule were applied to international advisors to RDTL in the petroleum sector, at least two former advisors would be in violation today.)

We are disappointed that these laws do not go much further, protecting against conflicts of interest in all organs and responsibilities they define. Furthermore, they should require all people in responsible positions in petroleum regulation to publicly declare their assets, income and potential conflicts of interest before beginning their service and at the end of their service, as a fundamental safeguard against corruption.

However, such a provision in the Petroleum Fund Act for the Petroleum Fund Consultative Council has already been problematic to implement; since Timor-Leste does not yet have an overall law regarding asset declaration for holders of the public trust, it has been difficult for the PFCC members alone to meet the legal requirements of Petroleum Fund Act article 27.6. Once again, this illustrates a problem from rushing to enact these decree-laws before Timor-Leste has established strong foundations of good governance and accountability throughout our government. A house built without a foundation will be washed away by the first big rain.

The proposed law for ARNP violates the spirit (and perhaps the letter) of the Petroleum Fund Act. Article 6.1(a) of that act specifies that all “the gross revenue, including Tax Revenue, of Timor-Leste from any Petroleum Operations, including prospecting or exploration for, and development, exploitation, transportation, sale or export of petroleum, and other activities relating thereto” will be deposited directly into an account for the Petroleum Fund, managed by the Central Bank. Although an exception is made in Article 6.1(b) for the TSDA as a bi-national agency established pursuant to the Timor Sea Treaty, there is no reason for that exception to continue after the TSDA has been transformed into the ARNP, an agency of the Government of RDTL.

In submissions on the draft petroleum regime two years ago, La’o Hamutuk and others proposed that Timor-Leste establish a national oil company, a concept which was left out by the authors of that draft law. We were gratified that the final Petroleum Act incorporated this suggestion that emerged during the public consultation.

Although we continue to support the concept, a national oil company is not without risk. As the experiences of Ecuador and Nigeria vividly demonstrate, it can be used to shield foreign companies from responsibility for their misdeeds, or to enable opacity and anti-democratic activities which would not be dared by an international corporation regulated by well-established democratic governments in rich countries. We are concerned that the proposed PETROTIL decree-law contains nothing to protect against these sorts of abuses.

Given Timor-Leste’s inexperience in the petroleum sector, and our lack of strong laws to regulate businesses or protect the public interest, it is even more critical that the law establishing and governing our national oil company enforce principles of transparency, accountability, good governance, independent oversight, democratic control and respect for environmental and community rights. Unfortunately, the manner in which this public consultation is being conducted does not allow us to do a more extensive analysis of the draft PETROTIL statutes, or to propose specific improvements and amendments. If this consultation is extended, we look forward to learning from the extensive experiences of other countries with national oil companies, both good and bad, and to helping Timor-Leste emulate the best and avoid the worst.

Submisaun ba Ministeriu Rekursu Naturais, Minerais no Politika Enerjetika,
Republika Demokratika de Timor Leste

Husi La’o Hamutuk

Kona ba Pakote Legislativu relasiona ho
Reorganiza Aktividade Industria Petroliferu iha Timor-Leste

5 Abril 2007

Nudar Organizasaun Nao Governamental (ONG) Timor-Leste ida, La’o Hamutuk agradese ba oportunidade konsultasaun publiku ne’ebe Ministerio fó. Proposta lejislasaun ne’e esensial ba futuru ita nia nasaun. Iha pontu ba prosesu ne’e, importante ba governu atu rona opiniaun publiku no enkorazen partisipasaun publiku. Ne’e hanesan momentu importante ida atu hetan opinioens publiko nian no hanesan meios ida importante atu encoraja partisipasaun publiku iha prosesu dezenvolve Timor-Leste nudar nasaun demokratiku. Tamba ne’e, konsultasaun publiku la’os hala’o deit hodi tuir kondisaun legal ninian, maibe efetivamente estimula no komprende hanoin povu hosi ita nia nasaun tomak, no sinteza sujestaun hirak ne’e hosi variedade perspetiva no baze konhesimentu.

