The Minister of Legislative Reform and Parliamentary Affairs (MRLAP), Fidelis Manuel Leite Magalhães and the Secretary of State for Social Communication (SECOMS), Merício Juvinal dos Reis “Akara”, met with directors and owners of the media at the Government Palace in Dili on May 16, 2019.

The purpose of this meeting was to strengthen cooperation between the Government and the media in Timor-Leste and share information on the activities and program of the Eight Constitutional Government.

The MRLAP, Fidelis Leite Magalhães, emphasized “the importance of the role of the media in the construction of the nation in this development process, not only reflecting this in the discourse, but placing it as a priority of the Eight Constitutional Government, both in the program and in General Budgets of the State for this year and for the year 2020″. “By the year 2020, and according to the guidelines already approved by the Prime Minister, the media must play a very important role, as a priority of the State”.

The minister also added that “the state must be proactive and contribute more intensely to strengthen the sense of belonging or the sense of the nation. However, this is not a process that the Government can develop alone, without working together with the media. This sense of belonging is essential to the integrity of the sovereignty of our country and of the state itself, because if we increase that spirit, we can help us determine ourselves as a nation or state, and for that we only need clear participation of the media”.

“The Government will continue to work together with the media in a symbolic partnership and believes that the media have responsibility and can contribute to this development,” said the Minister.

The Secretary of State for Social Communication told the Directors and owners of the media that “the Government has made a commitment to continue to support the media and that a guide is being prepared to manage this process”.

SECOMS will also give priority to the Broadcasting Law and will launch a new program later this year, entitled “Naroman ba Suku”, which seeks to bring information to the local community, to the sucos, allowing communities to present concerns or obstacles they face by presenting them in the national media in order to give them greater visibility. Thus, the Secretary of State asked the directors and owners of the media to work together in this process.

SECOMS will also set up Information Centers in the sucos in order to send information through newspapers, magazines and other important information documents related to the development process.

In addition to the members of the Government, the meeting was attended by a representative of Timor-Gap, the SECOMS Chief of Staff, the Director of the National Directorate of Information Dissemination (DNDI), the Director of the Community Radio Center, the Heads of DNDI and various directors and owners of media.