The European Parliament delegation is delighted to be back in Timor Leste, a country we have been supporting for long. And it has been for me an honour to lead this delegation composed of seven members from five EU member states, which has been integrated within the framework of the EU Election Observation Mission headed by my colleague Ms Bilbao Barandica.

First let me underline that we fully endorse what has been said by Ms Bilbao Barandica and we support the conclusions of the EU EOM. We look forward to receiving the final results of the elections.

These have been the first national elections that the Timorese authorities have organised without the assistance of the United Nations. This represents a significant step on the path to the embedding of democracy in Timor Leste.

Congratulations on this great achievement which strengthens confidence in the governance of your country.

During our five days in Timor Leste we have met with almost all the presidential candidates, as well as the electoral authorities and representatives of civil society. We have also met with the Speaker of the National Assembly, the Prime Minister, and other leading figures in the Timorese government and Parliament, with former Presidents of the country, and with the Bishop of Baucau. On all occasions we have stressed the support of the European Parliament to the consolidation of the democratic process in Timor Leste. As you know, the EU has maintained a very close relationship with Timor Leste even before 1999, throughout the process leading to its independence.

On Election Day our delegation split into three teams, deployed in Liquiça, Manatuto, and Baucau. All three teams also observed in Dili. Generally we were very impressed by the administration and organisation of the election, which we considered to have taken place in a very smooth and peaceful manner. We were pleased to note the very competent role played by polling stations officials, of whom many were women and young people.

We were also impressed by the strong engagement of the population in the electoral process - despite the logistical and financial difficulties faced by some who often had to walk long distances to get to their polling stations. We commend the people for their commitment and belief in the power of the vote to determine their future.

So we will be coming away with a very positive impression. Nevertheless - looking to the future - we wish to raise some issues where we see the need for further improvements in the management of the electoral process.

We observed that the polling centre officials very rarely made a point of checking the ink on voters' fingers, which is the only way to ensure there is no double voting. This issue is not the result of any misunderstanding of the procedures on the part of the staff of the polling stations, but is because the procedures themselves are not clear enough. Although we do not consider that this had an impact on the results, we believe that this point needs to be addressed with the upcoming parliamentary elections in mind.

And - more generally - we were also struck by the very limited numbers of domestic observers in the polling stations. In this respect, and echoing the requests from local NGOs, we urge the international community to be more active in providing capacity support to civil society, in particular in assisting the empowerment of women and young people at all levels.

Moving away from Election Day itself, we should mention two fundamental issues affecting the election process that need to be addressed.

Firstly, the financing of the political parties. Currently the lack of implementation of the regulatory framework in this area, possibly due to the lack of human resources, puts some candidates at a clear disadvantage. And - on top of that - there is no identification of the sources of funds, which could lead to the possibility of foreign influence over Timorese politics. We are concerned that, if this problem is overlooked, there is potential for corruption to infect the political system.

Secondly - and linked to the previous point - we have concerns over the issue of equal access to the media. Those candidates with large and unregulated funding were at a significant advantage over candidates with more limited resources. We see the need for strong media regulation - especially when political parties are establishing their own media outlets - in order to ensure a level playing field, notably during the electoral campaigns.

We anticipate that we will be returning to Timor Leste to observe the parliamentary elections later in the year, which will be another crucial step on the progress of Timor Leste towards the construction of a state based on democracy, with stability, respect for human rights and the development of its people.

As in the past, the whole of the EU - and in particular the European Parliament - will stand by the people of Timor Leste as it continues to consolidate its democratic path.