Hon Phil Goff
Minister of Defence
06 June 2006
Media statement
Goff to visit East Timor
Defence Minister Phil Goff and Defence Secretary Graham Fortune will make a brief visit to East Timor tomorrow to meet
with New Zealand Defence Force personnel working on the ground in Dili. He will also meet East Timorese Defence Minister
Jose Ramos Horta and other key leaders to discuss problems which have led to the crisis, and the role that New Zealand,
Australia and other defence forces can play in restoring order.
"East Timor has been a key topic of conversation at strategic defence talks organised by the Institute of Strategic
Studies in Singapore last weekend which I attended. It has also been firmly on the agenda of the Five Power Defence
Arrangement discussions I have had in Singapore and Malaysia with the defence ministers of Australia The United Kingdom,
Singapore, and Malaysia.
"Defence Force personnel have clearly had a key role to play in separating conflicting factions of the police and
military forces in East Timor.
"My visit is intended to give me a first hand impression of the tasks our defence force is undertaking, and what more
needs to be done to restore security and stability in East Timor. Obviously this will involve not only Defence Force
personnel of the countries currently involved but also a wider international role in policing. The United Nations and
contributing countries will need to ensure that there are functioning institutions for policing, justice and corrections
to deal with ongoing problems caused by youth gangs and other opportunistic criminal elements.
"Dealing with other underlying causes including poverty and unemployment will be a longer term but critical task
requiring a major international effort.
"It is also essential for the East Timorese leadership itself to ensure that political differences are handled
constitutionally, and do not contribute to the spread of disorder and violence", Mr Goff said.
ENDS