Who should grant environmental licenses for mining and petroleum?

Liga ba artigu ne'e iha Tetum

One of the State’s fundamental objectives is: “to protect the environment and to preserve natural resources.” (Article 6(f) of the RDTL Constitution). The Constitution continues: “The State should promote actions aimed at protecting the environment and safeguarding the sustainable development of the economy” (Article 61.3), and “The exploitation of the natural resources shall preserve the ecological balance and prevent destruction of ecosystems.” (Article 139.3).

Article 33.1(o) of Decree-Law 14/2018 of 17 August assigns to the Ministry of Petroleum and Mining (MPM, previously MPRM) the responsibility to carry out the environmental licensing process for petroleum and mining, including granting of licenses. This law also assigns MPM the tasks of guaranteeing maximum participation in Timor-Leste’s petroleum and mining sector activities and promoting sectoral opportunities by attracting and ensuring foreign investment.

With one hand MPM is meant to maximize growth in the sector, and with the other hand they are given the power to issue environmental licenses. From an industry perspective, having the MPM in charge would help to streamline and secure the process to meet industry goals.  From an environmental perspective, having the MPM in change could spell massive disaster, including the destruction of land, poisoning of water and polluting of air. We must protect our environment from this conflict of interest.

Over the last decade, the MPM has grown, and now has several large institutions under its umbrella, including a regulatory body (ANPM), a national oil company (TimorGAP), a geological research center (IPG), and a nascent national mining company (MT). MPM, representing the Timor-Leste Government, also promotes and manages the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), whose focus is on transparency at an international standard. To add environmental licensing responsibilities for petroleum and mining to this list not only violates basic principles of good governance; it points to sectoral ambitions which, for the sake of our environment, need independent control.

Environmental licensing is intended to guarantee sustainable use of our natural resources and to ensure a clean and healthy environment for current and future generations of Timorese people. For example, before the government builds a power plant, road, airport or large building, or before a private company builds a factory, oil well, refinery or tourist resort, they must, by law, present project documents, including an Environmental Impact Assessment and an Environment Management Plan, to the Environmental Authority. The Authority evaluates and suggests changes to these documents before it issues an environmental license, which is required before a major project can be built. In this way, the Environmental Authority can help ensure that large development projects are carried out properly, sustainably, and minimizing negative impacts on the environment and people’s lives.

Timor-Leste’s existing environmental regulations have strong principles, mechanisms and processes, as described in the Base Law on the Environment (Decree-Law 26/2012) and the Environmental Licensing Law (Decree-Law 5/2011).  These laws define the role of the Environmental Authority to lead procedures relating to environmental impact evaluations and issuing environmental licenses for development projects with significant environmental risks and impacts, including in the petroleum and mining sector. These laws and their complementary policies require transparency and basic principles of good governance, and for the largest projects, they require consultation and planning with the local community.

For environmental regulation of large development projects to be effective, it must be led by an independent entity, not one whose goals include the promotion and implementation of these same projects. This ensures accountability (checks and balances), transparency and shields against political interventions in the implementation of the law due to conflicts of interest.

The National Directorate for Pollution Control and Environmental Impact (DNCPIA), under the Secretary of State for the Environment, is the existing Environmental Authority with the mandate to regulate and lead the evaluation and approval process for environmental licensing. According to La’o Hamutuk’s observations, DNCPIA has the experience and technical skills to implement policies and laws related to environmental licensing. La’o Hamutuk encourages the Government to build on and invest in the knowledge, experience and technical skills which already exist within the Environmental Authority, and to address any specific limitations as needed. This will ensure proper and sustainable implementation of the environmental laws.

We all depend on Timor-Leste’s land, water and air; together, we must defend and protect this precious and fragile environment. For that reason, we must together insist that Article 33.1(o) be removed from Decree-Law 14/2018.

Our environment needs all the advocates it can get right now, and we call on decision makers in Government and Parliament and all citizens to raise your voice against the dangerous implications of article 33.1(o) of the Decree-Law.  If this Decree-Law is not changed, there will be huge and devastating consequences for people and the living things around us for many generations to come.

