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2007 Assessment

Timor-Leste: Integrity Indicators Scorecard

Timor-Leste: Integrity Scorecard Report > Sub-Category: Media
Indicators		Score
5	Are media and free speech protected?	100
6	Are citizens able to form print media entities?	94
7	Are citizens able to form broadcast (radio and TV) media entities?	100
8	Can citizens freely use the Internet?	100
9	Are the media able to report on corruption?	75
10	Are the media credible sources of information?	30
11	Are journalists safe when investigating corruption?	100

Indicator and sub-Indicator Details

Are media and free speech protected?

5a: In law, freedom of the media is guaranteed.

Score:

YES

Comments:

References: Constitution of RDTL, article 40

Peer Review Comments: The copy of the constitution I have, downloaded from the UNMIT Web Site, puts media under Section 41 rather than Section 40, which addresses specifically Freedom of Speech and Information.

5b: In law, freedom of speech is guaranteed.

Score:

YES

Comments:

References: Constitution of RDTL, article 40

Peer Review Comments: See also sections 45 and 46 of the constitution.

Are citizens able to form print media entities?

6a: In practice, the government does not create barriers to form a print media entity.

Score:

100

Comments: ET has just reached its 6th year of independence. So far, there have been no restrictions for print media or any other type of media. Some threats were made by the previous government, under the Fretilin regime; however, the media still has complete freedom of expression. New media organizations have come and gone, but no regulations were made to stop their activity. (An observation made by the researcher during his almost 8 years of working and leaving in ET)

References: Constitution of RDTL, article 41

Peer Review Comments: Media come under Section 41 of the constitution. Section 40 deals with Freedom of Speech and Information.

Gaps remain, however, in the media regulatory framework. See World Bank Economic and Social Development Report, August 2007.

6b: In law, where a print media license is necessary, there is an appeal mechanism if a license is denied or revoked.

Score:

YES

Comments: The constitution of RDTL supported the freedom of speech. So far, there have been no other laws in place to supplement nor restrict this license. A media law is under discussion. A draft was proposed; however, the response is not clear yet. ET, according to UNTAET regulation #1/2001, said that Indonesian law is accepted in the absence of other laws.

References: The constitution of RDTL

6c: In practice, where necessary, citizens can obtain a print media license within a reasonable time period.

Score:

100

Comments: No law exists regarding this issue. The media has been established in accordance with peoples' wishes and their financial abilities.

References: An interview with Dr. Francisco Guterres, head of TIDS and currently appointed as secretary of state for defense The RDTL constitution

6d: In practice, where necessary, citizens can obtain a print media license at a reasonable cost.

Score:

100

Comments: There is no law that regulates this issue. Everything is still based on the Constitution. People can establish any media organization they want, or can afford to run.

References: Interview with Dr. Francisco Geterres, head of TIDS, on 2 August 2007

Peer Review Comments: Nothing can be done through the internet or by mail.

Are citizens able to form broadcast (radio and TV) media entities?

7a: In practice, the government does not create barriers to form a broadcast (radio and TV) media entity.

Score:

100

Comments: The government has not created any barriers against forming a broadcast entity. There are examples of radio community across the country. The radio community has now come up with regulations for its organizations. Some government laws were drafted, but they have not been passed yet.

References: Interview with Dr. Francisco Guterres, head of TIDS, on 2 August 2007

7b: In law, where a broadcast (radio and TV) media license is necessary, there is an appeal mechanism if a license is denied or revoked.

Score:

YES

Comments: The Constitution of RDTL supports the freedom of speech. So far, no other laws are in place to supplement nor restrict this license. A media law is under discussion. A draft proposed exists; however, the response is not clear yet. ET, according to UNTAET regulation #1/2001, said that Indonesian law is accepted in the absence of other laws.

References: Constitution of RDTL

7c: In practice, where necessary, citizens can obtain a broadcast (radio and TV) media license within a reasonable time period.

Score:

100

Comments:

References: An interview with Dr. Francisco Guterres - head of TIDS and currently appointed as secretary of state for defense RDTL constitution

7d: In practice, where necessary, citizens can obtain a broadcast (radio and TV) media license at a reasonable cost.

Score:

100

Comments: No law regulates this issue. Everything is still based on the Constitution. There is still no regulation of licensing. People can establish any media organization they want or are financially able to run.

References: Interview with Dr. Francisco Geterres, head of TIDS, on 2 August 2007

Can citizens freely use the Internet?

8a: In practice, the government does not prevent citizens from accessing content published online.

Score:

100

Comments: Most of these kinds of documents are available on the web. However, access is an issue due to the literacy rate, which is quite high (65%). Also, the cost for internet access is pretty expensive ($5 per hour).

References: Interview with Dr. Amanadio Benevides, deputy of the ombudsman office, on 17 July 2007 Interview with Joao Braz, deputy of procurement office, on 12 September 2007

Peer Review Comments: Related to this issue is the poor and expensive internet service provided by Timor Telecom, which remains a monopoly, thereby indirectly restricting access to information.