La’o Hamutuk servisu iha tinan barak ona relasiona ho dezenvolvementu rekursu naturais iha Timor-Leste hamutuk ho organizasaun seluk. La’o Hamutuk hato’o ona submisaun barak ba Governu no Parlementu, partikularmente relasiona ho lei ne’ebe estabelese ita nia rezime petroliferu no fundu petroliferu. Ita halo tiha ona kampanha atu hari apoiu ba Governu Timor-Leste iha negosiasaun ho Australia kona ba Tasi Timor. Iha tinan hitu nia laran, ita dezenvolve relasaun ho peritus iha mundu tomak ne’ebe fó sira nia matenek hodi apoiu Timor-Leste atu dezenvolve sistema ho klase mundu atu maneza dezenvolvimentu petroliferu no rendimentu.

Ami hakarak kontinua apoiu Governu Timor-Leste no lejisladores hodi kria sistema atividade petroliferu ne’ebe bele garante katak rekursu petroliferu Timor-Leste fó benefisiu ba ita nia populasaun, se lae fó fali todan “malisan rekursu” ne’ebe kondena riku-mina barak, nasaun kiak hanesan ita iha area ekonomia, meiu ambiente no dizastre sosial.

Tamba ne’e, ami hakarak uza oportunidade ne’e hodi hato’o ami nia perspetiva, no komentario ruma kona ba esbosu lei relasiona ho atividade petroliferu nian iha Timor-Leste hodi responde avizu ne’ebe publika iha loron 22, fulan ne’e. Ami laiha tempu naton atu fó komentariu ba artigu kada artigu hanesan buat ne’ebe ami halo uluk. Tamba ne’e, ami responde ba konsultasaun ne’e hanesan konsultasaun publiku kona ba fundu petroliferu ba dala uluk liu husi papel diskusaun, no fó komentariu jeral ba konseitu baziku.

Ami hatene katak iha ema barak hosi sosiedade sivil no iha fatin seluk husu atu iha tempu tan ba konsultasaun publiku ne’e. Se Ministru rona ba hahusuk no estende ka loke fila fali prosesu ne’e, La’o Hamutuk sei fó sujestoens detalhadu no informasaun diak liu.

Konsultasaun publiku ne’e badak liu no dezenha atu diskorazen partisipasaun popular.

Iha prinsipiu, ami la kestiona kona ba poder Governu nian atu halo lei ka regulamentu ruma iha Timor-Leste. Hanesan Governu ne’ebe forma liu hosi prosesu demokratiku, Governu iha poder legal atu halo lei ka regulamentu ruma lori regula aktividade dezenvolvementu tomak iha Timor-Leste, inklui dezenvolvementu iha setor Petroliferu.

Hanesan nasaun demokratiku, Konsultasaun Publiku nudar dalan importante tebes atu povu bele partisipa iha prosesu dezenvolvementu, ajuda atu kria lei ne’ebe iha impaktu ba sidadaun tomak. Direitu ba partisipasaun publiku preve tiha ona iha konstituisaun RDTL, nudar komponente nesesariu husi artigu 46.1: “Sidadaun ida-idak iha direitu atu partisipa iha vida politika no iha asuntu publikus nasaun nian, indirectu ka liu husi reprezetantes ne’ebe eleitu demokratikamente.”

Konsultasaun publiku tenki sai nudar mekanismu ida atu enkorazen povu atu partisipa iha prosesu, la’os komunikasaun husi Governu deit. Governu bele aprende ideias alternativa atu hadiak sira nia leis no desizoens. Ami hein katak governu la haree prosesu konsultasaun publiku sai hanesan ezersisiu atu hetan kondisaun legal nian deit, maibe ita bele konduta ho intensaun diak, nudar dalan ida atu implementa espiritu no letra demokrasia ninian.

