Preliminary Report by the Election Observation Mission from the Government of Japan

 
The Government of Japan dispatched an election observation mission for the Parliamentary election held on July 22, 2017. The mission consisted of 5 observers headed by the former Ambassador to Timor-Leste, Mr. Iwao Kitahara. On the Election Day, the mission observed in Dili and Liquica.
 
On the whole, the election was conducted in a very peaceful and orderly manner. The Japanese election observation mission would like to congratulate the National Election Commission (CNE) and the Technical Secretariat for Election Administration (STAE) for carrying out their tasks with high proficiency, with earnest efforts and dedication, which has marked yet another milestone for free and fair election following the Presidential election. The Japanese mission is pleased to show its respect to the people of Timor-Leste, as they finely succeeded in managing the first Parliamentary election after the withdrawal of UNMIT. Under the ownership of the people and Government of Timor-Leste, in close cooperation with the international community, the Japanese mission has confirmed that the election was conducted in a credible and transparent manner with a firm foundation of democratic governance and strong commitment by the political leaders.
 
Throughout the observation activities, the mission noticed with profound satisfaction that Japan’s grant assistance to CNE/STAE through UNDP(LEARN Project) has been indeed timely and necessary for CNE/STAE to ensure logistical and technical preparation.
 
The Japanese election observation mission would again congratulate the people and the Government of Timor-Leste on the successful election, which further bolstered the international community’s confidence in the consolidation of peace, democracy and solidarity in Timor-Leste. At the same time, the mission would like to expect all the political parties and people of Timor-Leste to respect the outcome of the election and strongly believes that now Timor-Leste has made great strides towards building a prosperous future.
 
The Government of Japan will remain committed to supporting Timor-Leste and is looking forward to working with the upcoming Government of Timor-Leste to further strengthen our bilateral relations.