8b: In practice, the government does not censor citizens creating content online.

Score:

100

Comments:

References: An interview with Dr. Amandio Benevides, deputy of the ombudsman office, on 17 July 2007

Are the media able to report on corruption?

9a: In law, it is legal to report accurate news even if it damages the reputation of a public figure.

Score:

YES

Comments: No other law says the same thing, nor is there any law that prevents it. The defamation law, which has not passed through parliament, is meant to place some restrictions.

References: Constitution of RDTL

Peer Review Comments: Just to clarify: the Penal Code, if passed unchanged, will make libel a criminal offense.

9b: In practice, the government or media owners/distribution groups do not encourage self-censorship of corruption-related stories.

Score:

100

Comments: The pressure that was applied on a local media group covering the Timor GAP is one example of this.

References: An interview with Dr. Amandio Benevides, deputy of the ombudsman office, on 17 July 2007

Peer Review Comments: Defamation is criminalized under the draft Timorese legal code, which, if passed, will inhibit effective investigation and reporting.

9c: In practice, there is no prior government restraint (pre-publication censoring) on publishing corruption-related stories.

Score:

100

Comments: There is no censorship; however, a threat was made to LABEH by a government official due to a report provided by LABEH to STL by the two ministers (i.e., Minister of Labor and Solidarity and Minister of Natural Resources). However, media access to very sensitive government information is often blocked.

References: Interview with Dr. Christopher Samson, director of an ant-corruption NG,O in his office, on 10 July 2007

Are the media credible sources of information?

10a: In law, print media companies are required to disclose their ownership.

Score:

YES

Comments: There is no law for this.

References: Interview with Dr. Christopher, director of LABEH, in his office, on 10 July 2007

Peer Review Comments: Does this include Indonesian law?

10b: In law, broadcast (radio and TV) media companies are required to disclose their ownership.

Score:

YES

Comments: There is no law for this.

References: Interview with Dr. Christopher, director of LABEH, in his office, on 10 July 2007

Peer Review Comments: Does this include Indonesian law?

10c: In practice, journalists and editors adhere to strict, professional practices in their reporting.

Score:

100

Comments: There is no law for this. No journalists were "sold" favorable and unfavorable coverage, but no laws are in place to regulate the media according to international standards of journalism. Reports are biased in terms of no confirmation and no checks and balances. The international standards of journalism do not exist in Timor-Leste.

References: Interview with Dr. Christopher, director of LABEH, in his office, on 10 July 2007

Peer Review Comments: While uncertain as to the degree of impropriety related to gifts, etc., I would reinforce that there is limited experience with best practices and standards in media, which often results in poor quality reporting.

10d: In practice, during the most recent election, political parties or independent candidates received fair media coverage.

Score:

100

Comments:

References: Interview with Paula Rodrigues, Radio RTL reporter, in her office, on 5 July 2007

Peer Review Comments: 75 is a generous score. During elections, media outlets demonstrated biases, and access to prominence in the media varied from candidate to candidate and party to party.

Peer Review Comments: There was probably such an intent, but, in practice, journalists run stories that may or may not be backed up by facts.

10e: In practice, political parties and candidates have equitable access to state-owned media outlets.

Score:

100

Comments: There is only one nationwide radio station and one national TV station, both owned by the government. During the last election, both outlets came under criticism due to their coverage, which critics alleged was in favor of one political party instead of being unbaised.

References: Interview with Dr. Amandio Benevides, deputy of the ombudsman office, in his office, on 17 July 2007

Are journalists safe when investigating corruption?

11a: In practice, in the past year, no journalists investigating corruption have been imprisoned.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no journalists imprisoned related to work covering corruption during the study period. A YES score is positive. NO: A NO score is earned if any journalist was jailed because of his/her work covering corruption during the study period. The causal relationship between the official charges and the journalist\'s work may not be explicit, however the burden of proof here is low. If it seems likely that the journalist was imprisoned due to his or her work, then the indicator is scored as a NO. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments:

References: Interview with Dr. Christopher, director of LABEH, at his office, on 10 July 2007

11b: In practice, in the past year, no journalists investigating corruption have been physically harmed.

Score:

YES

Comments:

References: Interview with Dr. Christopher, director of LABEH, at his office, on 10 July 2007

11c: In practice, in the past year, no journalists investigating corruption have been killed.

Score:

YES

$Scoring Criteria :: YES: A YES score is earned if there were no documented cases of journalists being killed because of their work covering corruption-related issues during the study period. A YES score is positive. NO: A NO score is earned if there were any documented cases where a journalist was killed in relation to his or her work covering corruption-related issues in the study period. The relationship between a mysterious death and an individual\'s work may not be clear, however the burden of proof here is low. If it is a reasonable guess that a person was killed in relation to his or her work on corruption issues, then the indicator is scored as a NO. Corruption is defined broadly to include any abuses of power, not just the passing of bribes.$

Comments:

References: Interview with Dr. Christopher, director of LABEH, at his office, on 10 July 2007