Iha prosesu konsulta publiku ninian , Ministerio hanesan la interese atu hetan input husi sosiedade sivil iha Timor-Leste no fatin sira seluk. Governu anunsia iha loron 22 Marsu no fó deit tempu loron 15 ba komentariu. Maski esbosu lei ne’e balun iha tiha ona fulan lima liu ba, maibe lei hirak ne’e la fó sai ba publiku atu fó hanoin to’o loron 15 molok deadline. Dokumentus sira seluk indika katak planu governu atu implementa autoridade regulatoriu foun iha loron 1 de Abril, ka iha dekretu lei promulga husi Presidenti Xanana Gusmao, ne’ebe nia mandatu sei hotu la to’o fulan rua nia laran. Ami fiar katak balun involve iha prosesu ne’e haree nudar formalidade deit hanesan konselleiru governu ida hakerek, la’os tenki “desnesesariu impoen ka indesijavel tarde” atu hodi proposta lejislasaun iha kbiit lais liu tuir buat ne’ebe ita hakarak.

La’o Hamutuk nudar organizasaun lokal ho esperiensia, rekursus, matenek ne’ebe limite maski nune’e ami haluan ami nia hatene hodi konsulta ho peritus sira hosi nasaun sira seluk iha mundu tomak. Ami senti katak loron 15 ne’e insufisiente, no Governu sei la simu hanoin diak husi sosiedade sivil no sira seluk. Ami fahe ba malu ami nia preokupasaun ne’ebe hato’o husi Konsellu Konsultivu Fundu Petroliferu no the Core Group katak konsultasaun ne’ebe signifikativu ba asuntu komplesu presiza tempu barak no hein katak Ministerio sei deside no loke fila fali ka habelar prosesu atu simu partisipasaun ne’ebe kompleitu liu hosi sosiedade sivil.

Mekanismu ba komunikasaun ho publiku atu masimiza partisipasaun iha prosesu ne’e, inklui organization hanesan La’o Hamutuk ne’ebe involve kleur ona ho ofisiais iha dezenvolvimentu petroliferu iha Timor-Leste, ne’ebe dook husi sufisiente. Governu publika iha Timor Post dala ida deit, ne’ebe susar atu to’o ba populasaun iha Dili ne’e nia liur, no mayoridade populasaun iha sidade kapital la haree. Atu ezamina dokumentus, ema ne’ebe atu konsulta husu atu uza internet no email. Maski media komunikasaun ne’e la’os obstaklu ba La’o Hamutuk, maibe 99% populasaun Timor-Leste laiha asesu ba internet no email. Ami la aseita katak konsultasaun ne’ebe liu meius hirak ne’e konsidera nudar loke ba publiku ka implementa objetivu konsultasaun ne’ebe hateten “publisidade, lejitmidade no transpatante ba reorganizasaun Ministeriu iha setor petroliferu.

Ministeriu mos hatudu mal vontade atu buka partisipasaun publiku hodi fó esbosu lei iha Portuguese deit. Ita nia konstituisaun hateten katak lingua ofisial Timor-Leste mak Tetum no Portugez; Governu adopta tiha ona Inglesh no Indonesia nudar lian servisu. Partikularmente iha setor petroliferu, dokumentus barak sirkula iha Inglesh atu involve ema ne’ebe iha konhesimentu, espesialmente sira ne’ebe servisu iha kompania mina internasional ho interese finanseiru ba ita nia rekursu. Iha tender ikus, kompania husu atu submete sira materiais tender iha Portuguese no Inglesh. Maski funsaun Governu mak atu serve povu Timor-Leste, ami haree katak atu prioritiza interese kompania hirak ne’e duke nia sidadaun.

Kuran hosi 5 % populasaun Timor-Leste ne’ebe hatene Portugez. Bainhira La’o Hamutuk husu disponibilidade esbosu dekretu lei iha Inglesh, konselleiru Internasional ba Governu hateten katak Governu la tenki hasai osan ba tradusaun ba lian seluk, no nia tauk tamba ema seluk sei husu iha “verzaun Italia, Franses, Norwega, Hindi, Sina, etc.”