On 11 September, La’o Hamutuk wrote a letter to the Prime Minister urging him to reconsider this issue, which we also described in a press release.

LH karta ba Parlamentu rua kona-ba Tratadu Fronteira Maritima

Link to this article in English

Iha loron 6 Marsu tinan 2018, Timor-Leste no Australia asina Tratadu foun atu estabelese sira nia fronteira maritima. Tratadu foun ne'e hein ratifikasaun husi nasaun rua. La'o Hamutuk haruka ona submisaun ida ba Parlamentu Australia iha fulan Abril.

Ami foin hakerek submisaun ida tan ba Parlamentu Nasional RDTL. PN sei debate ratifikasaun durante fulan ida ne'e. Ami nia pontu prinsipál mak ne'e:

• La’o Hamutuk fó parabéns nasaun rua nia esforsu hodi define fronteira marítima hafoin luta tinan barak nia laran.
• Ami enkoraja Governu atu ratifika lalais Tratadu ida ne’e.
• Timor-Leste tenke mantén nafatin nia sistema governasaun ne’ebé efetivu hodi jere setór petrolíferu.
• Presiza foka ba enerjia no rekursu nasaun ne’e nian hodi diversifika ekonomia atu nune’e hadook-an husi dependénsia petrolíferu.
• Molok aumenta tan gastu ba Projetu Tasi Mane, Governu, Parlamentu no públiku tomak tenke estuda kle’an rezultadu husi avaliasaun fiskál, sosiál, ekonomiku no ambiental, hodi tetu kustu, benefísiu no risku sira. 
• Sidadaun Timor-Leste no Australia sei kontinua ezije ba Governu Australia atu selu osan biliaun $5 husi rendimentu petrolíferu nian ne’ebé foti husi Timor-Leste nia territóriu marítima. 

Atu hetan informasaun kle’an liu iha Ingles, hare LH nia website.

LH letters to Parliaments on Maritime Boundary Treaty

Liga ba artigu ne'e iha Tetum

On 6 March, Timor-Leste and Australia signed a Treaty to finally establish their maritime boundary, which is pending ratification by both countries. La'o Hamutuk made a submission to Australia's Parliament in April.  

We have just written a submission to Timor-Leste's National Parliament, which is expected to discuss ratification later this month. Our main points are:

• We appreciate both nations’ success in defining our maritime boundary, after decades of struggle and frustration.
• We encourage Timor-Leste and Australia to ratify the Treaty expeditiously.
• Timor-Leste should maintain its effective, transparent system for managing petroleum activities.
• Our nation needs to focus its energy and resources on diversifying our economy away from petroleum dependency.
• Before spending more money on the Tasi Mane project, the Government, Parliament and the public should study a rigorous and objective assessment of its fiscal, social, economic and environmental costs, benefits and risks.

 For more information on this complex and critical issue, see La'o Hamutuk's website.

La’o Hamutuk fó Hanoin ba Autór sira katak sira nia Hakerek iha Konsekuénsia

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Liberdade espresaun mai ho responsabilidade. Maske La’o Hamutuk kontra medida legal ne’ebé bele limita diskusaun, ami atu bolu observadór polítiku sira - inklui jornalista, akadémiku, no hakerek na’in ba blogu sira, liuliu hirak ne’ebé la’ós Timoroan no hakerek husi rai li’ur de’it - atu tau iha neon katak, bainhira sira ezersísiu sira nia liberdade espresaun, presiza konsidera konsekuénsia negativu husi sira nia hakerek ba Timoroan sira.  La’o Hamutuk (Institutu Analiza Monitorizasaun ba Dezenvolvimentu Timor-Leste) harii iha prinsipiu ida katak ema sira internasionál ho nasionál servisu hamutuk hodi tane as justisa sosiál iha Timor-Leste, no ami hato’o sujestaun ba ami nia belun internasionál sira.

