DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF EAST TIMOR SOLIDARITY WITH NATION AND PEOPLE OF MYANMAR

MESSAGE OF SOLIDARITY TO THE NATION AND PEOPLE OF MYANMAR
ON THE OCCASION OF THE LAUNCH OF THE RDTL-ASEAN NATIONAL
SECRETARIAT AND TO MAKE A SYMBOLIC FINANCIAL CONTRIBUTION
TO MYANMAR, TO AID VICITMS OF HUGE NATURAL DISASTER
ON 2 MAY 2008

FROM THE
PRIME MINISTER OF RDTL
KAY RALA XANANA GUSMÃO

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dili, 29 January 2009


Beloved People of Myanmar,
Peoples of the ASEAN Member Nations,

Excellencies:
• President of Republic
• President of the National Parliament
• Representative of the Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Termsak Chalermpalanupap, Special Assistant to the Secretary-General of ASEAN

Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today in Dili, capital of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, in this solemn ceremony
here in the grand building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we are witnessing an historical
event. The launch of the RDTL-ASEAN Secretariat marks a significant step forward in our
commitment to integrating into ASEAN.
Special pride and great happiness have come to our people and the nation of Timor-Leste, as
our dream to become an integral part of the large regional ASEAN organisation is slowly
beginning to become a reality.

People of Timor-Leste,
Brothers and sisters of the large ASEAN community
People of Myanmar,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

As Prime Minister, I would like to ask you all here today to take a moment to remember the
tragic event that befell the People of Myanmar on 2nd May, 2008, when Cyclone Nargis
devastated the country.

The People of Myanmar suffered a great ordeal with huge loss of life, with the figure from the
official report standing at 146,000 dead and with many more unaccounted for. The estimated
damage stands at more than $10 billion dollars.

The People of Timor-Leste understand well pain and suffering and the struggle to re-build
lives after such devastation. During our time of need, we could always count on the sympathy
and support of other nations. As a sovereign nation, it is our duty as a member of the larger
family of nations, to extend our hand of support and solidarity to other peoples in their time of
need.

Therefore, I have the honour today, on behalf of the Government and People of Timor-Leste,
to present our small contribution through the ASEAN Secretariat, a cheque for $500,000 (five
hundred thousand dollars) to go towards the re-building efforts in Myanmar.

Brothers and sisters,
Beloved people of Myanmar,

Please accept our small contribution to you as a gesture of our respect and solidarity for you.
It is a demonstration of our admiration for your courage and determination in the face of such
tragedy.

In time, despite this large natural disaster, we have faith that the People of Myanmar will
recover and continue to work towards developing their country.

To the leadership of the regional ASEAN Organisation,

We are most grateful that you are able to accept our contribution to present to the People of
Myanmar.

We hope that this contribution, however small, may be seen as an indelible sign of our
commitment to the family of ASEAN nations.

While we recognise that our path to integration with ASEAN is still some time away as there
are many requirements we need to meet, nevertheless, we firmly believe that with your
continued confidence in us, we will achieve our goal of becoming a full member of the
ASEAN Organisation, helping to contribute towards peace, stability and regional and world
prosperity.

Thank you.