East Timor PM Gusmao resigns

"The government confirms that the prime minister of Timor-Leste, H.E. Kay Rala Xanana Gusmao, has sent his letter of resignation from the post of prime minister to the president of the republic, H.E. Taur Matan Ruak," an East Timorese government spokesman said on Friday in a statement on an official website.

"It is now for the president of the republic to respond to the letter of resignation," the statement added.

Gusmao, 68, a former guerilla leader, became prime minister in 2007 after five years as the country's first president after it gained independence from Indonesia in 2002. For more than a year, he has been hinting that he would step down to pass the responsibility of governing to a younger generation.

His letter of resignation came shortly after he started talks with the president on a government restructuring.

A government statement issued earlier said authorities wanted to "reduce the size of the executive to create a more efficient and functional body focused on results, and allow opportunities for a younger generation of leaders to make a contribution to the nation."

Young nation

East Timor was invaded and occupied by Indonesia in 1975 shortly after declaring its independence from Portugal, which ruled the country for centuries.

The Timorese voted overwhelmingly for independence from Jakarta in a UN-backed referendum in 1999 after 24 years of brutal occupation that left more than 170,000 dead.

Gusmao led the military wing of the Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor (FRETILIN), which fought against Indonesian rule. He was imprisoned in Jakarta toward the end of the Indonesian occupation, but continued to spearhead the struggle for independence from jail, returning to his homeland as a hero after the referendum.

Since attaining independence, the country of 1.2 million has struggled to establish itself economically, despite possessing abundant gas resources, and around half of its population live in poverty.

tj/sms (AP, Reuters, AFP)