East Timor parliament sworn in, no government yet

DILI, July 30 (Reuters) East Timor's new parliament was sworn in today after last month's indecisive elections, but political parties failed to end a deadlock over the make-up of the government and the appointment of a prime minister.

At its first session, the 65-seat chamber elected Fernando de Araujo of the Democratic Party, a small group, as parliamentary speaker.

With no party winning more than half the vote, rival groups have failed to reach an agreement on the formation of a new government.

Newly-elected President Jose Ramos-Horta has said he would use his constitutional right to decide the composition of the new government if parties failed to do so.

The former ruling Fretilin party won 21 seats in the June 30 election while CNRT, a party founded by former president and independence hero Xanana Gusmao, won 18 seats.

The Association of Timorese Democrats-Social Democratic Party (ASDT-PSD) got 11 seats and the Democratic Party won 8 seats.

Smaller parties took the rest.

Both Fretilin and the CNRT had previously ruled out Ramos-Horta's proposal to form a unity government.

Fretilin president and former parliament speaker Francisco Guterres congratulated new lawmakers.

''I also congratulate parliament members who will be involved in the formation of the new government this week or next week,'' he said.

Among the elected legislators are Mari Alkatiri, East Timor's first post-independence prime minister, and Gusmao. Both politicians have expressed readiness to be the next premier.

CNRT, which Gusmao established this year as a vehicle to become prime minister, the ASDT-PSD and the Democratic Party have declared a coalition in a bid to set up a government.

But Fretilin says it has the right to govern under the constitution because it won the most votes in the election.

De Araujo defeated Fretilin's candidate, Aniceto Guterres, in today's vote for parliament speaker.

''I will try to guarantee the functioning of parliament,'' De Araujo said in a speech after his election.

Gusmao, who ended his term as president in May, appears to have become increasingly frustrated by the pace of progress under Fretilin rule and by the factional infighting which broke out in East Timor last year.

The mayhem last year, during which 37 people were killed and 150,000 driven from their homes, was triggered by a government decision to sack 600 soldiers.

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