ETAN urges dropping of defamation charges
against East Timorese editor
Contact: John M. Miller +1-718-596-7668
January 26, 2009 - The East Timor and Indonesia
Action Network (ETAN) today called on Timor-Leste's
(East Timor) prosecutor-general to drop criminal defamation
charges against the local weekly Tempo Semanal and its
editor, Jose Belo.
Jose
Belo at work in the Tempo Semanal office. Photo by
Charles Scheiner/ETAN.
"Tempo Semanal and Jose Belo should not have to face charges
under this obsolete and repressive law," said John M.
Miller, National Coordinator of ETAN. "We urge the
prosecutor-general to immediately drop any charges."
In October 2008, Tempo Semanal
published an article alleging that Timor-Leste's Justice Minister
Lucia Lobato had improperly awarded government contracts
to friends and business contacts. The report cited
leaked mobile phone text messages. Lobato filed the
defamation charges in November, accusing the paper of
breaching her privacy and violating the ethical code of
journalists.
"Rather
than attack the messenger, Timor-Leste's
leadership should support freedom of expression
and encourage a dynamic, investigative media."
Belo argues that his publication wrote only about Lobato's
performance in her role as a public official, not her
private activities. "
"Information about government activities should not be
subject to defamation laws. Rather than attack the
messenger, Timor-Leste's leadership should support freedom
of expression and encourage a dynamic, investigative media,"
said Miller.
Background
The government of Timor-Leste has proposed
decriminalizing defamation under a new penal code. Although
drafted several years ago, it has not yet been enacted.
Timor-Leste's criminal defamation statutes are a leftover
from Indonesia's criminal code. Journalists and activists in
Indonesia are still charged with criminal defamation,
although the 1999 Press Law created a body to adjudicate
disputes involving the press.
Justice minister Lucia Lobato with Prime
Minister Xanana Gusmao. Photo from
Tempo Semanal.
Belo was notified of the defamation charges in mid-December.
On January 19, he was questioned for 3 hours by the
prosecutor's office.
Tempo
Semanal was told by the Office of the Prosecutor-General
that they would not be given copies of relevant documents
because they are confidential.
In
an interview with ABC Radio Australia,
Jose Belo, Tempo Semanal's founder, said "we don't have any
money or any resources. So we can't fight a person who has
influence [and] who has money. So I presume it is very, very
difficult to win this case in the court."
If convicted, Belo could face fines or prison. During Indonesia's brutal, illegal 24-year
occupation of Timor-Leste, Belo was imprisoned or
arbitrarily detained many times for passing information
about human rights violations to foreign journalists and
human rights groups, for a total of about three years. It is
ironic that in democratic, independent Timor-Leste he could
face double that time for exposing government corruption.
The Office of the Prosecutor General,
Longuinhos Monteiro, has
reportedly told Belo that the truth of what he published in
his newspaper is not relevant to the charges against him and
will not be admissible in court. This contradicts legal precedent set in April 2006, when the same prosecutor, charged Yayasan HAK (a human rights NGO) with defamation.
accusing him of abuse of power by interfering with the
justice process in a case where HAK served as the defense
attorney. In that case, a judge ruled that the defamation
charges could not be adjudicated until the original case was
resolved. That case was brought to trial. Under that
precedent, the allegations of corruption against the
Minister of Justice should be tried before the defamation
case, but the prosecutor has not begun a legal case against
her.
ETAN advocates for democracy, justice and
human rights for East Timor and Indonesia. For more
information, see www.etan.org.
In April 2006, ETAN urged
then-President Xanana Gusmao to veto the criminal defamation
provisions of the proposed penal code.
Join others in supporting
ETAN's expanded activities and advocacy.
ETAN litik atu hasai akuzasaun defamasaun hasoru
editor Timor oan
Kontaktu: John M. Miller +1-718-596-7668
16 Janeiru 2009 - The East Timor and Indonesia Action Network
(ETAN) ohin husu ba Porkurador Jeral Timor-Leste atu hasai
akuzasaun krimi defamasaun hasoru
Editor Tabloid Semanal, Tempo Semanal nian, Jose Belo..
