POLICE NACIONAL DE TIMOR-LESTE

Submitted by:
Olano, Hercules V.
Moxsir, Muhhamad

Submitted to:
Prof. Maxima Panagsagan
 HISTORY

The PNTL was established in May 2002 by the United Nations, before sovereignty was passed
to the new state, with a mandate to provide security and maintain law and order throughout the country,
and to enable the rapid development of a credible, professional and impartial police service.
Recruitment drives were conducted in early 2000, and basic training commenced on 27 March 2000,
under the auspices of the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET). On 10
August 2001, the East Timor Police Service was officially established, working alongside CivPol, the
United Nations Civilian Police Force. It later changed its name to the Timor-Leste Police Service,
before finally adopting its current title of the Policia Nacional de Timor-Leste.

It was not until independence, on 20 May 2002, that an agreement was signed outlining the
terms and timetable for handing over of full policing duties from CivPol to the PNTL. The PNTL
finally assumed responsibility for the whole country on 10 December 2003.

There are at least three special units within the PNTL: the Police Reserve Unit, formerly the
Rapid Deployment Service; the Border Patrol Unit (Unidade de Patrulhamento de Fronteiras, UPF);
and the Rapid Intervention Unit, or UIR, modelled after the Portuguese National Republican Guard riot
police, which served in East Timor before its independence.
 PNTL
ADMINISTRATIVE
SUPPORT SERVICES
 Under the organization’s current structure, the PNTL is generally divided into three components: (1)
The office of the Commissioner and his immediate staff, (2) an Operational Division, headed by the Deputy
Commissioner for Operations, and (3) an Administrative Division, headed by a Deputy Commissioner for
Administration. The following organizational chart depicts the PNTL in its current form.
PNTL Structure
1. The PNTL shall be structured in accordance with the administrative divisions of the country
and shall comprise:

(a) the General Command;

(b) the Superior Police Council;
(c) the district and local commands of the PNTL.
2. The General Command is organized in two main areas being Operations and Support.
3. Each PNTL division level is headed by a commander of appropriate rank.

The General Command

1. The general command is located in the capital of the country and it comprises:

(a) the General Commander and deputies;

(b) the Professional Ethics Office
(c) the National Command of Operations;
(d) the National Directorate of Administration;

2. The PNTL General Commander and his Deputies shall have their own support office constituted by a chief of
staff, secretaries and administrative assistants, in such numbers as are necessary to conduct their tasks.

3. The Deputy General Commanders shall, ex-officio, be in charge of the National Command of Operations and
the National Directorate of Administration.

General Commander
1. The General Commander of the PNTL shall have the competency to conduct, coordinate, manage, control
and supervise all of the organs, commands and services of the PNTL, as an institution subordinate to the
Ministry of the Interior.

2. Additional responsibilities of the General Commander shall include the following:

(a) to represent the PNTL;

(b) to preside over the Superior Police Council;
(c) to ensure the execution of all of the activities related to the organization, its means and capabilities,
operations, instructions and the technical, logistical and administrative services of the PNTL;
(d) to assign or reassign personnel in police and civilian functions, according to the PNTL needs and
regulations;
(e) to use disciplinary power in accordance with the PNTL disciplinary regulation;
(f) to order the carrying out of inspections, inquiries and investigations into the organs and services of the
PNTL;
(g) to grant licenses for the use and carriage of weapons, as well as the issuance of weapon registration
documents, under the terms established by law;
(h) to execute the orders issued by the Minister of the Interior;
(i) to exercise the competencies delegated by the Minister of the Interior.

General Commander Deputies

1. The PNTL General Commander is assisted by two deputy commanders, one of whom is in charge of
operations and information, and the other in charge of administration, finance and human resources.

2. In case of absence or inability to act, the PNTL General Commander shall be replaced by his Deputy for
Operations and Information.

The Professional Ethics Office

1. The Professional Ethics Office shall work under the PNTL General Commander. The office is in charge of
inquiries, investigations and disciplinary processes as determined by the PNTL General Commander.