Blogu rua ne’ebé foin lalais publika kona-ba lideransa polítika balun, sirkula iha media sosiál, hanesan ezemplu rua kona-ba artigu hirak ne’ebé ladún konstrutivu no laiha responsabilidade.  Artigu ida kona-ba Prezidente Lu Olo, nakonu ho sensasionál kona-ba abuzu konstituisional, no artigu seluk ne’ebé kompara Xanana Gusmão nia relasaun ho feto sira ho Donald Trump.

Klaru, importante atu lideransa polítika sira banati tuir standard ne’ebé as, no laiha lideransa mak bele sees husi kritika sira.  Ho ida ne’e, komentáriu sira presiza bazeia ba evidénsia, konsistente ho prinsipiu étika jornalizmu nian, no konstrutivu. Spekulasaun, la uza fonte nia naran, ataka pesoál no uza liafuan manas sei la ajuda ema ida.  Debate kona-ba Timor-Leste presiza foka ba programa no implementasaun programa sira, la’ós foka ba personalidade. Ho situasaun polítika foin lalais, nasaun ida ne’e presiza komentadór, lideransa polítika no sidadaun sira ne’ebé foka ba programa ne’ebé bele servi hanesan matadalan ba nasaun ba tinan 5 tuir mai, no aban bainrua.

Perspetiva husi li’ur bele ajuda fornese debate no lori esperiénsia no informasaun adisionál; maibé mós bele lori konsekuénsia ne’ebé ita la hakarak.  Ema hirak ne’ebé lee artigu sira, presiza tetu katak artigu ne’e loos ka lae, no hanoin dala rua molok sirkula.

Ita hotu iha responsabilidade atu hamenus tensaun, ataka pesoál no debate partidáriu. Buat hirak ne’e, bele aumenta dezafiu ba dalan atu hadi’ak liu tan Timoroan nia moris, povu ida ne’ebé tinan barak nia laran sofre ho intervensaun husi nasaun li’ur sira.  Hakerek na’in sira iha rai li’ur sei la moris ho impaktu negativu sira, maibé Timoroan sira mak sei moris ho nia konsekuénsia sira ne’e.  Hakerek na’in sira ne’ebé hadomi rai doben ida ne’e, iha obrigasaun moral atu kontribui ho meius pozitivu no uza dalan konstrutivu. 

Nasaun estranjeiru sira ukun Timor-Leste iha tinan atus barak nia laran, no dala barak sira la tau matan ba interese povu nian.  Ohin loron Timor-Leste ukun rasik an, mai ita hotu tenke muda husi luta rezisténsia ida ne’e ba luta hodi enkoraja malu.  Mai tau neon hamutuk hodi kontribui ba debate ida konstrutivu, persuasivu, no kolabora ho espíritu ida atu lori nasaun ida ne’e ba oin.

La’o Hamutuk Reminds Authors that their Writing has Consequences

Lee artigu ne'e iha lingua Tetum

Freedom of speech comes with responsibility. Although La’o Hamutuk opposes legal measures which could restrict discussion, we urge all political observers - including journalists, academics and bloggers, particularly non-Timorese who write from a distance - to remember that they should consider the repercussions on the Timorese people when they use their freedom of speech.  La’o Hamutuk (the Timor-Leste Institute for Development Monitoring and Analysis) was founded on the principle that internationals and nationals work together to advance social justice in Timor-Leste, and we therefore offer this suggestion to the country’s international friends.

Two recent blog articles circulated on social media and focusing on political leaders exemplify unconstructive and irresponsible commentary.  One lambasts President Lu Olo with sensational accusations of constitutional abuse, while another compares Xanana Gusmão’s relationships with women to Donald Trump.

Political leaders should be held to a high standard, and no leader’s actions are above criticism. That said, commentary should be evidence-based, consistent with basic principles of journalistic ethics, and constructive.  Speculation, unnamed sources, personal attacks and inflammatory language are not helpful.  Additionally, debate about Timor-Leste should focus on policies, not personalities.  In the wake of recent political events, this country needs commentators, political leaders and citizens to focus on the programs that will shape the next five years and beyond.

Outside perspectives can improve debate by bringing in additional experiences and information; they also have consequences.  People who read these articles should also exercise judgment about their accuracy and helpfulness, and think twice before circulating or reposting them.

