Venidora Oliveira – There are currently 3000 motorbikes and cars operating illegally across the country, according to Acting Minister Longuinhos Monteiro, who blamed weak import controls.
He called on the government to improve the monitoring system and procedures for importing goods into the country. "There are 3000 motorbikes and cars illegally imported, [so] it means that something is wrong," he said.
He said one the problem was that drivers bringing in cars and motorbikes only had to show the vehicle's registration documents. He called for proper procedures such as a travel pass with a set entry date so police were better able to control what was coming into the country.
He said some people rented cars in Jakarta and then on-sold them in Timor. "The rental owner does not know anything, we just know after the registration that those cars are in Timor," he said.
He also called on Indonesian police to work with their Timorese counterparts to combat such crimes. "We should help each other and work together," he said.
Meanwhile, national MP Arao Noe de Jesus acknowledged that although Timor had laws in place to process these crimes, they were weakly implemented. He agreed with the Acting Minister that some procedural changes would help the system function more effectively.