Strengthening democracy by focusing on critical issues

Party loyalty rather than issue-oriented debate has defined Timor-Leste’s young democracy since independence, but dissatisfaction has grown over issues like health care, education, and agricultural services, eroding public confidence in the distribution of development gains. The Asia Foundation’s recent Tatoli! survey, funded by the Australia Government, provided hard evidence of this discontent. Released just before the country’s fourth parliamentary elections, the survey’s analysis of public concerns enabled the Foundation, through meetings, presentations, and publications, to encourage politicians to campaign on the issues. The effort bore fruit in 2017, when an interagency government panel asked the Foundation to prepare concept notes and a code of conduct for Timor-Leste’s first-ever presidential debate. On March 17, eight presidential candidates debated the critical issues live on national radio and television.