Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/1999-12-15-Speech-3-373"
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"en.19991215.16.3-373"2
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"Mr Gusmão, on behalf of the European Parliament and myself, I must say that it is an honour and a very great pleasure for us to welcome you to this House.
I am particularly pleased to be able to highlight the favourable influence which the Sakharov Prize has had on the fate of its candidates. Among these I can think of Mr Ksila of Tunisia and Mr Birdal of Turkey who were released a few days after having been nominated, as well as Mr Mandela in South Africa and Mr Dub�ek in the Czech Republic. With regard to Mrs Suu Kyi and Mrs Zana, I have again spoken to the authorities in their countries to protest about the draconian conditions imposed on their freedom. All these illustrious people have taken up the torch carried by Andrey Sakharov in making the defence of human rights and fundamental freedoms their life’s goal.
So, Mr Gusmão, on behalf of the whole European Parliament, I am delighted to give you this extremely symbolic prize.
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We were overjoyed to hear of your release just three months ago on 7 September. You showed admirable and unyielding courage throughout your detention which began on 20 November 1992. You managed to retain your inner freedom despite the ill treatment which you endured, particularly in psychological terms, and which was intended to prevent you from making your defence.
During your trial, you had the skill and found the strength to denounce before the world’s press the genocidal nature of the occupation of East Timor. Despite the extremely difficult conditions of your imprisonment, you found the courage to take advantage of these circumstances to develop strategies for resistance, to study languages and law and also to write wonderful poems and paint pictures which you very kindly gave to me just now.
I trust you will permit me to give a brief resumé of your life for the benefit of the House. Originally from East Timor, the eldest child of teachers, you studied mainly at the Catholic mission of
You started work at a very early age as a schoolteacher. Before the age of 30, you joined the team of the
newspaper. At the same time, you became actively involved in the central committee of the Fretilin resistance movement or the Revolutionary Front for the Independence of East Timor. During the invasion of your country by Indonesia, you went into hiding. After three years, you became the head of the guerrilla unit Falintin which was the armed wing of the resistance movement. According to the press, the repressive occupation claimed 200 000 victims, a third of the population.
You worked tirelessly to find a peaceful solution. You proposed a peace plan to the Indonesian Government and talks under the auspices of the United Nations Organisation. You wanted to take the fight for a free East Timor beyond party politics and so you brought together the various forces within the National Council of Timorese Resistance.
You can be sure that this House is proud of having helped, by participating in the pressure exerted by the international community, to prompt the Indonesian President, Mr Habibi, to release you on 7 September. This came just after the referendum of 30 August in which 70.5% of the population of East Timor voted in favour of independence.
The European Parliament, in its work chaired by Vice-President Pacheco Pereira, has been delighted with the courage shown by the Timorese people to the whole world.
Like Mr Mandela in South Africa, you are the spokesperson for peace, justice and freedom in your country. Your compatriots and people around the world know that it was with solid conviction that you declared on leaving prison that as a free man, you would undertake to do everything in your power to bring peace to East Timor and to your people. You said to me just now that everything must now be built or rebuilt, in terms of logistics and training, in the health, justice and public service sectors. The temporary administration which the UN is going to establish will form a basis for this.
You have declared that you want a pluralist democracy with open institutions, a diversified economy and a role for the press and non-governmental organisations. We hope that the experience of 25 years of suffering will enable your people to realise this dream."@en1
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"A vos de Timor"1
"Nossa Senhora di Fatima."1
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