Some 100 people had gathered, the musicians and dancers had just finished rehearsing and the honored guests had just arrived. It was ten o’clock – time for the opening ceremony for ICFJ’s new media house in Oecussi  -- and then – the power generator died.

No electricity meant the musicians and their electric violin and keyboards would be silent – the dancers would have no music. There would be no public address system – no internet. Despite repeated attempts to restart the brand new generator, which had worked so well for the past month, it refused to cooperate. 

What to do? The guests are waiting.

Within 15 minutes, Richard Mounsey, a colleague from Australia, who lives and works in Oecussi, showed up with his own generator. He turned it on and saved the day. A few minutes later, another generator showed up. It was all good – a backup – just in case.

The ceremony began with traditional dancers leading the guests to their seats – accompanied by music. Next, ICFJ’s Frances Suni, who hosted the event, welcomed everyone – and then the speeches began. Among the speakers were Mark White, who heads the USAID mission in Timor-Leste; Darian Clark of AusAID, Otelio Ote of the Syndicate of Journalists, Chuck Rice, the director of ICFJ in Timor-Leste, Jose Anuno, the District Administrator, Filomena Sila, the coordinator of the new Media House and Jose Francisco Efi, the manager of the Community Radio Station in Oecussi.

Once the speeches were out of the way and the ribbon had been cut, people started pouring into the Media House – to check out the spacious new digs – which include a work room for journalists, a TV production room, a training room and an internet café.  The internet café was, by far, the most popular attraction – with people lined up to check their email and to Skype their friends and family. Each computer is equipped with a webcam making it possible for users to make video calls.

The high speed internet brings Oecussi much closer to the rest of Timor-Leste. It’s an enclave surrounded by water and West Timor, Indonesia.  The Media House will mean that information will be able to flow much faster to and from Dili and other parts of the country.

There are three ways to get to Oecussi, overland through Indonesia, fly or take the ferry from Dili. Most of the ICFJ staff had never been to Oecussi – so almost everyone came along – choosing the ferry as the mode of transport. 

It’s a long trip – 12 hours each way. The staff arrived at 6 a.m. on Friday morning – prepared for the 10 a.m. ceremony and then had to re-board the ferry at 4 p.m. Friday afternoon.

It was a quick trip, but a hugely rewarding one. ICFJ staffers had brought something to Oecussi that it has needed for a long time – a place where journalists can find all the tools they need to do their job.  As we departed for the ferry on Friday afternoon – the borrowed generator was still humming. The busted one, still under warranty, will be exchanged for a new one.