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| Tempo Semanal |
The Sydney Morning Herald - Sunday Jul 03, 2011
THE President of East Timor has defended a former Miss Australia after she was accused of taking advantage of the poor country by securing a lucrative tourism contract.
Caroline Pemberton was labelled ''Miss Rich'' by a Timorese journalist over a $300,000 deal for her company to produce videos and for her to act as tourism ambassador. ''Most advocates for helping Timor improve tourism in Timor, do it for free or for small fees, but [Ms Pemberton] has charged the poor country of Timor $300,000,'' stated the blog, Tempo Semanal, which is edited by Jose Belo.
Ms Pemberton said the whole situation was a ''storm in a teacup''.
She said $150,000 was going to her production company to produce eight-10, three-minute videos, while the other $150,000 was for her role as tourism spokeswoman for a year.
''I am a personal friend of the [East Timorese] President, who backed this contract. It will give the country huge exposure as a tourism destination,'' Ms Pemberton told The Sun-Herald yesterday.
The East Timorese President, Dr Jose Ramos-Horta, defended the beauty queen's role in an email to Ms Pemberton seen by The Sun-Herald.
''Caroline Pemberton's relationship with [East Timor], her commitment, the quality of her work and the positive exposure she is gaining for our country is of tremendous benefit to [East Timor] … We are confident the investment we have made in her … will have significant returns.''
Ms Pemberton said her appointment was similar to Lara Bingle's role with Tourism Australia but with added strategic duties.
''When you look at [models] Jennifer Hawkins or Megan Gale being paid millions to be aligned with big brands, this is really not much. The Timorese want Australians to rediscover Timor, they don't want us to think it's just a place for asylum seekers, they want us to see it for what it is, a jaw-droppingly, beautiful country.''
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17 comentários:
Look at the contract carefully folks. It is for US$600,000 potentially over 2 years, automatically renewable. But all expenses covered by the ministry, see below from page of contract under Ministries Responsibility:
"-Cover travel expenses for all overseas activities (this includes flights, accommodation out-of_ pocket (all cash expenses incurred by Caroline related to the project receipts will be provided).
-Cover all travel expenses, as above, in relation to Caroline in her spokesperson role in any location including at expos and travel events internationally
with the knowledge and permission from the Ministry."
But the most amazing clause is the following relating to a dispute vis a vis whether there has been a default by Caroline:
"Should there be a dispute in regard to this, the matter shall be referred to an arbitrator, His Excellency the President Dr. Jose Ramos Horta, whose decision shall be final."
I also see the President's lackeys and those hangers on reaping the windfall from his tenure to obtain high salaries for their mediocre at best level of qualifications and or professional experience have been at work overtime trying to justify this.
Let's leave it to the Anti Corruption Commission and the Courts to deal with whether or not this is traffic in influence for personal benefit of third parties at the prejudice of Timor-Leste's finances.
I have been at the high end of hospitality in Australia for over 25 years.
My understanding of the current state of the hospitality and tourism industry in Timor Leste is that it has very poor standards of customer service, general maintenance and utilities infrastructure that I would propose that spending funds on addressing those issues first would be the order of priority.
It is my experience that if you go out marketing and promoting a substandard facility you will inevitably have to spend and work twice as hard to convince and regain market confidence when you have the finished product.
Governo AMP laiha osan $10,000 hodi ajuda labarik feto nebe moras todan para ba operasi nia fuan iha Australia, maibe osan iha ba halu merdas hanesan nee. HATUN AMP
Sr Presidente hakarak hola feto haruka ministerio turismo mak selu. timor oan hamutuk tenki komesa halao revolusaun, tenki dehan "TO'O ONA" "CHEGA".
Maun Lu Olo, Mau Lere, Maun Falur, Maun Taur oin sa imi bo'ot sira funu ba ida ne? Matebian Timor Oan nebe mate ho sofre fo an ba Ukun Rasik an Timor Leste nian hader mai ita kaer kilat fali!!! Imi mate soe hela iha fatin hanesan maun bo'ot Konis (Tempo semanal) rate hasu mos bele tama i PR Rammos Horta bele hola feto governu nia osan mak selu, MAI ITA FUNU FALI BA HATU LIBERTA POVO HOSI KORUPSAUN MAI ATU ITA HASAI TRAIDOR HIRAK NE!!! Moe laiha...
"Governo AMP laiha osan $10,000 hodi ajuda labarik feto nebe moras todan para ba operasi nia fuan iha Australia, maibe osan iha ba halu merdas hanesan nee. HATUN AMP"
Ba anonimo ida ne: Karik ita bo'ot bele favor tau labarik feto nia naran no mos informasaun seluk tan iha ne para ami hanesan jornatista kontaktu Mis Caroline karik nia hanoin nusa no mos karik nia moe nian bele fo osan uit oan hodi selu fali labarik feto nia kustus atu ba kurtivu/operasi iha Australia.
