Government Pay Respects to Shimon Peres

Minister of State and of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers and

Official Spokesperson for the Government of Timor-Leste

 Dili, September 30th, 2016

Government Pay Respects to Shimon Peres

The Government of Timor-Leste pays its respects to Shimon Peres, former President and Prime Minister of Israel and joint winner of the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize, who passed away on Wednesday at the age of 93.

Mr. Peres’s career in politics spanned six decades. He began in roles overseeing the build up of Israel’s military capacity and ended as an advocate for peace and a proponent of a two state solution with Palestine. The 1994 Nobel Peace Prize, shared with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and Israeli Premier Yitzhak Rabin, was awarded for his role in brokering the Olso Peace Accords. This an agreement in the 1990’s brought hope of ending the conflict in the region, but regretfully failed to bring lasting change.

For Timor-Leste, seeking to navigate a peaceful transition after the 1999 referendum on self -determination, the words of Shimon Peres offered encouragement. In 1996 he had said of the Oslo Peace Accords “I know we are moving on a road full of dangers but we know also this is the right road, the only road upon which we have to move.”

In 2015 he famously said “Peace is costly. Only things is, war costs more.”

Government Spokesperson, Minister of State Agio Pereira noted that “the commitment of Peres to the achievement of peace right through the 1990’s and up until his passing was an inspiration to many of us in Timor-Leste. He viewed peace in a pragmatic way, sometimes difficult and ‘imperfect’ but necessary for the well being of all.”ENDS

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