The month of May got off to a busy start with ICFJ-TL helping to mobilize Timorese journalists to mark World Press Freedom Day. The event was marked on May 2nd and May 3rd.

The May 2nd event included an awareness campaign along Freedom of the Press Avenue. Some 75 journalists took part in a walk along nearly the entire length of the street – about four kilometers – handing out free newspapers and reminding merchants and motorists that the street name was changed in May 2000 to Freedom of the Press Avenue. Many people still call the street by its old name. Journalists also distributed bumper stickers that say: Free Media – Free Society.

On May 3rd, ICFJ-TL helped organized a formal program that included the US Ambassador, representatives of the government, the United Nations, USAID and AusAID. The event was held at the Hotel Turismo – a place where many international journalists stayed just before the Indonesian invasion of Timor-Leste in 1975.

After the speeches, it began to rain, hard. The rain, however, did not stop the party. Journalists, after braving the afternoon heat, danced and cooled off in the rain shower!

In late May, Country Director Chuck Rice and consultants Emanuel Braz and Joana Saraiva met with the Rector of the National University of Timor-Leste (UNTL), Dr. Benjamim de Araujo Corte-Real,to discuss the MOU for the four-year Social Communications degree program. The rector was pleased with the way the classes are being organized and conducted – and he emphasized that students must be able to write and speak in Portuguese as well as in Tetum. Chuck assured the Rector that that was not a problem. ICFJ is offering three classes this semester: Writing, Ethics and Introduction to Communication.

As part of the MOU, ICFJ will provide instructors; establish a multi-media center with high-speed internet access, books and other resource materials; and will help develop the curriculum for the complete four-year Social Communications program. ICFJ is recommending that a working group be established for this purpose, to include two universities – one in Brazil and one in Portugal – as well as representatives from UNTL and ICFJ-TL.

The three classes being offered by ICFJ during the current second semester are proving to be extremely popular. Nearly 90 students are enrolled, and consultant Braz reports that students who are not even signed up for the classes are sitting outside – near the windows – listening in.

On Saturdays, consultant Joana Saraiva meets with her students as an extracurricular activity. They discuss current events, articles and photographs in newspapers, how to conduct research using the internet and anything else that relates to journalism. The meeting occurs in the Radio Akademika media lab – which was set up by ICFJ and includes high speed internet. Joana regularly has 40 to 50 students showing up.

It was a busy month for IT specialist Oscar Selly. He installed a very complex antenna system at the National University that supplies internet to the Rector, two Vice Rectors, the Faculty of Medicine, the Language Institute and the English-language Library. The job required that two antennas be installed on top of 20 meter high towers, and a third antenna had to be installed on the roof of one of the buildings.

ICFJ signed a new grant agreement with AusAID in the amount of 56,000 USD in late May. These funds are to be used to establish a National Press Center and Office Complex for the five journalism associations. The Doha Center for Media Freedom has pledged nearly 10,000 USD for this same project.

Knight Fellow Gabriela Carrascalao continued to work with female journalists from the districts each Saturday. She is helping them develop their TV journalism skills so that the women will be able to begin contributing to the on-line news agency at www.timortoday.com.

The training, which began in mid-April, will continue for three months.

Gabriela also continues to work with journalists who are producing the weekly radio program that is distributed nationwide via state-funded Radio Timor-Leste and is also broadcast on all the community radio stations around the country. A couple of the stories produced in May include a piece on rotten fish at the markets, and a piece on an alleged gangster who is investing in Timor-Leste. The reporters also produced stories on squatters who have built homes and restaurants along the Dili waterfront – illegally; attempts by Indonesia and Timor-Leste to solve a border dispute; a seven million dollar clean water project for Dili; and the May 20 independence day celebration.

All of these stories appeared on www.timortoday.com.

Country Director Rice held meetings with senior editors and journalists of Timor Post and Diario Nacional in mid-May. In separate meetings, the groups discussed the next phase of the TOT training: training their own staffs.

On May 22, ARKTL’s Prezado Ximenes and CRC’s Luis Evaristo were in Oecussi and brought together 142 people from throughout the district to nominate a new Board of Directors for the community radio station. The old Board agreed to dissolve itself since it had not been elected and many members were no longer interested in being involved in the station. The old Board had been appointed.

The new Board was nominated and elected by the 142 people involved – they all had expressed interest in community radio during a week-long visit by ARKTL and CRC to the enclave of Oecussi. The new Board includes a member of a local NGO; a local government official; a school teacher; a youth representative; a nun; the chief of the local Suco council; and a traditional justice chief. There are two women on the Board, and the age of the board members ranges from 24 to 67.

The Monthly Public Lecture for journalists was held on May 26th. The focus was on education, and guests included the Minister of Education, Joao Cancio Freitas, and Member of Parliament Elizario Ferreira. It was the first time that two guest speakers participated in a Monthly Lecture.

Due to the current format, journalists rarely get to ask many questions: the guests usually speak the entire time. As a result, the format for the program will change in June, and it will be called “Meet the Press”. Each speaker will give opening remarks of no more than 15 minutes, and then journalists will be invited to ask questions.

ICFJ-TL provided two separate training events for high school students who are interested in, or who have already established, wall newspapers at their schools. One training session was held at the new Ermera Media House in Gleno, and 24 students from two high schools in the area took part.

The second training session took place on the remote island of Atauro, with 14 students participating.

ICFJ-TL staffer Paulo Amaral and Trainer Basilio da Costa traveled to the island in a small motorized fishing boat – about three meters long and one meter wide. The trip took three hours. Fortunately, neither of them got seasick in the boat ....

A Brief Selection of Other Activities in May … ICFJ-TL is now offering English classes to its staff and to interested journalists. The classes are being taught by ICFJ translator Candida Belo. She has been undergoing a refresher English course herself, with Australian teacher Craig Garrett. The Stylebook for TL journalists was returned to ICFJ after obtaining comments from a number of media organizations and media experts. The comments will be reviewed and, where appropriate, added. ICFJ will find a quality printer and hold a ceremony launching the book.

ICFJ-TL is looking into the feasibility of providing solar panels for the Regional Media Houses – many of them only have limited mains electricity. Generators – if available – can be expensive to run. However, a rough estimate indicates that the cost per Media House will be in the region of 10,000 – 15,000 USD per Media House … so funding will need to be secured first.

ICFJ’s Training coordinator Paula Rodrigues and her team conducted training at the international NGO “Plan”, teaching staff how to write press releases and deal with media enquiries.

ICFJ’s Operations Manager Fernando da Silva traveled to Gleno and upgraded the electricity system at the Ermera Media House.

A ‘small grant’ proposal for ‘Diario Nacional’ has been approved. ICFJ-TL assigns a member of staff to assist the journalism associations in finding a suitable office building.

Preparations for the 2009 Media Awards Dinner are underway. The interviewing process for a National Coordinator for the Regional Media Houses has started. UNMIT’s Isabelle Abric served as guest lecturer at UNTL’s Social Communications class on Ethics. Abric has agreed to become a regular contributor to the program. Country Director Rice was invited to watch a special screening of the film “Balibo”. Rice asked the producer if it might be possible to show the film at the 2009 Media Awards Dinner in July, as a way to raise funds for the five Timor-Leste journalism associations.