On 22 July 2017, Timor-Leste's voters went to the polls to elect a new Parliament. Follow these links for information about the election process, the people and parties who were elected, and the Committee structure of the new Parliament. Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri named the members the new Government in three stages, finishing on 12 October. Click here for a list of its 37 members, who include the P.M., two Deputy Prime Ministers, four Ministers of State, 12 Ministers, 13 Vice-Ministers and five Secretaries of State. They comprise six women and 31 men. The government is officially a minority coalition between Fretilin and the Democratic Party (PD), who together hold 30 of the 65 Parliamentary seats. However, it includes people with a variety of political tendencies, including Fretilin (17), PD (7), PLP (3), UDT (1), CNRT (1) and eight with no identified party ties. The new Council of Ministers discussed the Government's proposed 2017-2022 Program (also original Portuguese) during several meetings before approving it on 6 October. On 10 October they sent it to National Parliament, where it is being debated during the week of 16 October. During the first day of the debate, CNRT (Tetum) explained how they see their role as opposition, and La'o Hamutuk observed that the debate should focus more on program, rather than political interests. On 12 October, the three 'opposition' parties outside the government coalition -- CNRT, PLP and KHUNTO -- released their own Policy Platform (Tetum) as the Parliamentary Majority Alliance (AMP). According to Articles 109 and 112 of Timor-Leste's Constitution, if Parliament rejects the Government's proposed Program twice, the government will fall and there could be a new election or the President could offer CNRT, the second-most-voted party, the opportunity to try to form a government, similar to what happened in 2007. The process was described in a LUSA article. Recently, many have focused on the politics and personalities involved in this new and confusing process, and on perceived instability of Timor-Leste's young democracy. However, La'o Hamutuk believes that the policies which the new government will carry out for the next five years, and their impacts on people's lives, are more important. In a televised address on 10 October, President of the Republic Lu Olo encouraged politicians to show political maturity and listen to each other. The Government and AMP platforms both propose more attention to human resources (education and health care), economic diversification, fiscal sustainability, efficient administration and rule of law, just as La'o Hamutuk done for years. Unfortunately, neither indicates a willingness to undertake significant measures required to free up the resources needed to achieve these goals, such as curtailing the Tasi Mane project and ZEESM, reducing reliance on international trade and investment, taking fewer foreign loans, or revising the 2011 Strategic Development Plan. Parliament debated the Government's proposed Program for four days, as summarized in their press releases (Tetum and Portuguese). During the debate, most of the objections by opposition MPs were very general, or to the existence and alleged instability of a government whose coalition did not include parties with a majority of Parliamentary votes. Although Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri and other members tried to defend and explain the program, the substantive details seemed not to interest many of the MPs. La'o Hamutuk took notes of the sessions (Tetum). On 19 October, Parliament voted 35-30 along party lines to reject the Government program. The Government is socializing the program with the voters, and hopes to restructure and resubmit it to Parliament, together with a budget revision, by the end of 2018, although this did not happen. If it is rejected a second time, the government will fall. A new coalition government could then be formed, or early elections (which all parties currently say they do not want) could be scheduled in late January 2018 for as soon as two months later. Although local media, politicians, Facebook pundits and police officials expressed concern about possible unrest stemming from heated words within the Parliament, citizens remained calm and there were no significant incidents. On 25 October, the Council of Ministers met to review the amendments to the Government Program and analyze the proposed Rectification Budget. On 31 October, the Council of Ministers discussed undisclosed changes to the Government Program, as well as the government's draft organic law and the rectification budget. The Council approved the budget and the organic law at its 8 November meeting. The Rectification Budget proposal was presented to Parliament on 9 November. On 15 November, Parliament's Budget Committee recommended that it not be enacted under an expedited process, and the Plenary agreed on 20 November, as announced by Government and Parliament. It was formally presented to Committee C on 11 December, with more specifics in Book 1 (overview and tables) and Book 3A (Infrastructure Fund). On the same day, the majority opposition introduced a Censure (no confidence) Motion into Parliament because the government