DILI, 24 january 2023 (TATOLI) – Prime Minister Taur Matan Ruak urged the youth to avoid conflict and embrace peace to ensure stability in the country and contribute to national development.
“Recently, we have been witnessing youth conflicts everywhere. We don’t want any more conflicts among young people in the country. As we know that conflict would never bring benefits to the people instead of suffering and loss,” Ruak made comments following a clash between martial and ritual arts groups in the Mascarinhas neighborhood, in Dília.
He said that the National Security Institutions are currently working to find those criminals who were involved in the conflicts to be held responsible for their violent acts.
“We will find the criminals to be held accountable. We will not let anyone avoid criminal responsibility because we want stability like any other country in the world,” Ruak stressed.
He said that Timor-Leste will be holding parliamentary elections in the coming months, saying there is no place for social and political insecurity in the country.
In 2008, Law No. 10/2008 was passed to regulate martial arts activities, which included the creation of the Council for Regulation of Martial Arts (CRAM). Later, in 2011-2013, a number of Laws and Resolutions were approved and passed that aimed to ban and cause the “extinction” of several MRAGs, including Government Resolutions No. 35/2011 and No. 16/2013.
In August 2022, there were violent clashes between two Martial Arts and Ritual Groups (MRAGs) in Dili, which resulted in multiple deaths, including the death of a member of MRAGs in police custody.
Earlier this month, a young Timorese man was stabbed to death in the Delta neighborhood, in Dili, while the suspect has not yet been identified.
A day later, on january 7, a young Timorese man was fatally stabbed on the BJ Habibie bridge in the Bidau-Santana neighborhood, in Dili, fortunately, he was rushed to the Guido Valadares National Hospital and saved by health professionals. The suspect identified with the initials OXC was arrested several days later following the stabbing.
Speaking to reporters at the Palace of the President, the former General Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, Major-General Lere Anan Timur said that it is necessary to understand the root causes of the conflict between the members of MRAGs.
“Today, I briefed President Horta on the confrontation between the MRAGs in the Mascarinhas neighborhood, in Dili. As the Head of State, I asked him to find solutions to end the conflicts among the youth, especially among the members of the MRAGs. We have four State Organs (Parliament, President, Government, and Judiciary) that are capable of doing anything to end this conflict,” Timur said.
Journalist: Filomeno Martins
Editor: Nelia Borges
