Official Opening of a new East Timor Office of the Prosecutor General

JSMP DILI 9 February 2009 - On this day 5 March 2009 a new Office of the Prosecutor General was official opened. This new building will accommodate public prosecutors who have been carrying out their duties and responsibilities in a temporary office. The chairman of the organising committee for the official opening of the new building, who is also the Deputy Prosecutor General, made a speech at the opening ceremony and stated that the construction of this building shows that the state and the government are making significant strides in developing the capacity of the judicial sector as a pillar to uphold the Constitution and the law.

The Office of the Prosecutor General acknowledges the extraordinary difficulties that are presented by the lack of forensic laboratory equipment, which has left many cases pending. The case involving the attempted murder of the President of the Republic has not been processed yet because relevant evidence has had to be tested overseas. We recommend for the state and the government to immediately pay attention to this important issue and we also recommend that a building be constructed to facilitate the work of the Dili District Prosecution Unit, as well as accommodation for prosecutors who are assigned to all of the District Courts.

In addition to the official opening of the new office of the Prosecutor General, four national judges were also inaugurated who to date have been carrying out their duties at the Dili District Court. Also four motorcycles were handed over to court clerks assigned to all district courts.

JSMP welcomes these developments as significant strides forward to facilitate and improve the judicial system in Timor-Leste as a whole. JSMP also recommends for the state or the government to immediately construct a forensic laboratory to respond to cases that require DNA testing.

For further information please contact: Luis de Oliveira Sampaio Executive Director of JSMP E-Mail: luis@jsmp.minihub.org Landline: 3323883

Image added by ETLJB: A sunset in East Timor.