Experienced Filipino becomes Police Commissioner of UN mission in Timor-Leste

The United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) has announced that a senior police adviser from the Philippines has been appointed as the Mission’s new Police Commissioner.

Rodolfo Aser Tor, who joined UNMIT on Saturday, replaces Portugal’s Antero Lopes, who had been acting in the post since mid-August, the Mission said in a media statement released today.

Mr. Tor’s lengthy career in policing includes a stint as Director of Plans and Director of Research and Development for the Philippine National Police and another as a regional police commander of two offices.

Finn Reske-Nielsen, Acting Special Representative of the Secretary-General in Timor-Leste, welcomed the appointment, which follows an agreement last week for the Mission’s police component to assume responsibility as the interim law enforcement agency in the South-East Asian country.

“We are at a critical juncture in UNMIT: the number of UN Police (UNPOL) officers is growing; they are expanding into the districts,” he said. “The PNTL (National Police of Timor-Leste) screening process is ongoing and the number of PNTLs in co-locations with UN POL officers is increasing. And UNMIT is gearing up for the 2007 elections. All of these elements will require expert coordination and command of an efficient UN POL service.”

For his part, Mr. Tor said he looked forward to his new duties and believed that “with hard work and perseverance from everyone involved we can successfully carry out the challenging mandate of UNMIT.”