SOLIDARITY OBSERVER MISSION FOR EAST
TIMOR
SOMET CODE OF CONDUCT
1. I, _____________________________, will abide by the SOMET Code of Conduct, the Code of Conduct issued by the government of Timor-Leste, and the United Nations (UN) Code of Conduct for election observers, if they have one.
2. I will be responsible to the Solidarity Observer Mission for East Timor (SOMET) and its decision-making processes. My first priority during my time as a SOMET member will be to the project.
3. I will, to the best of my ability, collect accurate and detailed information on the election process, including any intimidation, disturbances, legal irregularities and human rights violations, before, during and after the elections. I will provide this information to the relevant people within SOMET.
4. SOMET will formally provide regular information and reports to the
officials of the government of Timor-Leste through the Technical Secretariat
for Election Administration (STAE), the National Election Commission (CNE),
the media, the UN, and other relevant bodies.
However, I personally will not provide such information to people outside
the project unless requested to do so by the SOMET staff in Timor-Leste or
the SOMET Project Committee.
I understand that I will be dealing with international personnel within SOMET, as well as with independent groups in the field and that much informal communication may be involved. In this, I will be guided by the SOMET Principles and Mandate.
5. In my formal and informal dealings with the military and police, both national and international, I will be guided by the SOMET Principles and Mandate and by the Code of Conduct for Observers.
6. Due to concerns for team safety and the integrity of the project, I will not speak to media (print, radio, television, blogs, email lists, web sites, etc.) except about incidents which I have personally witnessed, unless specifically requested or appointed by SOMET staff or Project Committee. I will not make more general comments to the media or in public statements, or give descriptions or assessments of the overall situation in Timor-Leste or the progress of the election or pre-election conditions.
I will inform friends/family/supporters that any general statements on the elections in my correspondence are confidential and not to be shared with the media.
In all public statements and statements to media I will be strictly bound by the SOMET Principles and Mandate.
7. I will undertake specific tasks within SOMET -- e.g. liaison with local civil society groups, media, the UN or the RDTL Government, or assignment to a particular town or village, providing accompaniment for individuals -- as requested by the SOMET staff or Project Committee, assuming these requests are within reason.
I will also undertake tasks related to maintaining an office in Timor-Leste, as well as group living arrangements, as requested by SOMET staff.
8. I understand that my role is to help ensure that a free and fair vote can take place. I will not, by words or actions or visual marks (t-shirt, badge), express any opinion as to a preferred outcome of that vote.
9. I will wear identification clearly showing me to be part of SOMET, and, as appropriate, an observer accredited by the Technical Secretariat for Election Administration (STAE).
10. I will not use physical force against any person.
11. I will not use abusive or insulting language or threatening gestures.
12. On my return home, in all my public statements and statements to the media on the subject of Timor-Leste I will continue to be strictly bound by the SOMET Principles and Mandate.
13. I understand that breaking the code of conduct, threatening the safety of any person, or threatening the successful operation of the Observer Project, may result in my removal from the Project. If requested to dissociate myself from SOMET by the staff in consultation with the Project Committee, I will do so, and will not continue to use SOMET Observer Project identification.
14. If requested to leave Timor-Leste by SOMET staff or the Project Committee, I will do so.
15. When leaving the project or departing from Timor-Leste, I will officially notify the SOMET staff before doing so.
16. I will be bound by this code of conduct until such time as ETAN’s Executive Committee and its international partner organizations declare SOMET to have concluded.
Date _______________
Signed
(Participant Name)
(Witness’s Name)
(SOMET Representative Name)