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Hundreds of monitors to ensure fair poll in North
More than 700,000 voters are eligible to go to the polls next Saturday in the first ever Provincial Council election for only the North since the 13th Amendment to the Constitution was introduced in 1987. It comes after the military defeat of Tiger guerrillas four and a half years ago and assumes greater significance in many respects. For the UPFA Government, it is a test of strength after it embarked on several development programmes in the five northern districts — Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu, Vavuniya and Mannar.
The main contender, the Tamil National Allaiance (TNA), wants “self-determination based on a federal structure” for the Tamils. Its manifesto also lists demands on a number of contentious issues. One is a demand for an international investigation into allegations of violations of international human rights law by Tiger guerrillas and the Security Forces during the final stages of the war.
“Voters should be objective and keep an open mind. They should not be misled by diaspora elements,” Jaffna’s Security Forces Commander Major General Mahinda Hathurusinghe said. He told the Sunday Times that practically every family had at least one member from the diaspora which had its own agenda.
The past few days have seen an influx of Colombo-based diplomats to this northern capital. Their focus is the elections and they were seen interviewing not only candidates but members of civil society organisations too. In the peninsula monitors from India, Japan, the Philippines, Nepal, Thailand, Cambodia, Indonesia and Taiwan have taken up position.
In the North alone, some 1,000 observers were being deployed, Rohana Hettiaratchchi, Executive Director for People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL) told the Sunday Times.
He said they had also invited eight other observers, including the chairman of the Asia Network for Free Elections (ANFREL). Beside these monitors, the Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE) would deploy 600 monitors in the north, its Director Keerthi Tennekoon said. The Department of Elections would field 25 monitors to key areas in the North, an official said.
The deployment of such a large number of monitors was probably aimed at minimising election malpractice, a Government official in Jaffna said.
There are 714,488 people who are eligible to vote in the North. Of this, 426,703 are in the Jaffna District. A total of 906 candidates are in the fray from 85 political parties and independent groups.
The last polls were conducted for the North-Eastern Province and Varatharaja Perumal who contested under the Eelam People’s Revolutionary Front (EPRLF) backed by India was elected as the first chief Minister. However with the withdrawal of the Indian Peace Keeping force (IPKF) which was stationed in the country, Mr. Perumal fled to India after making a unilateral declaration of independence. Subsequently the Supreme Court, however, ruled that the merger was illegal and the two provinces were separated thereafter.
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