Esbosu Lei Fundu Petroliferu no Lei Petroliferu sirkula iha lian Inglesh hanesan mos Tetum, Portugez no dala ruma iha Bahasa Indonesia. Husi duzia submisaun ne’ebe fó sai ba konsultasaun publiku husi dokumentus hirak ne’e, ida iha lian Tetum, rua iha Portugez no Inglesh, no sira seluk iha Inglesh no balun iha Bahasa Indonesia. Maski La’o Hamutuk hato’o nia preokupasaun ba lei hirak ne’e tamba la’os hotu-hotu ho ideias diak ne’ebe mosu durante konsultasaun publiku, ami apresia tempu ne’ebe adekuadu no flesibilidade lingua ne’ebe halo ema barak ne’ebe iha konhesimentu fó sira nia analize no komentariu ba dokumentus esbosu hirak ne’e.

La’o Hamutuk halo submisaun iha Tetum, lingua ofisial Timor-Leste ne’ebe mayoria populasaun ne’e koalia. Atu konseleiru internasional ba governu kumprende, ami fó mos tradusaun iha Inglesh.

Ami apresia esforsu hosi Governu atu muda no regula atividade dezenvolvimentu petroliferu iha Timor-Leste, inklui kriasaun dekretu lei sira. Maibe kontestu sosial no politika oras ne’e halo katak tempu salan atu halo mudansa mayor iha lei hodi tama iha kbiit.

Tratadu Tasi Timor husu Governu atu transforma TSDA ba Autoridade Regulatoris iha tinan tolu husi Abril 2003, maibe ida ne’e hanaruk tiha ona ba tinan ida no ikus mai ba fulan tolu. Ne’e bele fasil liu atu muda ba fulan 9 to Abril 2008, bainhira Parlamentu no Governu foun sei iha tempu atu estabelese rasik. Kriasaun PETROTIL and Konsellu Nasional ba Politika Enerjetika la dun iha presaun tempu-laiha razaun atu fó sai iha tinan ne’e nia laran.

Timor-Leste iha krize nia laran ne’ebe ho aprosimidade 10 % populasaun deslokadu husi sira nia uma no barak loron-loron moris ho tauk ba violensia. Aumenta tan, ita atu iha eleisoens Presidensial no Parlamentariu ho posibilidade muda strutura no politika ita nia Governu. Povu barak interese iha politika publika barak liu okupadu ho kampanha, ne’ebe prevene sira atu fó atensaun ba konsultasaun publiku. Tamba dekretu lei ne’e la submete atu iha aprovasaun Parlamentu atu fó sujestaun, halo sai importante liu katak konsultasaun publiku ne’e kondukta bainhira lideres politiku sira husi partidu hotu-hotu bele partisipa.

Laiha urjensia ba Timor-Leste atu kria strutura administrasaun petroliferu foun lalais hanesan ne’e, espesialmente bainhira ita nia governu iha tranzisaun ida nia laran. Hanesan mudansa iha strutura Governu iha tinan ne’e nia rohan sei fó impaktu ba desizaun politika ohin loron. Tamba ne’e bainhira lei ne’e hato’o lalais no iha kbiit molok eleisaun Parlamentariu, laiha garantia katak governu foun sei simu ne’e, bele mos iha politika diferente.

Durante krize seguransa atual, ema barak labele fó atensaun ba konsultasaun ida ne’e, ne’ebe hamenus partisipasaun publiku. Tamba ne’e, ami husu Governu labele uza instabilidade no inseguridade hodi vigora lei ka politika ne’ebe mak karik bele fó impaktu ba ema barak nia moris iha nasaun tomak nia laran.

