Recommendation 18 (Election Administration) Timor-Leste 2007
http://aceproject.org/ero-en/regions/pacific/TL/timor-leste-final-report-presidential-and/at_download/file
Although the Minister of State Administration was a candidate in the Parliamentary Elections she did not openly interfere in the work of STAE. However there is an inherent conflict of interest present in such cases. This could be avoided by having an independent electoral administration which is more appropriate for countries where the election administration is new as in Timor-Leste and public institutions still do not have the necessary credibility among the population. The independent status of similar electoral bodies (the STAE and the CNE) from other state institutions is a common international practice that helps improve the credibility of the electoral administration.