We all share responsibility to try to reduce polarization, personal attacks and counter-attacks, and partisanship.  These add unnecessary challenges to the difficult task of improving the lives of Timor-Leste’s people, who have already suffered greatly from outside intervention.  Overseas authors may not experience the negative impact of their writings, but the Timorese people will live with the consequences.  Authors who care about this beloved country have a moral obligation to contribute in a positive and constructive way.

For centuries, Timor-Leste was ruled by foreign governments who ignored the needs and desires of our people.  Now that we are independent, we need to change our approach from resistance to encouragement.  Please join us in the spirit of constructive debate, persuasion and collaboration which can move our country forward.

Hamutuk ita bele! Fiar an, la’o ba oin!

Link to this blog in English

Loron-sesta, 20 fulan-jullu mak sai loron okupadu ba Parlamentu no Governu foun.

Hafoin hadau malu no la ko’alia ho konstrutivu ba asuntu xave sira, Parlamentu aprova lei dahuluk (lia-portugés ka lia-inglés) husi mandatu foun lejizlativu nian. Nune’e sira autoriza transferénsia husi Fundu Petrolíferu hodi uza ba operasaun mákina governu to’o bele aprova Orsamentu Estadu tinan 2018 nian. Haree pájina web La’o Hamutuk nian hodi hetan informasaun tan.

Iha loron hanesan, Konsellu Ministru sira aprova Programa Governu ne’ebé fahe iha Parlamentu. Ami enkoraja Membru Parlamentu sira, sosiedade sivíl, sidadaun no observadór hotu atu lee no analiza dokumentu ne’e ho pájina 135, tanba programa no projetu sira ne’ebé hetan deskreve iha laran mak sei sai matadalan ba futuru Timor-Leste nian. La’o Hamutuk publika ona programa sira ne’e no bele hetan iha La’o Hamutuk nia pájina web ida-ne’e.

La’o Hamutuk espera katak diskusaun kona-ba programa ida-ne’e sei haree asuntu importante sira no sai konstrutivu liu kompara ho debate iha Parlamentu iha loron-sesta kotuk. Kuaze Timoroan hotu la’ós polítiku-na’in, maibé sira sidadaun baibain ne’ebé sei simu impaktu husi desizaun polítika, programa no asaun husi ofisiál sira-ne’ebé hetan fiar povu nian atu serbisu ba interese públiku. Programa Governu mak oportunidade atu ema hotu bele konsidera, diskute no deside ba dalan ne’ebé di’ak liu ba dezenvolvimentu ekitável no sustentável ba ita-nia nasaun tomak.

Hamutuk ita bele!  Fiar an, la’o ba oin!

Together we can! Trust in ourselves, move forward!

Hamutuk ita bele! Fiar an, la’o ba oin!
(Campaign slogans from Fretilin and CNRT)

Liga ba blog ne'e iha Tetum

Friday 20 July was a busy day for Timor-Leste’s new Parliament and Government.

After a long day of partisan squabbling, Parliament approved the first law of the new legislative term, authorizing a transfer from the Petroleum Fund to fund government operations until the 2018 State Budget is passed. See La’o Hamutuk’s web page for more information.

Also that day, the Council of Ministers approved the Government Program (Tetum or Portuguese) and circulated it to Parliament. We encourage the Members of Parliament, civil society, and all citizens and commentators to read and analyze this 130-page document carefully, as the programs and projects it describes will set the direction for the future of Timor-Leste. La’o Hamutuk has posted the Program (with partial, unofficial English translation) on a web page.

La’o Hamutuk hopes that discussion of the Program will be more substantive and constructive than the Parliamentary debate last Friday. The vast majority of Timorese people are not politicians, but are ordinary citizens whose lives are affected by the policies, programs and actions of the officials whom they have entrusted to act in the public interest. The Government Program is an opportunity for everyone to consider, discuss and decide on the best pathways toward equitable, sustainable development for the entire nation.

Hamutuk ita bele!  Fiar an, la’o ba oin!