Ne’e hatudu katak ita nia Governu no Parlamentu uza krize politika no sosial atu taka dalan hodi nune’e sira bele foti desizaun mayor bainhira atensaun povu distraidu hela. Iha fulan rua liu ba, Parlamentu vigora tiha lei pensaun ba eis membrus parlamentu no eis-titularis, ratifika tratadu CMATS, no karik atu pasa mos lei Klemensia no lei Servisu Militar. Ami espera katak saida mak akontese tiha ona la’os tamba orgaun soberanu sira uza oportunidade hosi situasaun hodi halo desizaun ne’ebe mak sei iha impaktu negativu ba futuru ita nia nasaun. Maibe maske se ida ne’e la’os sira nia intensaun, hodi tama iha vigor lejislasaun bo’ot hirak ne’e antes eleisaun no iha situasaun krize nia laran hodi ignora prinsipius demokrasia no sei la produz rezultadu masimu ba ita nia Povu.

Lei hirak ne’e fó prioridade liu ba osan ba Kompania liu fali nesicidade ita nia Povu.

Hanesan nasaun ne’ebe mak manan tiha ona indepedencia liu hosi luta popular, Governu Timor-Leste iha responsablidade hodi proteje no servi Povu Timor-Leste nia futuru. Lei no regulamentu hotu-hotu ne’ebe mak tama iha vigor hosi Governu tenki refleta ida ne’e.

Infelizmente, hosi proposta dekretu lei tolu ne’e hatudu katak ignora moris ita nia Povu. Lei hirak ne’e responde liu ba nesicidade merkadu, ne’ebe mak domina ho osan no kompania mina internasional. Hanesan, konvite ba konsulta popular hato’o diretamente ba “konsumidores no ajentes ekonomia” iha seitor mina, duke ba ita nia sidadaun. Maske ita nia Governu iha autoridade hodi regula prosesu dezenvolvimentu hotu (inklui politika enerjetika), prosesu ida ne’e tenke bazeia ba interese Povu Timor-Leste, la’os kompania mina ka konsumidores mina, ne’ebe mak mayoria hosi nasaun riku.

Povu Timor-Leste uza enerjia menus liu duke Estadus Unidus America, Japaun, ka nasaun industria riku seluk. Agora produsaun hosi JPDA hotu-hotu esporta ba Japaun no nasaun seluk, maibe ita nia Povu tenke importa mina hosi Indonesia.

Ami espera katak ajentes no politika foun fó vizaun ba dekretu lei hirak ne’e hodi haree tuir produsaun no distribusaun hodi asegura seguridade enerjia iha Timor-Leste, maibe sira mos tenke proteze ita nia meiu ambiente, kuidadu ita nia komunidade no salva dereitu Povu nian ba rai. Nomos fornese rendimentu ba ema ne’ebe hatama no Governu, enerjia tenke disponivel iha Timor-Leste laran tomak ho prosesu ne’ebe baratu la estraga ita nia meiu ambiente. Strutura konsulta publiku no ajentes ne’ebe mak proposta hatudu katak bele ignora mayoria ita nia populasaun. Ezemplu, iha artigu 27 kona ba Autoridade Nasional Regulador Petroliferu (ARNP) esbosu dekretu lei husu audensia publiku ba asaun sira ne’ebe mak bele afeita dereitu autor ekonomia ka konsumidores, maibe laiha buat ida iha lei hirak ne’e ne’ebe mak bele fornese audensia publiku relasaun ho atividades ne’ebe afeita diretu ita nia sidadaun.

Maske mandatu ajentes foun ne’ebe mak estabelese liu hosi esbosu dekretu lei hirak ne’e, inklui klausa kona ba protesaun meiu ambiente, maibe lei ne’e laiha artigu ruma mak esplika kona ba oinsa halo ida ne’e. Liu hosi ne’e, Konsellu Nasional Politika Enerjetika la inklui representante hosi Ministeru Meiu Ambiente ka ema ruma ne’ebe mak iha kunhesementu ba buat seluk duke “problema enerjia” ka negosiu. Ida ne’e refleta prioridade Governu hodi tau ekonomia petroliferu as liu iha preokupasaun hotu nia leten.