"Tempo Semanal no Jose Belo labele hetan
akuzasaun bazeia ba lei tuan
ne’ebé
la appropriuno repressivu” John M. Miller, Koordenador Nasional ETAN
nian hatete "Ami litik prokurador jeral atu hasai
akuzasaun hirak ne’e
imidiatamente” "
Iha Outubru 2008, Tempo Semanal
publika artigu alega
katak Minstra Justisa, Lucia Lobato impropriamente fo kontraktu
governu nian ba ninia maluk empresariu sira. Reportajen ne'e mos
hatudu mensagem liu husi telemovel. Lobato hatama kazu akuzasaun
defamasaun ne’e iha fulan Novembru hodi akuza katak Tempo Semanal
viola ninia privasidade no mos
viola kódigu etika jurnalista nian.
"Lei defamasaun labele inklui hotu informasaun kona ba aktividade
governu nian. Do que ataka ema ne’ebe lori informasaun (jornalista)
sira, ulun na’in sira tenke for suporta baliberade da espressaun
no fo koragem ba media
ne’ebé
dinamiku no invesitigativu,”
Miller hateten
(Background)
Governu Timor-Leste proposta ona atu dekriminaliza lei defamsaun
tuir kódigu penal foun. Lei ida ne’e seidauk aplika to’o ohin loron
maske proposta ona tinan hirak liu ba.
Krimi defamsaun iha Timor-Leste hetan husi kódigu penal Indonesia
nia durante tempu okupasaun. Jurnalista no activista sira iha
Indonesia sei hetan kastigu
ba krimi defamsaun maske Lei Imprensa 1999 kria ona orgaun ida atu
resolve problemas nebe involve imprensa.
Belo simu noticia kona ba krimi defamsaun iha
fulanDezembru nia klaran. Iha
loron 19 de Janeiru 2009, edificiu prokurador nian
inkere nia durante oras tolu nia
laran. Edificu Prokurador Jeral hateten ba Tempo Semanal katak Tempo
Semanal sei la hetan dokumentus
ne’ebé
relevante ba ninia kaju tamba dokumentus hirak ne’e konfidensial.
Durante intervista ho Radio ABC Australia, Jose Belo, fundador Tempo
Semanal nian hatete katak “ami laiha orsamentu ka rekursu seluk.
Ami labele luta hasoru ema
ne’ebé
iha inflensia maka’as no mos iha osan”. Hodi nune’e, hau hanoin
katak dificil tebes atu manan kaju ida ne’e iha tribunal.”
Se hetan konviksaun, Belo
bele multa ou kastigu iha prizaun. Iha tempu okupasaun illegal
Indonesia nian durante tinan 24 nia laran, Belo hetan kastigu no
detensaun durante tinan tolu tamba hato’o informasaun ba jurnilsta
no groupu diretus humanus kona ba violasaun direitus humanus
ne’ebé
akontese iha Timor-Leste. Tanba ne’e,
ironiku boot ida wainhira iha sosiedade Timor-Leste
ne’ebé
demokratiku, independente, nia bele hetan kastigu tan tanba publika
governu ninia korupsaun.
Porkurador Jeral, Longuinhos Monteiro, hatete ona ba Belo katak
lialos kona ba buat
ne’ebé
Belo publika iha Tempo Semanal la relevante atu hetan
akuzasaun hosru nian, no sei
admisivel iha tribunal. Ida ne’e kontráriu ho decisaun
ne’ebé
halo iha Abril 2006. Prokurador Jeral iha tempu neba
akuzaAssociasaun HAK ho defamasaun. Iha kazu ida ne’e juis decide
katak akuza tribunal labele
decidi defamasaun wainhira kazu orijinal seidauk resolve. Tuir
decizaun tribunal ba kazu ida ne, algasaun kona ba korupsaun hasoru
Minstra Justica tenke lori ba tribunal, maibe prokurador to’o ohin
loron seidauk komesa procediemntu legal kona ba kazu ida ne’e hasoru
Lobatu.
ETAN hala’o advokasia ba demokracia, justica, no direitus humanus
ba Timor-Leste no Indonesia. Atu hetan informasaun seluk tan, visita
www.etan.org.
Iha Abril 2006,
ETAN litik
Presidente Xanana Gusmao [iha tempu neba] atu veto provisaun kona ba
krimi defamasaun iha proposta kódigu penal foun.
