The rebuilding of the media in East Timor will be discussed at a free public lecture at The University of Queensland on Monday, June 18.
The University of Queensland and its Centre for International Journalism are organising the lecture at the Steele Building Lecture Theatre 309, at 5.30pm.
A leading United Nations representative will discuss the historical and current situation of the East Timorese media.
She is the Director of the Office of Communication and Public Information in the United Nations Transitional Authority in East Timor, Anne-Margrete Wachtmeister.
Ms Watchtmeister said that East Timor, destined to secure its formal independence next year, faced a daunting challenge. After five centuries of Portuguese colonial rule and 24 years of Indonesian occupation, which culminated in the September 1999 rampage by pro-Jakarta militia, the people of East Timor were now having to establish their country from scratch.
"With UN support and guidance, the population of 800,000 is seeking to repair the recent damage, put the economy on a sound footing and develop responsive institutions," she said.
"Part of this ambitious agenda is to develop a national media. A free media is viewed as an essential component of nation-building: to inform people of everyday developments, to act as a forum for discussion, and also to educate and entertain.
"Since UNTAET arrived to oversee the country's transition to independence, much progress has been made in the media. Radio coverage now extends across the country and television serves the capital, Dili. Printing presses have been rehabilitated, with two private daily papers, three weeklies, a bi-monthly and a host of community publications starting up. But the communication difficulties remain acute."
Anne-Margrete Wachtmeister was appointed director of UNTAET's Office of Communication and Public Information in December 2000. She has left a position with the European Commission in Brussels, where she was Acting Director for Media, Telecom and IT, to take on this role. She has a background in broadcasting, mainly with the Swedish public broadcaster Sveriges Radio, and has lectured in journalism at the University of Stockholm.
The lecture will be chaired by the director of UQ's Centre for International Jounalism, Associate Professor John Wallace. On display at the lecture will be a sample of photographs from the exhibition "Our Nation, Our Words", showing portraits of Timorese people taken by Timorese photographers and with captions expressing the views of each subject about democracy.
The full exhibition will be on display in Canberra on Thursday and Friday of next week (14 and 15 June) for the international donors meeting for East Timor.
Media: To arrange interviews with Ms Wachtmeister, contact Associate Professor John Wallace, telephone mobile 0419 998 463, w3365 9174 or Jan King at UQ Communications 0413 601 248.
