Editorial: East Timor voters embrace democracy

April 10, 2007

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21529228-7583,00.html

A successful election is a good start on a long road

WHATEVER the result of yesterday's historic election to select a president for the newly independent East Timor, lasting success relies on a pragmatic stance by the winner and acceptance by those who fail to make it. The fact that voting by the more than half a million registered voters appears to have taken place with relatively little trouble is cause for celebration in itself. It underscores the tiny nation's respect for democracy and desire for progress. The election is a welcome circuit-breaker to the failings of governance that have blighted East Timor since independence was declared in 2002. These failings led ultimately to a surgein violence last year and the re-engagement of Australian troops and UN police to bolster security. The flash point was the decision by former prime minister Mari Alkatiri to sack half of the country's serving army.

While a successful presidential election is an important symbol of potential, it by no means guarantees a stable future for East Timor, which has a decades-long history of violence and repression under Indonesian rule. The election does, however, provide a curtain-raiser for the broader government elections due to be held later this year, in which retiring President Xanana Gusmao is seeking to emerge as prime minister. The real battle for president at yesterday's election is between a supremely confident Fretilin party candidate Francisco "Lu Olo" Guterres, who attended polling with Mr Alkatiri, and Jose Ramos Horta, who replaced Mr Alkatiri as Prime Minister.

It is no secret a joint Ramos Horta-Gusmao administration would be the most palatable for Australia. Both men have deep contacts with Australia and the West and have a clear commitment to building East Timor's civil and political institutions. However, while Fretilin's record in administering East Timor since independence is poor, having presided over crumbling civil infrastructure and dysfunctional justice, security and education systems, the prospect of a Fretilin victory in these presidential elections is very real. Certainly, ahead of yesterday's vote, Fretilin party organisers, Mr Alkatiri and the party's candidate Mr Guterres, all appeared unwilling or unable to contemplate defeat. Such confidence bodes ill for stability in the event of a Fretilin loss. Nor is there any guarantee that yesterday's vote will be the end of it. Without a clear majority result, the top two candidates will progress to a second round of voting, which may well produce more spirited campaigning.

The most important thing after the votes for president have been counted is that all parties accept the result of what has reportedly been a largely incident-free poll. Fretilin leaders and Mr Ramos Horta must be pragmatic in their future dealings with each other. Whoever becomes president must put the focus on rebuilding the country to provide security and opportunity for its people. With stability will come foreign investment that must be properly directed and managed, together with increasing royalty income as the country's natural resource are exploited and put into production.

In the meantime, Australia supports East Timor's efforts to rebuild and will continue to offer whatever assistance is required. This includes a continued heavy Australian troop presence until at least after this year's parliamentary elections, and possibly for years to come. Capacity building and a reorganisation of East Timor's police and army forces is a priority for the country to eventually wean itself off its dependence on Australia and the international community for its stability. But yesterday's peaceful election is a good start.

Time's up for Mufti

Sheik Hilali has overstepped the mark again
THE fate of the Mufti of Australia, Sheik Taj Din al-Hilali, has surely been sealed by his latest foray into foreign affairs. As The Australian reported yesterday, the mufti was in Tehran last week, where he was quoted by the Islamic republic's newsagency urging Muslims to unite behind Iran, which was then holding 15 British personnel hostage. His comments were immediately seized on by the delighted Iranians for use in anti-Western propaganda. Sheik Hilali was billed as a celebrity by the Iranian media and quoted as calling on the Islamic world to "stand in the trenches" with Iran.

The mufti's comments come just months after his appearance on Egyptian television, in which he abused descendants of the First Fleet for arriving in Australia "in chains", and after his controversial Arabic-language sermon comparing immodestly dressed women to "uncovered meat". Some in the Muslim community insist the mufti has no influence over Australian Muslims, and that his views must be seen as those of just one man. While it is true his influence is greatest among the Lebanese Sunnis in Sydney's western suburbs, he cannot be ignored. Sheik Hilali carries the respected title of Mufti of Australia and New Zealand, and is seen abroad as an Australian Muslim of some spiritual and political influence.

It is by virtue of holding such a position that Sheik Hilali is invited to speak at world forums and on international television, where - although clearly considered something of an oddity - his views are given additional currency as representing those of Australian Muslims.

The position of mufti was created by the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils, or AFIC, a group that steadfastly refuses to deal with Sheik Hilali. Cowardly to the end, AFIC passed responsibility for the mufti's fate to a new group, the Australian National Imams Council. The council intends to rule in June whether the sheikh can call himself mufti. For his part, the sheik shows no sign of giving up the title, which suggests it is surely worth something.

Australia is a robust democracy, and it can handle the mufti and his offensive point of view, provided it is his alone. But Australia's Muslim leaders - the Imams Council and AFIC - must move, and soon, to make it clear the views of the incumbent are not those of the wider Muslim community. Then he should be removed from the post. Meanwhile, the Australian Federal Police are investigating the mufti's recent trip to the Middle East, where he distributed about $70,000 in cash intended for victims of the Israel-Hezbollah war. The Australian revealed last month that a slice of the money - about $US10,000 ($12,250) - went to an Islamic radio station run by a Hezbollah supporter. The mufti will want to be sure none of the money went directly to terrorist groups and their supporters, because that would constitute a serious federal criminal offence.

A taxing business

The BCA has a good argument for corporate tax reform

THAT government red tape and state levies cost business an extra 50c for every dollar spent on corporate tax is an alarming statistic that proves once again that when it comes to tax reform, the job is never done. The Business Council of Australia will use the results of a survey of 92 leading companies to continue its push for reform of federal-state relations and further corporate tax relief. A full Productivity Commission investigation into the effectiveness of Australia's business tax regime, as suggested by the BCA, would be a good start. The BCA survey shows that business tax is a clear example of how confusing and conflicting roles between the federal and state governments act as a significant drag on business and the economy. It is possible to have some sympathy for the federal Government here, with some states still reluctant to abolish imposts in accordance with the original terms of the introduction of the GST. But it is not simply the states at fault. The survey found governments impose 56 different taxes on business, including 21 federal taxes, 33 state and territory taxes and two local government taxes. It found one-third of the businesses surveyed spent more than $2 million a year on tax compliance, with some spending as much as $10 million. The glaring finding of the survey is that the business tax system remains highly inefficient. Too many taxes are being levied for comparatively little return. For business, there is an inordinate amount of paperwork and compliance costs for large and small organisations.

The BCA survey builds a strong case for reform of business tax arrangements. Such changes are necessary to keep pace with global business practices and, if handled correctly, will stimulate business growth and efficiency rather than add to inflationary pressures. The federal Government must be encouraged to keep the tax reform momentum going by returning the proceeds of bracket creep to individuals, and by streamlining the imposts on business, both directly andthrough inadequate federal-state arrangements.