Ita nia nasaun nia enerjia tenke inklui rekursu ne’ebe mak bele hafoun no enerjia alternativu, la’os mina deit ne’ebe bele sunu no kria foer no polusaun. Ezeptu ba mina hosi ai horis sira ‘biofuels’ , sira ne’e labele hafoun no halo at liu mudansa iklima global. Mundu tomak depende ba rekursu enerjia aumenta ba beibeik. Timor-Leste iha riku soin barak – loron, anin, laloran, udan, tasi ne’ebe klean. Se ita nia politika enerjia dezenhu hosi ema sira ne’ebe mak foka liu ba oinsa maximiza rendimentu petroliferu no sunu mina, ne’e klaru katak, ba oin—sei ignora kona ba oinsa buka alternativa, no Timor-Leste labele ses hosi hetan risku hetan enerjia susar ne’ebe lori nasaun barak monu.

Strutura ne’ebe mak proposta relasiona ona desizaun petroliferu nian sentraliza hotu iha governu, partikularmente, iha Ministru Rekursu Naturais, Mineral no Politika Enerjetika. La’o Hamutuk hamosu preokupasaun ida ne’e iha ami nia submisaun ba Lei Petroliferu, ida ne’e, infelizmente, katak Ministeriu hakarak kontinua kona ba sentralizasaun. Ami hakarak iha esperansa katak mudansa demokratiku hosi ita nia lider Governu iha fulan Jullu liu ba hakarak re-informa ami nia mensazem katak interese ema nia tenke proteze ho lei ruma, duke depende ba intensaun individu ida-idak nian, ne’ebe provisoriamente kaer fiar publiku nian.

Poder sentralizasaun hanesan ne’e bele rezulta korupsaun, abusu poder, no maladministrasaun. Timor-Leste konfronta tiha ona ho problema barak tamba cek ho balansu ne’ebe oituan deit iha ita nia instituisaun. Wainhira instituisaun ne’ebe iha funsaun hanesan kontrola intituisaun publiku seluk fraku, ida ne’e sei fó posibilidades barak ba korupsaun. Konsellu Nasional Politika Enerjetika mak responsavel ba hari politika enerjetika ba ita nia nasaun, tuir konseptu hosi proposta Ministeru, ne’ebe mak preside liu fali hosi ne’e. Maibe, ami mos la klaru kona ba ema autoridade regulador iha Konsellu ida ne’e. Diagrama no esplikasaun hosi dokumentus ne’ebe fornese ba konsultasaun ida ne’e dehan katak Konsellu sei “supervisiona” ba ARNP ho poder hanesan ba sira ne’ebe mak involve iha Komisaun Konjunta tuir TSDA, maibe regulador ida ne’e no responsabilidade ne’ebe sala hatudu la inklui iha esbosu dekretu lei, ne’ebe ami le hanesan fali esplika kona ba Konsellu hanesan konsultativu ka advisor deit, ho poder proposta politika no deresaun maibe la’os obriga sira. Strutura ida ne’e sei fó poder kiik deit ba Konsellu, tamba ne’e ami espera katak Konsellu sei bele muda politika enerjetika ne’ebe mak Ministeru halo.

Proposta lei sira konbina regulasaun, produsaun no distribusaun iha Ministeru ida nia okos, ne’ebe mos responsabliza ba regula atividades ne’ebe mak sei fornese rendimentu ba Governu liu hosi 90%. Katak susar hases hosi atu hetan rendimentu hosi petroliferu mak prioridade as liu. Hanesan ema Timor nia mota durante tempo udan, saida deit mak ida mota laran sei fase hotu wainhira udan bo’ot mai. Maibe hanesan ita nia ema presija ponte, uma, infrastrutura, estrada no portu, ita presija strutura ne’ebe mak indepedenti ne’ebe mak sei simu atensaun barak hanesan projeitu esploitasaun petroliferu. Ida ne’e so bele atinji liu hosi funsaun oi-oin – produsaun, distribusaun, regulamentu no supervisaun – sira indepedenti. Iha dalan hanesan ne’e sira bele cek malu no tendensia ba korupsaun bele prevene antes sira sai hanesan iha fatin hotu-hotu.

