Dili, December 13, 2025 (Média Democracia) – Timor-Leste University Students (EUTL) held a press conference to remind the Maubere people that EUTL is an extra-parliamentary movement that channels public dissatisfaction with the liberal system and parliamentary model, which no longer reflects the real living conditions of the people. The press conference was held this Thursday at the Central Campus of the National University of Timor-Leste (UNTL) in Caicoli, Dili.
EUTL spokesperson Caetano da Cruz stated that the movement exists with principal and immediate demands, including the cancellation of the purchase of vehicles for the 65 Members of Parliament and the complete termination of the tradition of purchasing luxury vehicles; the total abolition of the Lifetime Monthly Pension Law (LPMV); amendments to the Law on Freedom of Assembly and Demonstration, which restricts people’s right to express ideas against public power; and the allocation of the State Budget (OJE) to strategic sectors.
“The actions of the Maubere people through demonstrations succeeded in canceling the purchase of Prado vehicles and abolishing the LPMV, but especially the struggle regarding the PMV issue is not yet over. This is because we all know that the matter is now in the hands of the Court of Appeal, which will decide on the revocation law,” said EUTL spokesperson Caetano da Cruz.
He explained that under Article 118, paragraph 1 of the Constitution of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (CRDTL), “the courts are organs of sovereignty with the competence to administer justice in the name of the people.”
“This provision tells us that courts exercise justice by appealing to the people’s interests and the objective reality they face. However, legal science teaches us that law is not an exact or isolated science; rather, it has an intimate relationship with history, politics, economics, social conditions, and culture in which a people live,” the EUTL spokesperson explained.
Based on this constitutional concept and legal understanding, EUTL argues that the Lifetime Monthly Pension Law no longer reflects the living conditions of the Maubere people. Facts show that the majority of the population continues to live below the poverty line, faces multidimensional malnutrition, unemployment, a collapsing or worsening health system over the past three years, poor quality education, struggling agriculture, questionable access to clean water, deteriorating roads in municipalities and remote areas, a minimum wage that does not ensure workers’ livelihoods, and many other structural problems.
The spokesperson asserted that the law only reflects the lives of a small elite minority who live luxuriously and enjoy the benefits of independence through this pension scheme. Therefore, EUTL calls on the Court of Appeal to carefully assess the matter in accordance with the Constitution, the law, and legal doctrine, based on the objective reality faced by the Maubere people, before making a decision.
“These systematic problems provoke public anger, resistance, and confrontation with the National Parliament through mass demonstrations in recent months. The resistance of the Maubere people through collective action pressured the National Parliament to debate and approve the revocation of the law, which was then promulgated by the President of the Republic through Law No. 7/2025 on 29 September,” affirmed Caetano da Cruz.
He further informed that after the revocation law was promulgated, 30 beneficiaries, former Members of Parliament, former Government members, and former holders of sovereign bodies was submitted a request for successive abstract constitutional review to the Court of Appeal through the Office of the Provedor for Human Rights and Justice (PDHJ) on 24 October. They requested the Court to declare the revocation law unconstitutional. However, after two months, the Court of Appeal has yet to issue a decision.
“We will take serious action if the Court of Appeal does not declare the constitutionality of the revocation of the Lifetime Pension Law. The Court has the competence to uphold justice and truth; therefore, EUTL’s position is that the Court must declare the revocation of the Lifetime Pension Law constitutional,” said the EUTL spokesperson.
He emphasized that the successive abstract review currently before the Court of Appeal has two possible outcomes: constitutionality or unconstitutionality of the revocation law. If the Court declares it unconstitutional, the beneficiaries will continue to receive monthly payments for life, even without working, effectively remaining at home. If the Court declares it constitutional, the beneficiaries will no longer receive the payments.
He further explained that the objective of this press conference was to alert the public that the Court of Appeal must not declare the revocation law unconstitutional. Otherwise, EUTL, together with the Maubere people, will mobilize and take action in front of the Court of Appeal to demand a declaration of constitutionality for the revocation of the Lifetime Monthly Pension Law, thereby permanently abolishing it. According to EUTL and the Maubere people, the law no longer reflects the people’s living conditions.
Report: Nelfiano
Photo: Nelfiano