2. The Professional Ethics Office is headed by a senior PNTL officer.

3. The conduct of inquiries and investigations may also be ordered by the Minister of the Interior.

4. The results of the inquiries and investigations shall be sent to the Minister of theInterior who shall decide the
most appropriate measures to be taken.

National Command of Operations

1. The National Command of Operations is the structure of the General Command with competence to decide
on and carry out public security-related actions. It also carries out actions related to the operation and
deployment of the PNTL commands and operational units, as well as the development and maintenance of the
police information collection and processing system.

2. The National Command of Operations comprises the following units and services:

(a) Community Protection;

(b) Criminal Investigation;
(c) Traffic and Road safety;
(d) Marine Security;
(e) Information;
(f) Migration;
(g) VIP Security Unit;
(h) Special Units.
3. The Special Units are quartered reserve forces constituted of:
(a) Rapid Intervention Unit;
(b) Border Patrol Unit;
(c) PNTL Reserve Unit.
4. The district and local commands are under operational subordination to the National Command of
Operations, without prejudice to the specific competencies of the PNTL General Commander.

Community Protection Unit

The Community Protection Unit constitutes part of the general contingent and has the following specific
missions:

(a) to publicize the role and mission of the PNTL to the community;
(b) to keep public peace and order in collaboration with the community structures and the local population;
(c) to prevent occurrence of crimes, transgressions and other actions contrary to the Law;
(d) to protect public assets and buildings and places of strategic importance;
(e) to conduct investigations into crime-related activity;
(f) to protect embassies, consulates and other places covered by international conventions;
(g) to control the execution of the legal provisions regarding the use, load, transport and storage of firearms,
ammunition, explosives, chemical substances, poisonous and others that could be dangerous to the public;
(h) to ensure compliance with legal dispositions that govern public meetings performances;
(i) to perform any other tasks falling within the scope of its mission.

Criminal Investigation Unit

1. The Criminal Investigation Unit has the specific mission to prevent and combat crime, and its
mission includes:

(a) to investigate and conduct preparatory procedures related to the commission of ordinary offences;
(b) to investigate and conduct preparatory procedures or collaborate in activities related to other offences as
required or delegated by the competent instructing entity;
(c) to conduct surveillance on suspicious individuals, as well as to watch and control suspicious activities in
places favourable to the preparation or execution of crimes or that serve as a hiding place for criminals or are
favourable to the use of proceeds of crime.
(d) to perform any other tasks falling within the scope of its mission.

2. The Criminal Investigation Unit shall have full access to houses and enclosures of shows, in the port areas, in
ships moored or anchored in territorial waters of the Democratic Republic of the Timor-Leste, in the airports
and in the aircraft parked in national territory, in the headquarters of associations and generally in every place
that is used to conduct public meetings or where the public's access is allowed by payment of a fee or ticket
presentation, which is open to the public to purchase.

3. Police authorities and agents may, while conducting criminal investigation activities, enter, without the need
for any formalities, commercial, industrial, prison or social assistance establishments, including hotels, boarding
houses, warehouses, public offices or any other facilities other than private dwelling houses, provided that they
identify themselves before such entry.
4. The authorities and police agents, in a criminal investigation mission, shall act under the direction of the
competent judiciary authority in accordance with the penal procedural norms.

5. The functional dependence referred to in the previous sub article occurs without prejudice to
the hierarchical organization of the PNTL.

Traffic and Road Safety Unit

The Traffic and Road Safety Unit is part of the general contingent and they have as their specific mission:

(a) to guarantee the order and the public security in the roads, ports, airports and other enclosures and transport
terminals;
(b) to guarantee the public security and to assure the policing of access roads, including bridges, airports and
marine and river ports;
(c) to guarantee the protection of passengers and goods in vessels, in public transportation and transportation
accessed by the public;
(d) to organize, control and enforce the laws and regulations relating to the movement of vehicles and people;
(e) to organize the flow of traffic and the prevention of road accidents and to penalize breaches of traffic laws
and regulations;
(f) to conduct surveillance and the patrol of roads;
(g) to define the signaling and the demarcation of roads and pavements and to ensure the competent entity
carries out this work;
(h) to develop road safety campaigns and educate the citizens about respect for traffic laws;
(i) to perform any other tasks falling within the scope of its mission.

