Commonwealth monitors urge for inclusivity in polls, priority for social unity

A Commonwealth election observation team has urged for more inclusivity in future Sri Lankan elections while calling on future leaders to prioritise unity.

These remarks were made during the preliminary statement of the Commonwealth Observer Group which was released today (Nov19).

In the statement, the observers pointed out the need to regulate campaign financing “to ensure transparency, accountability, and an even playing field”.

They noted that some groups had experienced fear and intimidation as a result of ethnic and religious tensions during the run-up to the election.

“We urge all citizens and political and community leaders to prioritise unity, and to demonstrate the values of respect and tolerance in political life,” Prosper Bani, who led the observation team said.

He raised concerns on the spread of hate speech through private and social media platforms to conduct election campaigns even during the silent period.

“We recommend that ahead of the next election, both private and public media are independently regulated through a legal framework,” Bani stated.

The Commonwealth observation team said it would draw emphasis on the “low participation of women in politics” in their final report.

Overall, the observation was that the voting and counting process had been “transparent, peaceful and well organised”, the preliminary report read.

The observation team lauded the Election Commission for conducting the polls in a smooth manner and also for the competence of its officials.

However, it called on the polls body to review the layout of polling stations for future election to ensure the secrecy of the ballot, which in some instances had been affected due to space constraints.

Meanwhile, the Commonwealth monitors called for voter education, pointing out that a significant amount of voters did not indicate preferences.

While noting that Sri Lankans have demonstrated their commitment to the Commonwealth’s democratic values, the Commonwealth Observer Group called on the President “to promote and protect these values” for all citizens.

The Commonwealth Observer Group will leave the country on November 22.

(Pics by Sameera Weerasekara)