A/HRC/20/25/Add.1
processes in Dili severely impedes the delivery of basic services at the district, suco
(village) and aldeia (sub-village) levels. The overwhelming majority of people living in
rural areas suffer from underemployment and employment insecurity. Although the great
majority of the rural population depends on subsistence agriculture, investment in the
agriculture sector has been inadequate. Fiscal policies have failed to achieve a diversified
economy, and growth in Timor-Leste depends heavily on the country’s finite petroleum
reserves. This raises serious concerns about the sustainability of the country’s economic
framework, which has been strongly criticized by some Timorese actors, including civil
society organizations.10
10.
Despite these challenges, the country has achieved some impressive gains over the
past 10 years, making considerable progress in terms of stability and security, and
experiencing rapid economic growth. The Government of Timor-Leste is progressively
increasing its capacity to provide its population with basic social services, such as primary
health care and education. In the Strategic Development Plan 2011–2030, the Government
reiterated its commitment to alleviating extreme poverty, building human capacity and
making basic social services accessible to all Timorese. The country has successfully
established the Petroleum Fund, and an accompanying legal framework for oil production,
taxation and revenue management.
11.
The challenge of constructing the country has, in many ways, been tackled with
significant success by the State, which has demonstrated a strong commitment to
democracy and determination to improve the lives and livelihoods of all Timorese. The
Special Rapporteur acknowledges the well-intentioned steps taken by the Government to
confront this daunting task. The obstacles that Timor-Leste has faced in striving for
accelerated development while at the same time addressing social divisions in a postconflict context have been considerable, though not insurmountable. The Special
Rapporteur wishes to congratulate Timor-Leste on its advances thus far, and calls on the
Government to redouble its efforts to reduce poverty, achieve inclusive growth and
development, and build sustainable industries and a strong economy that will benefit the
poorest and most vulnerable in Timorese society.
III. Legal and institutional framework
12.
Timor-Leste has shown commitment to the protection and promotion of human
rights, as evidenced by steps taken to ratify most of the core international human rights
instruments, to improve their domestic implementation, and to engage with various United
Nations human rights mechanisms. 11 The Special Rapporteur notes the Government’s
positive attitude towards ratification of additional human rights instruments, as recently
expressed in the course of its examination under the universal periodic review
(A/HRC/19/17, para. 77).
13.
The Constitution of Timor-Leste (2002) guarantees a range of rights, including the
rights to life (sect. 29), personal freedom, security and integrity (sect. 30), freedom of
speech and information (sect. 40), freedom of conscience, religion and worship (sect. 45),
the equality of all citizens before the law (sect. 16, para. 1), and non-discrimination (sect.
16, para. 2). It protects and promotes economic, social and cultural rights and duties
10
11
6
See Timor-Leste Institute for Development Monitoring and Analysis (La’o Hamutuk),
www.laohamutuk.org.
See the report of the Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review on Timor-Leste
(A/HRC/19/17), and the report of the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances on
its mission to Timor-Leste (A/HRC/19/58/Add.1).