Marine Unit
The Marine Unit is part of the general contingent and they have as their specific mission:

(a) to conduct coast surveillance;

(b) to ensure, in conjunction with all other authorities, that fishing and other activities that are carried out along
the coast and the exclusive economic zone comply with the law;
(c) to monitor, in conjunction with the other administrative authorities, compliance with the tax and customs
laws applicable in the national maritime area;
(d) to collaborate with Falintil-FDTL and other administrative entities in all matters related to the control of the
marine borders;
(e) to perform any other tasks falling within the scope of its mission.
 Police Information Service
The Police Information Service has the specific mission to design, develop and maintain the PNTL operational
information system, and its mission includes:

(a) to define technical standards related to the search, collection and processing of information and data
considered of relevance to the PNTL;
(b) to carry out the study, selection and filing of information of relevance to the police;
(c) to carry out research and prepare reports on the crime rate and criminality in conjunction with other police
units;
(d) to participate in international cooperative efforts in security matters;
(e) to cooperate with other security forces and information services in matters falling within the scope of its
mission;
(f) to perform any other tasks falling within the scope of its mission.

Migration Service
The PNTL Migration Police Service has the specific mission to control the entry and exit of people across land
borders and airports and its tasks include:

(a) to control the entry, stay and exit of foreign citizens in the national territory;
(b) to grant visas in accordance with the law;
(c) to conduct processes of family reunification;
(d) to conduct processes of expulsion of foreign citizens;
(e) to perform any other tasks falling within the scope of its mission.

VIP Security Unit

1. The VIP Security Unit constitutes a unit specially designed to provide personal security to
such entities as determined by the PNTL within the scope of its responsibilities.

2. The VIP Security Police Unit has the same organizational structure as the other special police
units.

Rapid Intervention Unit (RIU)

The Rapid Intervention Unit constitutes a PNTL Reserve Force specially designed to carry out
the following missions:

(a) prevention of organized or widespread violence;

(b) maintenance and restoration of public order;
(c) collaboration with other police forces in the maintenance of order, in action against violent crime, in the
protection of important facilities and in the provision of security to entities in high ranking positions;
(d) collaboration with the district commands in patrolling under specific orders issued by the Commander of
Operations;
(e) any other tasks falling within the scope of its mission.

Border Patrol Unit (BPU)

The Border Patrol Unit (BPU) constitutes a PNTL Reserve Force specially designed to carry out the following
missions:

(a) patrolling and surveillance along the borders;

(b) controlling the entry and exit of people along the land borders;
(c) ensuring, in conjunction with the other administrative authorities, compliance with tax and customs laws;
(d) collaborating, when necessary, with F-FDTL and other administrative entities in all matters relating to the
control of land borders;
(e) performing any other tasks falling within the scope of its mission.

Police Reserve Unit (PRU)

1. The Police Reserve Unit constitutes a police unit specially designed and expected to intervene, in non-urban
areas, in situations of declared violence, where the resolution of such violence demands more than the normal
capabilities of police action.

2. The mission of the Police Reserve Unit is to:

(a) re-establish stability and order in rural areas;

(b) combat organized and violent crime;
(c) combat terrorism;
(d) collaborate with other police forces in patrolling under specific orders issued by the National Commander of
Operations;
(e) collaborate with the other defence and security forces as required by the law;
(f) perform any other tasks falling within the scope of its mission.

Organization of the Special Units

1. The reserve units shall have their headquarters in Dili and shall have the following organization:
(a) command;
(b) operational groups;
(c) support services.
2. By instruction issued by the PNTL General Commander, under proposal of the National Commander of
Operations, operational forces can be deployed in the districts; and in this case such forces shall be
operationally, logistically and administratively under the district commands,
which shall liaise with the National Command of Operations.
 National Directorate of Administration
1. The National Directorate of Administration is the structure of the General Command with competence for
performing activities in the administrative, financial, property and human resources management of the PNTL.

2. The National Directorate of Administration is comprised of the following departments:

(a) administration and planning;

(b) finance and budget;
(c) logistics;
(d) human resources.

