The Deputy President of the Dili District Court Rui Pereira dos Santoas stressed that the Timor Lorosae Judiciary will continue using Bahasa Indonesia and Tetun in all proceedings for about 10 to 15 years despite Portuguese being made the official language of the Constituent Assembly.

Rui Perieira said that though four languages – Bahasa Indonesia, English, Portuguese and Tetun – were used in the courts in accordance with UNTAET regulations, in reality however the most used language was Tetun and Bahasa Indonesia.

"This is because most of the documents presented to court are either in Bahasa Indonesia or Tetun," he said. "The courts will not risk using a language that is not understood by the majority of the Timorese people," he added.