We liberated the country... ...now we liberate the people of East Timor

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CNRT Defends Women’s Rights

Dili – 21st June 2007

Throughout 24 years of occupation, the brave women of East Timor lived in fear of the Indonesian troops, and yet, since independence, these same brave women face equally traumatic hardships: domestic violence, intra-country violence, homelessness, malnutrition, lack of sanitation, lack of pre-natal medical attention, early death due to treatable diseases and child birth, lack of education and the loss of children due to preventable pre and post-natal issues.

CNRT commends the national and international communities who have made progress in easing the suffering and establishing awareness and education surrounding women’s issues post independence, but in order to combat these unacceptable conditions, the country must have a leadership whose policy reflects a modern and forward thinking democracy. It is essential to protect the rights and role of women in the motherland by providing a holistic approach to their gender specific social, economical and educational issues.

NGOs and civil society groups have been working on draft laws since 2002, with broad discussion with parliament and in consultation with neighbouring countries such as the Philippines and Malaysia. However, upon presentation to Government it was claimed that the law was too broad and failed to meet the legal requirements enshrined in the constitution. It remains pending to this time, and is yet to be formally presented to parliament.

CNRT sees the issue of domestic violence as a matter of urgency that needs to be addressed as soon as possible. Domestic violence is a serious issue within the country, and to date, one largely ignored by the Fretilin regime.

Domestic Violence must be combated on five distinct levels.

Firstly, CNRT will adopt a no-tolerance legislative policy, which will be enacted for the protection of women and children, with violent offenders subject to the rule of law and harsh penal codes.

Secondly, the police force must be re-educated to the “equal criminality” of the offence, that indeed domestic violence is an equal crime to violent assaults outside the home, and rapid response is equally vital and mandatory.

Thirdly, there must be education of the issues, so women understand their constitutional rights under the law, to live in peace and safety, free from violence, physical or sexual abuses.

Fourthly, there must be social programming to meet the needs of battered wives and children, to be given opportunities to re-establish a home within the parameters of a ‘safe house’, with psychological assistance in rebuilding their fragile lives.

Lastly, there must be adequate rehabilitation for violent offenders to reprogram their behaviour, to become law-abiding citizens after serving their term, to stop the domestic violence from transitioning to the next generation of young men in our country.

This is in keeping with CNRT’s aim to establish a civil society hand-in-hand with the Church and other civil institutions.

CNRT will preserve our daughters youth by enacting a betrothal and fornication law with the age of consent set at sixteen. Our daughters must have the ability to be educated, to mature emotionally, physically and socially while evolving into active and consenting members of the community before advancing to the next stage in life.

CNRT acknowledges the sad truth that in East Timor, childbirth can often end in fatality for both mother and child. The infant and maternal mortality rate remains one of the highest in the world. To address this, women must have access to pre-natal care, training, education, birthing facilities and medical intervention for high-risk mothers in pre-natal crisis. With closely monitored post-natal care to ensure both mother and child healthily advance. We must apply funding to ensure our future generations begin life in a sanitary and safe environment and that their physical and social needs are met with professional care and guidance.

We must foster opportunities for our daughters and their children’s children by delivering an equal opportunity workplace, where women are free to pursue careers with no bias or discrimination, that they may achieve equally and fairly to the men in our country and be given, at every instance, fair and equitable work conditions with open ended opportunities.
 
Our government will establish strong regulatory guidelines for small business and encourage women to engage in the competitive marketplace, giving equal assistance on the local and district level to encourage independence and to encourage employment for woman.

Dionisio Babo Soares states, “ We are so blessed in East Timor to have the strong moral compass and guidance of the Church, but is time the leadership of this country equally delivers to our sister, mothers, wives and daughters. These are our national treasures, these are the citizens who braved the fight for independence with equal conviction and contribution, and they deserve to be honoured with opportunity and legislation that protects their rights and those of future generations. There has been so little dialogue over the past five years of gender specific issues from the previous Government, it is time we change that mentality, we must change, engage and deliver!”

ENDS.
 
For Further Information
CNRT Media Contact
T: +670 735 8696
E: cnrt.media@gmail.com
W: www.cnrt-timor.org

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