3. The departments are divided into different sections and these in turn into subsections, in such a way as to
have greater effectiveness of services.

4. The logistics department shall have the following sections:

(a) general procurement;

(b) maintenance of infrastructure, vehicles and equipment;
(c) weapons and ammunition;
(d) communications;
(e) uniforms.

5. The detailed description of the functions of each Department, Section and Subsection can be found in the
rules of procedure of the National Directorate of Administration that shall be submitted for the approval of the
Minister of the Interior, by the General Commander of the PNTL, under proposal of the Deputy General
Commander in charge of the area.
Police Hierarchy
&
Divisions
1. Within the sphere of its legal competence, the police hierarchy includes officials performing
police functions within the command structure, namely:

(a) the General Commander of the PNTL and his or her Deputies;
(b) the Commander of Operations and his or her Deputy;
(c) the PNTL District Commanders;
(d) the Commander of the Rapid Intervention Unit;
(e) the Commander of the Border Patrol Unit;
(f) the Commander of the Reserve Police Unit;
g) the Commander of the Criminal Investigation Unit;
(h) the Commander of the Marine Police Unit;
(i) the Commander of the Traffic and Road Safety Unit;
(j) the Commander of the Community Protection Unit;
(k) the Commander of the VIP Protection Unit;
(l) the Director of Migration;
(m) the Director of the PNTL Intelligence Service;
(n) the Director of the Police Academy.
 RANK
CLASSIFICATION
FOR ARMY & NAVY

PNTL
 PNTL
UNIFORM
NATURE
OF
PNTL
1. The National Police of Timor-Leste (PNTL) is the security force that has the MISSION to defend the
democratic legality, to guarantee the people's safety and welfare and to safeguard the citizens' rights, under the
terms established by the Constitution and the Law.

2. The PNTL is a security force, strictly non-partisan, whose motto is to uphold law and order.

3. The PNTL is subordinate to the Ministry of the Interior and it has the same organization throughout the
national territory.

4. The PNTL shall be organized hierarchically at all levels of its structure, making however a distinction
between police functions and general functions of public administration, obeying the command hierarchy and
the general rules of the public administration.

Vission
To build the capacity of the Office of Inspection and Audit in its disciplinary, audit, monitoring, and
oversight systems for the National Police of Timor-Leste (PNTL).

Competencies
1. In situations of institutional normality, the competencies of the PNTL are those that arise from internal
security legislation and in exceptional situations are those that arise from legislation on national defence, state
of siege and state of emergency.

2. Within the framework of internal security policy and without prejudice to the legal responsibilities of other
entities, the fundamental goals of the PNTL are:

(a) to guarantee the maintenance of public order, security and peace;

(b) to promote conditions to assure the normal operation of the democratic institutions and the exercise of the
rights and the fundamental freedoms of citizens;
(c) to prevent crime and the occurrence of actions contrary to the law and regulations;
(d) to combat organized crime and terrorism, in coordination with all other forces and security services;
(e) to perform the functions set out in the law in regard to the penal process and collect information about crime
occurrences, to impede crime consequences and pursue the perpetrators of crime;
(f) to collect, process and disseminate information relevant to the prevention and combat of crime;
(g) to operate the national office of INTERPOL;
(h) to guarantee the surveillance of the borders by controlling the movement of people and goods in
consultation with other relevant agencies;
(i) to ensure compliance with the procedures for the entry, stay, exit and expulsion of foreigners from the
national territory;
(j) to ensure road safety by planning, monitoring and directing traffic;
(k) to ensure security at sporting or similar events;
(1) to participate in port and marine security, under the terms defined by law;
(m) to render help to members of the public and assist victims of accidents;
(n) to participate in international missions, under the terms defined by the Government;
(o) to contribute to the training of and information to citizens in security-related matters;
(p) to participate in the presentation of State honours;
(q) to collaborate with and support the State Security Service in the prevention and combating of subversive
actions against the institutionally established order and the democratically elected organs;
(r) to collaborate with and assist FALINTIL-FDTL in the defence of the national sovereignty and territorial
integrity;
(s) to fulfil all the other responsibilities as determined by law.