Osan $300.000 hodi ba selu Ramos Horta nia prostituta sira nee diak liu uza ba hadia kondisaun aat tebes nebe komunidade sira hasoru iha parte servisu atendimentu saude nian. Exemplu maka haktuir iha notisia iha kraik nee:
http://suara-timor-lorosae.com/berita-5735-centru-saude-ossu-menus-recursu-humanu-no-fasilidade.html
Animal sira iha governu gasta povo nia osan arbiru deit enkuantu povo moris loron-loron iha situasaun susar tebes.
Depois kuandu ema kritika mak sira dehan ema hotu beik sira mak hatene liu. Nasaun nee koruptor sira halo sai tiha hanesan lalehan iha sira nia ulun fatuk maibe realidade nebe povo sira hasoru lor-loron at liu fali infernu!
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Kona servisu pessoal saude, hatete Thomas nebe servisu lahatene kalan ka loron xefe dehan servisu CS Ossu lao diak teb-tebes loron domingo mos servisu realidade iha dia 27/3/2011 iha desastre ida nebe akontece iha Ormeta aldeia Liauaioli suko Loihuno komunidade sira telefone ba ambulansia la mai komunidade lori pasiente mai too CS Ossu portaun sei taka hela maibe oras foin hatudu tuku 11 loron no hein laiha asistensia husi pessoal saude nian no pasiente MATE kedas iha CS Ossu. Servisu saude ossu halo komunidade sempre husu ba sira servisu.
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Ba apoiante governu banana nian lee notisia sira hanesan hodi loke imi nia fuan ka konsiensia. Laos hanoin maka gasta osan povo nian ba feto bonita husi rai seluk hodi halo tuir animal hanesan liurai Horta ho liurai Gil Alves nia gostu! Poraaa pah!
Lindsay Murdochk Darwin - September 23, 2010 - The Age
TWO East Timorese teenagers could die soon unless they receive heart treatment that is available in many Australian hospitals.
But officials in Dili have refused to pay for their airfares from a government fund that was established to cover the cost of patients travelling overseas for urgent medical treatment.
Dan Murphy, an American doctor at Dili's Bairo Pite Clinic, says 19-year-old Flavia Lucilda Guterres could die at any moment from a heart condition that cannot be treated in East Timor.
''It appears the fund is reserved exclusively for the elite and ordinary Timorese are not eligible for the privilege,'' Dr Murphy told The Age. ''Our application was rebuffed in no uncertain terms.''
Dr Murphy has been able to keep Flavia alive since she became extremely unwell a week ago.
''We can't keep doing that for much longer,'' he said.
Noel Bayley, a cardiologist from Warrnambool who has helped Timorese patients for years, has offered to pay for Flavia and a relative to travel to Melbourne from Dili as soon as arrangements can be made.
But Dr Murphy's clinic does not have the funds for the airfare of the other extremely ill teenager, Ursula de Carvalho Soares, 17.
Cardiologist Richard Harper and staff at the MonashHEART medical centre in Melbourne have offered to provide life-saving treatment for both the teenagers who are suffering from severe mitral stenosis, the narrowing of a heart artery that can lead to congestive heart failure.
The disease is often caused by childhood rheumatic fever, which is rife in East Timor.
Dr Bayley told The Age that if ''push comes to shove'' he will pay the airfares to bring both teenagers to Australia, as he had done with other Timorese patients. ''It becomes an expensive hobby, so any help would be welcome,'' he said.
Dr Bayley said both Flavia and Ursula's diseases were ''eminently fixable'' through a procedure to insert a balloon into their arteries. ''They then should do extremely well in the long term,'' he said.
Dr Bayley said it was an ongoing battle to help a large number of Timorese who required often life-saving treatment overseas.
Dr Murphy, who many Timorese regard as a saint because of his work among Dili's poor, urged Australia to set up a system that automatically found places to treat Timorese patients.
''I hope Australia makes a commitment to help Timorese patients,'' he said. ''It is really hard trying to find places for Timorese in Australia because each state and territory has a different system.''
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WHEN HEARTS NEED SPECIAL CARE
Bairo Pite Clinic - Thursday, 23 September 2010
Ursula de Carvalho Soares and Flavia Lucilda Guterres are patients at Bairo Pite Clinic, waiting for heart surgery. As children, they had rheumatic fever which led to damage to the mitral valve in her heart, causing mitral stenosis leading to a congestive heart failure.
They need urgent heart surgery – called balloon mitral valvulatomy, which will cure them and enable them to live a normal life.
As so often, the problem is funding their treatment. In this case, the expensive opertions themselves are already sponsored, but getting money for air tickets turns out to be a problem. Dr Dan Murphy says Flavia, who got much worse last week, could die any time if not operated. Bairo Pite Clinic has admitted her and treats her, but as Dr Dan says, “We can't keep doing that for much longer”.
