DILI, 27 june 2022 (TATOLI) – The Network of Jurisdictional Bodies and Electoral Administration of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (ROJAE-CPLP) praised Timor-Leste for its success in organizing a peaceful Presidential election.
ROJAE-CPLP expressed its appreciation for the successful election in Timor-Leste during the visit of the CNE’s delegation to Angola recently.
In a meeting with other members of ROJAE-CPLP in Angola, CNE presented the progress of the election in Timor-Leste.
“We shared with ROJAE-CPLP about our election overseas and they also shared with us about their experience on early elections, etc. Form this visit, we may adopt new experiences to boost our elections,” President of the National Electoral Commission, José Agostinho da Costa Belo told reporters after presenting CNE’s preparation for the 2023 Timor-Leste Parliamentary Election, at the Presidential Palace, today.
“ROJAE-CPLP congratulated and praised Timor-Leste for its success with the Presidential Election.”
He said it’s important for Timor-Leste to learn new experiences from other countries: “Adopting new experiences from other countries is essential to ensure a healthy and trustworthy election in the country.”
Belo stressed that to improve the election in the country, Timor-Leste needs to update its voter database, saying it would be better for the country to introduce biometric technology in Timor-Leste’s elections to prevent electoral fraud.
Biometric voter registration implicates using biometric technology (capturing unique physical features of an individual – fingerprinting is the most commonly used), most of the time in addition to demographics of the voter, for polling registration and/or authentication. The enrollment infrastructure allows collecting and maintaining a database of the biometric templates for all voters.
Belo also emphasized the importance of producing braille ballot papers to facilitate people with vision impairment.
“The tactile ballot templates will allow people with sight loss to vote in secret,” he said.
Journalist: Filomeno Martins
Editor: Nelia Borges
