Rebel leader amenable to talks on East Timor crisis

An East Timor rebel leader today said he was willing to hold talks on ending the troubled country’s wave of violence, but made clear that any solution should not include a role for the current prime minister.

“We are trying to set up a good mechanism to conduct a dialogue in the near future,” said Alfredo Reinado, a former military police commander who met yesterday with defence minister Jose Ramos-Horta.

“For my part, I’m ready any time to sit at the table to find out who is wrong and correct the problem.”

Reinado heads a group of former soldiers who were dismissed in March when they went on strike, and they are demanding the sacking of Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri for overseeing their dismissal.

The group’s clashes with loyalist forces late last month gave way to gang warfare in the capital, Dili.