Dr Dan tried to access funds the East Timor government has made available for sending patients abroad for treatment, but was denied support: “It appears the fund is reserved exclusively for the elite, and ordinary East Timorese are not eligible. Our application was rebuffed in no uncertain terms.” Two young lives could easily be saved, utilising funds made available for this specific purpose. But that is not to be. Which is a great shame.
Bairo Pite Clinic have not given up on these two young girls. We will find a way. Let’s hope that will happen before it is too late for one of them.
“It appears the fund is reserved exclusively for the elite, and ordinary East Timorese are not eligible. Our application was rebuffed in no uncertain terms.”
GOVERNO DE BANDIDOS E LADROES!!
HATUN AMP INANIHUIN SIRA NEE!!
Hau lalais liu fo osan $300,000 ba senhora nee atu promove Timor-Leste iha rai liur duke gasta $300,000 resin atu hadia Mari ALkatiri nia uma nebe la fo nem rezultadu ida diak ba povu kiak nia moris.
Senhora ne nia servisu pelo menos bele dada ema barak mai gasta sira nia osan iha ita nia rai.
Osan gasta ba Mari Alkatiri atu moris diak nee gasta SAUGATI DEIT.
Povo kiak no nasaun sei la hetan rezultadu ida hosi osan nee.
Fretilin moe LAIHA.
Camaradas Fretilin-Alkatiri sira kritika inisiativa atu dezenvolve seitor produtivo iha rai laran, maibe ba osan boot tebetebes nebe gasta ba sira nia ulun atu moris hanesan ema riku kompletu ho luxu hotu hotu nee sira nonok hela deit, maski la iha proveitu ida ba povo no ba nasaun.
PPfuiiii. MOE LAIHA!
Imi sira kritika buat nee lolos ba husu imi nia patraun Mari-Lu para labele ejiji governu gasta osan boot saguati ba sira atu moris hanesan ema riku ida ho povo nia osan.
Husu imi nia patraun para hatete ba governu lalika gasta osan halo nia moris diak maibe fo osan nee ba labarik sira nebe presiza tratamentu hodi bele salva sira nia vida.
Osan imi nia patraun ejiji ba gasolina deit bele salva ona labarik nain 5 nia vida.
Senhora Pemberton nee simu osan ba halo servisu hodi dada osan barak tan tama iha rai Timor. Nee mak folin.
Osan gasta ba imi nia patraun gasta saguati DEIT ba nia atu moris luxu enkuantu labarik sira nee osan laiha atu salva vida.
Imi halo nee karik hau sei fiar imi preokupa ho povo.
Selae ba koi lekirauk!
rua2 hotu hanesan deit.
Two (2) wrongs DO NOT make a right, so why even try to compare. Just because Alkatiri did something wrong, this DOES NOT mean that AMP must do it also or is correct to do the same thing also.
DO NOT USE THIS AS AN EXCUSE FOR YOUR CORRUPTION.
I agree with 2 anonymous above.
Spending money to attract money is not wrong. It is the basic principle of money making.
Spend $100 to make $1000 makes perfect business sense.
So if $300,000 is spent in promotion campaign that serves to increase the tourism volume is Timor makes perfect sense. The tourism sector has potential to be a very productive sector second only to the oil industry in Timor.
Other nations spend regularly millions and millions more for that purpose.
On other hand, spending more than $300,000 to fix Mari Alkatiri residence is a just an expense that brings no gains in return for the people of Timor. It's a waist just to make him live in luxury & style.
That is wrong and makes no business sense for the people and the nation.
This money wasted on Mr Alkatiri should be better spent saving the lives of these children who need medical treatments.
Ask Mari Alkatiri to stop wasting people money and give it to the kids. Only like that you are serious about saving the people.
Not by stopping Miss Caroline Pemberton working to attract more money to the country that gives benefit to poor people also.
Before you promote tourism we need to know and developed the strategies to implement our national tourism plan. We need to clarify witch market we are looking for and how to reach them. what kind of products we can invest to appel this market? I really dont know but we need to start
from the basics, for instance are the restaurants and bars already in place offering quality and service? Can we u give the minimum health insurance for tourist? We can make a very beautifull promotion movies but this can works agains us if the reality on the ground is completely diferent.
Caro Alexandre Gusmão,
Cada kilometro de estrada custa reabilitar 150 000 Usd, isso representa 2 km, se calhar tinha sido mais bem utilizado a reparar 2 km de estrada, tinha melhorado a vida de algumas familias. Pense melhor antes de desperdiçar o dinheiro que é do povo Timorense.
Beijinhos da Querida Lucrécia
I my opinion, Timor Leste needs to prepare conditions tourism first. Promotion should come later. However, there are many other cheapest ways of promoting tourism. The decision to invite this miss australian girl is inacurate and inappropriate. You spend money for the rich people but you never promote your own people to be rich. You are doing this just for two possible reasons: 1) Lack of capacity or ignorance; or 2) Staburness
The minister, Gil Alves, is incompentent but it´s not his fault. Who is to be blamed is the Prime Minester, Xanana Gusmão, who invited him to be there.
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