Ami mos preokupa kona ba PETROTIL – proposta atu iha kompania mina nasional, ne’ebe iha Ministeru hanesan nia okos ne’ebe responsabliza ba regulamentu atividades petroliferu. Oportunidade ne’ebe valor tebes ba participasaun indepedenti iha joint ventures ka kooperativa hamutuk ho kompania mina internasional sei lakon se PETROTIL la indepedenti hosi Ministeru. Kompania ne’ebe mak publikamente indepedente, ho supervisaun ne’ebe mak fornese hosi parte seluk hosi Governu, bele ajuda proteje kontra kollusaun entre kompania no Ministeru at iha tempo hanesan mos kuidadu segredu saida deit mak nesicita. Esbosu lei hirak ne’e la klaru kona ba regulamentus ne’ebe mak sei implementa regulamentu industria petroliferu, dezenvolvimentu politika enerjetika, ka manajementu rekursu enerjia. Oinsa regulamentu sira ne’ebe sei dezenvolve? Se mak sei hakerek? No nia nivel transparencia oinsa, sujestaun publiku, no saida deit mak sei falta?

Maske Governu Timor-Leste, fó komitmentu tiha ona atu tuir principius Extraxtive Industry Transparency Initiative, maibe esbosu lei hirak ne’e hatudu halakon komitmentu ne’e. Menus ba generalidade ne’ebe ladun kalru kona ba ‘transparencia no koorporasaun diak ‘ ne’ebe iha relasaun ho PETROTIL, konseptu ida ne’e totalmente la inklui iha proposta dekretu lei sira ne’e.

Iha fulan ne’e, Autoridade Dizignada Tasi Timor komesa tiha ona implementa kona ba spiritu “Publika Saida Mak O Selu”, ne’ebe mak hanesan titlu ba pagina ida iha website. Ami espera katak ida ne’e abansa ba transparencia no sei kontinua iha ARNP, maibe ne’e buat ida ne’ebe mak laiha iha proposta lei ne’ebe hanesan substancia ba mi nia esperanca.

Oras ne’e dadaun, Australia nia lei no buat seluk kompania husu atu publika informasaun kona ba rendimentu no produsaun; informasaun sira hosi Santos no Woodside ne’ebe haruka ba Australia kada trimestri hanesan buat ne’ebe mak importante hodi publiku bele examina informasaun sira ne’ebe mak publika hosi Governu no BPA kona ba receitas hosi petroliferu. Infelizmente, PETROTIL sei la tama iha rekeramentu hosi publikasaun balun iha proposta lei ne’e nia okos, tamba ne’e,estraga eis Governu nia kometmentu ba transparency.

Iha principius internasional ne’ebe mak establese diak tiha ona katak tenke hases an hosi koflitu de interese iha situasaun hanesan regulamentu industria petroliferu, principiu ida ne’ebe mak konsidera iha artigu 7.4 no 7.6 esbosu dekretu lei ARNP, ne’ebe mak prohibita membru Konsellu Administrativu hosi interese finansial iha aktividades ne’ebe mak sira responsabliza ba hodi regula sira wainhira sira hanesan Konsellu no ba tinan ida depois sira sai hosi sira nia pozisaun. (se regulamentu hanesan ne’e aplika tiha ona ba konselleiru internasional iha setor petroliferu iha RDTL, mais u menus eis konselleiru nain rua bele halo violasaun ohin loron.)

Ami deskontenti katak lei sira ne’e la la’o luan, hodi proteze kontra konflitu de interese iha orgaun hotu-hotu no responsablidade ne’ebe mak sira defini. Nomos, sira tenke husu ema hotu ho posizaun iha regulsaun petroliferu tenke publikamente deklara sira nia riku soin, rendimentu no konflitu de interese ruma ne mak potensial bele mosu antes sira komesa servisu, hanesan dalan fundamental hodi salvaguarda kontra korupsaun.

