EAST TIMOR: UN LOOKS AHEAD TO NEXT ROUND OF ELECTION

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Dili, 19 April (AKI) - As it looked ahead to the second round of the presidential election, the United Nations has welcomed the preliminary results of the presidential poll in East Timor, now known as Timor-Leste, and praised the non-violent nature of the voting. "The two candidates who have obtained the highest number of votes will now contest a second round, on May 9. Again, these elections will have the benefit of considerable assistance from the international community, including through the United Nations," UN spokesperson Michele Montas told reporters in New York.

"The United Nations is particularly pleased that the first round of the election was completed without any serious incidents of violence and intimidation during the campaign, vote and the counting of ballots, and that candidates have made full use of the appropriate legal channels to raise their concerns about the process."

East Timor Prime Minister Jose Ramos-Horta and the country's parliament chief, Francisco Guterres, have been confirmed as the two candidates that will contest the presidential runoff.

Guterres, a former resistance fighter and also president of the ruling Fretilin party, got 28 percent of the vote, while Horta came second with 22 percent. The first round of the election was held on April 9.

The final results would now be certified by the Court of Appeals after consideration of any appeals that are lodged within the permissible 24-hour period.

Last Monday's poll was the first in Timor-Leste since it gained independence from Indonesia in 2002.

Indonesia invaded East Timor when Portugal pulled out in 1975. Lisbon had ruled the Southeast Asian country for centuries.

The presidential vote came after a year of political tension and social violence which has polarised a large part of the local population, led to a change of government, forced 150,000 Timorese to abandon their homes and killed about 50 people.