MEDIA LEGAL FRAMEWORK

Freedom of speech and information and freedom of the press and mass media are guaranteed by the Constitution of Timor-Leste. No press law has been approved yet.

The Regulation on the Electoral Campaign approved by the Technical Secretariat for Electoral Administration (STAE, Secretariado Técnico da Administração Eleitoral) establishes that the candidates have the right to equal access to the media.

The National Electoral Commission (CNE, Comissão Nacional de Eleições) approved a Code of Conduct for Media Professionals with guidelines for media activity during the electoral process.

ELECTRONIC AND PRINT MEDIA

Radio and Television Timor-Leste (RTTL, Rádio-Televisão Timor-Leste) operates the only public radio and television channels, broadcasting news services both in Portuguese and in Tetum, the two official languages.

The TV channel coverage is limited to Dili, and the radio channel coverage is national.

Community radio stations are operating in all districts, in Tetum and local languages.

Three daily and two weekly newspapers are published in Dili, and one weekly in Oecusse enclave, either in Portuguese, Tetum and/or Bahasa Indonesia. Distribution in the districts is limited.

JOURNALISTS’ ORGANISATIONS

There are three journalists’ organisations in the country: the East Timor Journalists’ Association (Associação dos Jornalistas de Timor Lorosae), the East Timor Journalists’ Trade Union (Sindicato dos Jornalistas de Timor-Leste) and the Community Radio Association (Associação Rádio Comunidade).