Maibe, provisaun sira hanesan ne’e iha Lei Fundu Petroliferu ba Konselho Konsultativu Fundu Petroliferu hetan problema barak tiha ona hodi implementa; tamba Timor-Leste seidauk iha lei hotu-hotu kona ba deklarasaun riku soin ba sira ne’ebe kaer ukun no fiar publiku nian, iha defikuldade ba membru KKFP mesak bele halo tuir hahusuk legal hosi Lei Fundu Petroliferu artigu 27.6. dala ida tan ne’e hatudu katak problema tamba ita ansi hodi tama vigora lei hirak ne’e antes Timor-Leste bele establese sira nia fundasaun ne’ebe forte no governasaun mak diak ho akontablidade iha Governu laran tomak. Uma ne’ebe mak harii la ho fundasaun mak forte sei monu baihira udan tau makaas iha primeiru deit.

Proposta lei ba ARNP viola espritu (karik mos surat) hodi Lei Fundu Petroliferu artigu 6.1 (a) ne’ebe mak lei ne’e espesifikamente dehan katak “benefisiu rendimentu, inklui redimentu tasa, Timor-Leste nian hosi Operasaun Petroliferu, inklui esplorasaun, no dezenvolvimentu, esploitasaun, transportasaun. Fa’an ka esporta petroliferu, no aktividade seluk ne’ebe iha relasaun ho ne’e” sei depositu direitamente iha konta Fundu Petroliferu, ne’ebe maneja hosi Banku Sentral. Maske, iha esepsaun ne’ebe mak halo iha artigu 6.1 (b) ba TSDA hanesan ajentes bi-nasional ne’ebe hari tuir Tratadu Tasi Timor, laiha razaun ba esepsaun hodi kontinua depois TSD transforma tiha ba ARNP, hanesan agensia Governu RDTL

Iha submisaun esbosu lei petroliferu tinan rua liu ba, La’o Hamutuk ho seluk proposta katak Timor-Leste estabelese kompania mina nasional, konseitu ida ke husik hela tiha hosi autor ne’ebe mak hakerek lei ne’e. ami kontenti tamba Lei Petroliferu hatama mos sujestaun sira ne’e ne’ebe mak hamosu durante konsultasaun publiku.

Maske hanesan ne’e ami kontinua apoiu konseitu kompania mina nasional katak la’os laiha risku. Hanesan esperiensia hosi Ecuador ho Nigeria demonstra, bele uza mos hanesan proteze kompania estranzeiru nia responsablidade ba sira nia hahalok ladiak, ka fó posiblidade ba sira no aktividade anti demokrasia ne’ebe mak se la hakarak koopera regulamentu internasional liu hosi estabelese – Governu diak demoratiku iha nasaun sira riku. Ami preokupa kona ba proposta dekretu lei ba PETROTIL ne’ebe mak laiha buat ruma hodi proteze kontra abusus hirak ne’e.

Haree ba Timor-Leste nia esperiensia iha seitor petroliferu, no ita nia lei ne’ebe mak ladun forte hodi regula negosiu ka proteje interese publiku, ida ne’e kritiku liu katak lei sira ne’ebe mak estabelese no governa ita nia kompania mina nasional hala’o tuir prinsipius transparensia, akontablidade, guvernasaun diak, opiniaun independente, kontrola demokratiku, no respeita meiu ambiente nomos dereitu komunidade. Infelizmente, maneira konsultasaun publiku ida ne’e, la permite ami bele halo analize ne’ebe mak klean ba esbosu statutu PETROTIL, ka fó proposta espesifiku ho hadia ka halo amandemen. Se konsultasaun ne’e bele prolonga, ami sei buka dalan hodi aprende didiak no klean liu hosi esperiensia nasaun seluk ho kompania mina nasional, ne’ebe ho diak no ladiak, no bele ajuda Timor-Leste halo liu ida ne’ebe diak liu no prevene ida ne’ebe aat liu.

English version

La'o Hamutuk made a second submission, expanding on these ideas and adding details, in July 2007.