UNITED NATIONS MISSION IN EAST TIMOR Misi Perserikatan Bangsa-Bangsa Di Timor Timur
PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICE - JULY 1999
INFORMATION FOR JOURNALISTS TRAVELLING TO EAST TIMOR
UNAMET can not provide logistical support or travel assistance for media organizations. This means you will be entirely responsible for your own visa, travel, health, communications and accommodation arrangements.
Accreditation Journalists travelling to East Timor to cover the popular consultation can be accredited to UNAMET on arrival, by providing a business card identifying the media organization for which they work and two passport-sized photographs with their name written on the back to Public Information Office staff at UNAMET headquarters.
Press briefings A daily press briefing in English is held at 9 a.m. at UNAMET HQ in Building 13 every morning Monday through Friday. An identical briefing in Bahasa Indonesia is held at 9.30 a.m. Additional briefings are sometimes held on weekends. Journalists will be advised of these during the weekday briefings. Press releases and other information from UNAMET is available on the World Wide Web at www.un.org/peace/etimor/etimor.htm
Travelling around East Timor Journalists are not permitted to travel in UN vehicles or helicopters. Private vehicles are available for rent locally. Petrol and diesel (called "solar") are available in small quantities in most towns. Please note that the roads are OK at best, and some inland and southern coastal roads are impassable except by 4-wheel drive. To date, it has proved possible to hire local drivers with 4-wheel drives, although there are a limited number. In Dili, there are two taxi companies.
Translators In Dili, it is possible to purchase supplies and travel round without speaking Tetun-Dili or Bahasa Indonesia. However, your communications with local people will be severely limited if you do not speak these languages. Whilst interpreters can be found in Dili, those with good English language skills are becoming increasingly scarce. Other languages (except Portuguese) are virtually unknown. It is usually possible to get by in Portuguese, which is still spoken by many older people. It is very difficult to find translators outside of Dili.
Accommodation Accommodation in Dili is scarce. Hotels are full and likely to remain so for the foreseeable future. Many journalists stay at the Turismo Hotel. However bookings must be made a long time in advance and at present the hotel is full. Likewise, the other major hotel, the Makhota, is fully booked. If you arrive without pre-arranged accommodation, you run the serious risk of sleeping outside or being at the mercy of generous media colleagues. Private houses can be rented, but arrangements have to be made on the ground, through the local "grapevine". At present, there are no real estate agents. Some journalists pool-rent houses. Outside Dili, accommodation is scarce. In some towns there is none. In others there are hotels or small government guesthouses (although many have already been block-booked).
Filing facilities There are a number of public telecommunication offices (known as a Wartel) in Dili anyone can make international calls and send email via facsimile lines. None of the hotels in Dili provide direct dial telephone lines or internet access. Guests may be able to make arrangements to use hotel office fax machines, at the discretion of the hotel manager. Journalists travelling to remote areas may require a satellite phone.
Medical facilities Medical facilities are available at hospitals in East Timor's major towns. Journalist might consider bringing an emergency medical kit. Malaria is widespread in East Timor. Consult your local health authorities for information regarding preventative medication and other medical recommendations.
Travel There are at least three flights into Dili per week from Jakarta via Denpassar (Bali). There are also flights from Darwin (Australia) and Denpassar into Kupang (West Timor). Kupang is about seven hours drive from Dili.
