Background Briefing

Special Features

Timor's unpredictable rebel

East Timorese soldier Alfredo Reinado was young, Australian trained, armed and ready for a fight. On Monday 11 February 2008 he was gunned down and killed in the compound of President Jose Ramos Horta. Reporter Chris Bullock met and interviewed Alfredo Reinado in October 2007. In this interview Reinado challenges and mocks President Ramos Horta and the government, saying he will die rather than submit himself to the current Timorese justice system.
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Noel Pearson

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In October 2000, Background Briefing profiled Noel Pearson and the radical shift he was proposing in relation to welfare and the rights and reponsibilities of Aboriginal people. His proposals were controversial, but made sense to many. Seven years later, Noel Pearson's call for changes in policy have spurred the Prime Minister to unprecendented action.
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