5-31-06, 10:41 am

Portuguese Communist Party Statement about the request of the East Timor Government for the deployment of the Portuguese Republican National Guard

The Portuguese Communist Party (PCP) expresses its agreement regarding the deployment of Portuguese Republican National Guard (GNR) forces in East Timor, as requested by the democratic institutions of that country, the government, the President of the Republic, and its National Parliament.

Following the position of principle previously established, the PCP's agreement was expressed in light of the guarantees made by the Portuguese Government about the mission of these forces, namely that they would respect the sovereignty and democratic institutions of East Timor and be subordinate to the legitimate, sovereign institutions of East Timor, and not, under any condition, be placed under foreign military command.

The PCP's position results from the particular nature of Portugal’s duties of solidarity and friendship with the Democratic Republic of East Timor, and in its disinterested contribution to the consolidation of its sovereignty and democratic institutions.

Naturally, the PCP's favorable position regarding the deployment of a Republican National Guard force, which is based upon respect for East Timor's institutions and its constitutional framework, is conditional on the evolution of the situation in East Timor within the regional and international framework. A change in the announced objectives of this mission would require the immediate re-evaluation of our position.

The serious situation that has been created in East Timor is undoubtably an expression of the difficulties and contradictions associated with the construction of a new independent state after so many years of colonialism and foreign occupation. It is also an expression of the external interference aimed at placing conditions on the free choices of the East Timor people, and of clear foreign ambitions regarding the oil resources of East Timor, as is the case with Australia, who in the past recognized Indonesia's jurisdiction over East Timor. Thus, it is a matter of concern that the main foreign military forces in East Timor are Australian, and that they were deployed under unclear circumstances.

The PCP is aware of the complexity of the situation, and considers it essential that the Portuguese Government keep Parliament, the political parties, and the Portuguese people informed about new developments in East Timor.

The PCP reiterates to the people of East Timor and their legitimate government its solidarity with their struggle to consolidate their sovereignty and for social progress, and confirms to FRETILIN (the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor), that great force of resistance and liberation, the friendship and solidarity of the Portuguese Communists.

The Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Portuguese Communist Party Lisbon, May 26th 2006