On the top of a waggon full with corn, complaining about hunger

From: Juergen Glembotzki

To:

Sent: Saturday, April 25, 2009 9:18 PM

Subject: Re: Timor-Leste: Foreign Advisors - Remuneration (The Australian - 25 Apr 09)

Dear friends, I am one of these "foreign advisors" in Timor-Leste and I am really shocked reading about the salary packages of "my colleagues". They really should be the top-managers of advisory. I am senior advisor for the Minister of Economy and Development, specialized for private sector development. I am comming from the private sector and worked as top-manager in multinational companies.and for the cambers of commerce in Germany and Brazil. Such kind of salaries cited in your article are not compatible with "market-prices", even considering that high class expertise is needed. I am working as an "integrated expert" and the Timorese Government has to contribute with US$ 388,88 per month. The German Government is paying my salary directly and I can asure you it is not more than a US$ 100,000 a year and I think this is really good payed. The kind of exaggerated salaries for technical assitance in developing and underdeveloped countries cannot be justified to the tax-payers in the countries of origin. Furthermore, I feel myself personnally offended because now, with this discussion our reputation within the Timorese society is badly harmed. And I remember a jazz song which is saying, it is really cynical sitting on the top of a waggon loaded full with corn and complaining about hunger. Bye