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Railos offers to disarm, 20 June 2006
During questioning, the Prime Minister reported that Railos had
telephoned him this morning, to say he wanted to hand in his guns
to President Xanana Gusmão. "I told him to give his
weapons to the police or the Australian army, and asked him not
to be used by people who want to destroy FRETILIN," said
Mr. Alkatiri. "I took his call because he is a FRETILIN member
and because a lack of communication is behind many of our problems".
The Prime Minister said he spoke to Railos two or three times
during the 3-day FRETILIN Congress, and certainly never told him
to form an armed group. "I myself have called for independent,
international investigations of all these incidents and allegations,"
he said. "Police have interrogated FRETILIN Congress delegates
from Maliana about the alleged arms they received, and nothing
was found".
The Prime Minister put the Railos allegations into the context
of previous failed efforts to smear his name with the aim of forcing
the resignation of his government. He noted the alleged bribe
from the oil company ConnocoPhilips, which could not be substantiated
in court, or the misleading statements in 2005 that he was against
religion., and this year, the allegations that he was the cause
of the trouble with the petitioning soldiers. "They were
calling for my resignation before the F-FDTL was deployed after
the violence on April 28. They don't want to highlight the attack
by Major Reinado on the army and the home of Brigadier General
Taur Matan Ruak on May 23, or his attack on the F-FDTL HQ the
next day. They only focus on what can damage the Prime Minister,"
concluded Mr. Alkatiri.
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