Report on Citizenship Law: East Timor (Timor-Leste)
empowered to exercise all legislative and executive authority, including the administration of
justice.59 Its mandate consisted inter alia of maintaining law and order throughout the
territory and of supporting capacity-building for self-government.60 It was expected to consult
and cooperate closely with the East Timorese people in order to carry out its mandate
effectively with a view to the development of local democratic institutions, including an
independent East Timorese human rights institution, and the transfer to these institutions of its
administrative and public service functions.61
Although UNTAET’s legislative powers were very wide, per Security Council
Resolution 1272 (1999) and UNTAET Regulation 1999/1,62 the Transitional Administrator,
Sérgio Vieira de Mello, ultimately decided against ruling on the criteria for attribution,
acquisition and loss of East Timorese citizenship, possibly due to the constitutional dignity
and symbolism of the subject (Jerónimo 2011b: 29). The first UNTAET Regulations used
East Timorese identity and origin as eligibility requirements, but were silent on who was to be
considered East Timorese or of East Timorese origin. UNTAET Regulation 1999/2,63 which
established the National Consultative Council as a joint consultative forum of representatives
of the East Timorese people and of UNTAET, prescribed that, of the Council’s 15 members,
11 had to be East Timorese. Per Article 2 (2) of UNTAET Regulation 1999/2, the East
Timorese members in the Council had to include seven representatives of the National
Council of East Timorese Resistance (CNRT), three representatives of political groups
outside the CNRT already in existence prior to 30 August 1999, and one representative of the
Roman Catholic Church in East Timor. The Transitional Administrator was to appoint the
East Timorese members of the Council after consultation with the CNRT, the other political
groups and the representative of the Catholic Church in East Timor [Article 2 (5) of UNTAET
Regulation 1999/2].64 UNTAET Regulation 1999/3, of 3 December 1999, on the
establishment of a Transitional Judicial Service Commission,65 prescribed that the
Commission was to be composed of five individuals, of whom three ‘of East Timorese
origin’, and presided by ‘an East Timorese individual of high moral standing’ [Article 2 (1)
59
Resolution 1272 (1999), of 25 October 1999, cited, par. 1.
Resolution 1272 (1999), of 25 October 1999, cited, par. 2 (a) (e).
61
Resolution 1272 (1999), of 25 October 1999, cited, par. 8.
62
UNTAET Regulation 1999/1, of 27 November 1999, on the authority of the Transitional Administration in
East Timor, is available at http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/missions/past/etimor/untaetR/etreg1.htm
[11.01.2017].
63
UNTAET Regulation 1999/2, of 2 December 1999, on the establishment of a National Consultative Council, is
available at http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/missions/past/etimor/untaetR/etreg2.htm [11.01.2017].
64
The National Consultative Council was later replaced by the National Council, with UNTAET Regulation
2000/24. The National Council was endowed with power to initiate legislation and was composed only of
Timorese members, in a total number of 33. Besides the groups already represented in the National Consultative
Council (CNRT, other political parties and the Roman Catholic Church), who kept their number of
representatives, the National Council also included other representatives of relevant organisations of the East
Timorese civil society, namely one from the Protestant church denominations, one from the Muslim community,
one from the women’s organisations, one from the students/youth organisations, one from the Timorese NGO
forum, one from the professional associations, one from the farming community, one from the business
community, one from the labour organisations and one from each of the 13 Districts of East Timor [Article 3 (1)
and (2)]. UNTAET Regulation 2000/24, of 14 July 2000, on the establishment of a National Council, is available
at http://mj.gov.tl/jornal/lawsTL/UNTAET-Law/Regulations%20English/Reg2000-24.pdf [11.01.2017]. The
composition of the National Council was further enlarged to 36, by UNTAET Regulation 2000/33, which added
to the list in Article 3 (2) of Regulation 2000/24 three additional representatives selected at the discretion of the
Transitional Administrator from the CNRT or from political parties outside the CNRT, or both. UNTAET
Regulation 2000/33, of 26 October 2000, to amend Regulation 2000/24 on the establishment of a National
Council, is available at http://mj.gov.tl/jornal/lawsTL/UNTAET-Law/Regulations%20English/Reg2000-33.pdf
[11.01.2017].
65
Available at http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/missions/past/etimor/untaetR/etreg3.htm [11.01.2017].
60
RSCAS/GLOBALCIT-CR 2017/7 - © 2017 Author
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