had not resubmitted its program within 30 days after it was rejected the first time on 19 October. If the program is rejected a second time, or if a Censure Motion passes, the government would fall. Also on 20 November, President Lu Olo promulgated Decree-Law 35/2017 (official Portuguese), the organic law describing the structure of the 7th Constitutional Government. Parliamentary President Aniceto Guterres declined to call a plenary session which could pass the no-confidence motion, so on 1 December the opposition introduced a motion to remove him from his position, which he has referred to court. President Aniceto Guterres later scheduled the rectification budget for plenary debate on 14 December, but he postponed it due to security concerns. On 18 December, Parliamentary leaders decided not to take up the rectification budget first, but the President scheduled it for the next day, to be followed by discussion of the motions of no confidence and to dismiss the President. On 19 December, Parliament approved the opposition's appeal of President Guterres' decision to schedule the rectification budget debate, effectively killing the proposal. They vote was 35-5, after most of the Fretilin and PD Members walked out. Parliament recessed until 8 January 2018, and failed to convene a plenary session before the President ordered it dissolved on 26 January. On 7 February, the President set the date for new Parliamentary elections for 12 May. Follow this link for more information on the early election. | Iha loron 22 Jullu 2017, eleitor sira iha Timor-Leste hili Parlamentu Nasional Foun. Tuir ligasaun sira ne’e atu hetan informasaun kona ba prosesu eleisaun, deputadu no partidu sira ne’ebé manán, no Komisaun sira iha Parlamentu foun. Primeiru Ministru Mari Alkatiri hili membru sira iha Governu foun iha fase tolu, remata iha loron 12 Outubru. Liga iha ne’e atu hetan lista membru na’in 37, inklui Ajuntu Primeiru Ministru na’in rua, Ministru Estadu na’in haat, Ministru na’in 12, Vise-Ministru na’in 13, no Sekretáriu Estadu na’in lima. Sira ne’e feto na’in neen no mane na’in 31. Governu agora iha minoria, koligasaun entre Fretilin no Partidu Demokrátiku (PD), ne’ebé hamutuk iha 30 husi kadeira Parlamentár 65. Maske nune’e, Governu foun inklui ema ne’ebé mai husi partidu balun, hanesan Fretilin (17), PD (7), PLP (3), UDT (1), CNRT (1) no ualu laiha ligasaun ho partidu ida. Iha loron sesta feira, 6 Outubru 2017, Konsellu Ministru aprova tiha proposta Programa Governu Konstitusional VII nian (mós Portugés), no iha loron tersa feira 10 Outubru dadeer, ofisialmente Governu entrega nia Programa ba tinan lima oin mai ne’e ba Parlamentu Nasional. Partidu opozisaun sira iha Parlamentu -- CNRT, PLP and KHUNTO --responde liu hosi forma Aliansa Maioria Parlamentár iha 12 Outubru ho sira nia plataforma koligasaun foun atu forma Governu alternativa bainhira Programa Governu Konstitusional VII ne’e la pasa bainhira Parlamentu Nasional halo diskusaun no aprovasaun ba iha loron Segunda Feira 16 Outubru oin mai. Governu mos fahe pamfletu ho parte balun husi programa ida ne'e. Durante loron primeiru diskusaun iha Parlamentu, CNRT esplika oinsá sira hare papél opozisaun nian, no La'o Hamutuk lamenta katak iha plenária ida ne'e, opozisaun la konsege ko’alia kona-ba vantajen no dezvantajen Programa governu nian, maibé ko’alia de'it kona-ba sira nia interese polítiku. Tuir Artigu 109 no 112 iha Konstituisaun RDTL, bainhira Parlamentu rejeita proposta Programa ida ne’e, Governu bele koko dala ida tan. Maibé karik Parlamentu la simu dala rua, governu bele monu no bele iha eleisaun foun (antesipada) ka Prezidente Repúblika bele fó oportunidade ba CNRT, partidu segundu votadu, atu koko harii governu ida. Prosesu hanesan ne’e akontese tiha ona iha 2007, no artigu iha LUSA deskreve prosesu ida ne’e. Programa Governu foun ida ne’e besik atu kontinua ajenda dezenvolvimentu sira tuir Planu Estratéjiku hanesan kontinua hela esforsu sira iha RAEOA ba projetu ZEESM, Projetu Tasi Mane, Parseria Públiku Privadu ba Portu Tibar no projetu sira seluk ne’ebé inísia ona dezde tinan lima kotuk ne’e. Plataforma AMP laiha diferensa boot kona-ba tópiku sira ne’e. Maske nune’e, Governu no AMP konkorda ho La’o Hamutuk atu aumenta prioridade ba rekursu umanu (edukasaun no saúde), diversifikasaun ekonómiku, sustentabilidade fiskál, administrasaun ho efikás, no estadu direitu demokrátiku. Ami espera sira bele halo mudansa no medida sira ne’ebé báziku - hanesan revizaun PEDN, haforsa ekonomia doméstiku ka hamenus empréstimu - atu liberta rekursu ne’ebé Timor-Leste presiza atu atinje moris di’ak liu ba povu hotu. Parlamentu Nasionál halo debate loron haat kona ba proposta Programa Governu nian, hanesan sumariza iha PN nia Komunikadu Imprensa. La'o Hamutuk halo Minuta plenaria programa VII governu iha Parlamentu Nasional Iha loron 19 Outubru, Deputadu/a sira vota 35-30, tuir sira nia partidu, atu rejeita Programa ida ne'e. Governu sei restrutura hela Programa atu aprezenta ba Parlamentu Nasionál, liu husi sujestaun deputadu sira nian, hafoin opozisaun sira hato’o rejeisaun. Iha loron 25 Outubru, Konsellu Ministrus hala’o sorumutuk atu analiza alterasaun sira ba Programa Governu Konstitusionál VII nian no naliza mós analiza Orsamentu Estadu Retifikativu. |