Pillar II in Focus - The Responsibility to Assist

[Extract] On Saturday 7 July 2012 the people of Timor-Leste went to the polls to decide the composition of their next parliament. This was the third major test of electoral security this year with the Presidential elections of March and April resulting in a successful handover of the office of President from José Ramos-Horta to the former guerilla fighter, and most recently the leader of the Armed Forces of the independent state, Taur Matan Ruak. The July Parliamentary poll was widely seen as a barometer of the success of the long term United Nations (UN) presence in the country. With the election being conducted without major violent incident, the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) can adhere to its UN Security Council mandate and begin to withdraw a sizeable component of its police-support at the end of the year in accordance with UNSC Res 2037 (2012).