3. It is the exclusive responsibility of the PNTL, in the whole national territory to control the manufacture,
storage, sale, use and transport of weapons, ammunition and explosive substances and other similar products
that do not belong to the Armed Forces or other security forces recognized by law.

4. It is the responsibility of the PNTL to guarantee the personal security of the members of the organs of
sovereignty and state officials, national or foreign, as well as other citizens reasonably considered to be under a
situation of threat.
 WEAPONS
AND
VEHICLES USE
 WEAPONS

Heckler & Koch G36

GLOC- 9

Steyr AUG

M16- Rifle

FN FNC

FN F2000

Heckler & Koch HK33

 Use of weapons
1. When performing their competencies, members of the PNTL are entitled to use and carry a weapon of any
nature, without having a license or authorization. However, if such weapon is the personal property of a
member of the PNTL, then the use and carriage of such weapon must be declared.

2. The previous subarticle shall not apply to those personnel who are subject to compulsory retirement as a
disciplinary penalty.

VEHICLES
 PNTL
RECRUITMENT
&
TRAINING
 Based on the UNTAET regulations outlining the formation of the PNTL, the requirements set
for applicants were as follows:

• Of good character and a resident of Timor-Leste;

• Not less than 18 and not over 35 years of age;
• Able to speak, write and understand one or more of the languages of
Timor-Leste;
• Pass the required physical and medical tests; and
• Pass a selection interview.

The training for the East Timorese National Police is composed of:

Basic Training: three months classroom training in the Police Academy

Field Training: nine months "on the job" training

Specialist Training: such as bomb search, investigations and basic intelligence

Special Training: given to special units such as the UIR (Rapid Intervention Unit, see below) and the
UPV (Vulnerable Persons Unit)

Professional Courses: management and administration.

 Police Academy

The selected candidates undergo three months of basic training at the Police Academy, where
they learn theory and become familiar with police work. The training program was prepared by the UN
and covers 54 subjects, with monthly exams. Many national police recruits have only middle school
education, so they sometimes have trouble understanding all of the material covered in such a short
period.

This basic training was extended. It started off at only three months, but soon the authorities
understood that it was insufficient and increased it to four months. This length also didn’t satisfy the
learning and ability needs that this profession demands. “With a more rigorous training, we can
improve our Police’s structure and capacity. We have already decided that the police’s basic training
will have the duration of one year: nine months of basic training followed by three months of on the job
training”, explained the Secretary of State for Security, also saying that this process will already be
applied this year to the new 250 recruits.
 Crime prevention program
The project, "Strengthening Land Border Controls in Timor Leste", will support infrastructure
development, cross-border cooperation and high quality sustainable training in border management. It
will be implemented at the Police Academy in the capital, Dili, and in the administrative districts of
Covalima, Bobonaro and Oecusse.

The UNODC project will train and equip the PNTL's Border Patrol Unit to better control and manage
the country's land borders and improve border security. It aims to more effectively interdict smuggling
along the border; enhance cooperation and interaction with Indonesian border counterparts; and
develop sustainable, high quality border management training at the National Police Training
Academy.

Project activities will include trainings, provision of vehicles and appropriate equipments, study visits
and the development of a Learning Management System (LMS) and border control course modules in
local languages.
 POLICE AND PUBLIC PERCEPTION
Even previous to the 2006 crisis, concerns were raised of the PNTL specifically targeting young
men suspected of being politically active. The paramilitary UIR police force in particular gained a
‘macho image’, which tended to undermine rather than bolster public confidence. UIR officers also
have a tendency to wear riot gear and conspicuously display riot control equipment and weapons in
public, even during events which are meant to act as confidence-building exercises for the public.
There have been serious allegations of sexual misconduct, harassment and sexual violence
levelled against members of the PNTL. A report by JSMP listed several cases of sexual assault and
rape by PNTL members and allegations of sexual harassment in the force. A report by the women’s
organisation Alola Foundation states further cases of sexual assault, harassment and alleged
involvement of PNTL officers in trafficking female sex workers. The PNTL has tended to brush off
these allegations.