Soares elected as Timor House speaker

DILI, East Timor: Armindo Soares was elected Saturday as speaker of the East Timor provincial legislature replacing Antonio Freitas Parada.

"We will try to improve on the good work of the 1992-1997 provincial legislature (DPRD)," the new speaker was quoted as saying.

Armindo was elected by a special legislative committee who also appointed Col. Marsudi Adiwijaya of the Armed Forces faction, Mariano Lopez da Cruz of the Golkar faction, and Gabriel da Costa of the Indonesian Democratic Party as the provincial legislature's first, second, and third vice chairmen for the 1997-2002 period.

The new house speaker and his vice chairmen are scheduled to be inducted on July 28. (10)