‘Campaign of alleged secret agreement that could divide the country led to rousing of communal sentiments’
Full Text of Press Release - National Peace Council
Post Election Challenge for Country
President Mahinda Rajapaksa won a second term at the Presidential Election of Janumary 26 with an unexpectedly big majority although this election result has been called into question by the main opposition candidate, General Sarath Fonseka.
The election results telecast by the state media as they stand demonstrate a schism in the thinking and expectations of the ethnic minorities and ethnic majority populations. President Rajapaksa obtained a smaller proportion of votes in the North, East and central hills where Tamils and Muslims predominate and also in the capital city of Colombo where the proportion of Tamils and Muslims is high. Elsewhere in the country in the Sinhalese-dominated areas, the margins of victory for the President were high.
The National Peace Council regrets that the electoral process in the North of the country in particular did not give the opportunity for the voters there to cast their votes owing to logistical problems such as the lack of public transport. Our members who participated in the election monitoring process reported the frustration of displaced voters who waited for hours for public transport that did not arrive for them to cast their votes and others who kept away due to the series of grenade explosions prior to voting in Jaffna which intimidated many into not voting. The low voter turnout in the North is indicative of an inability of the people there to participate fully and voice political sentiments and demonstrates the distance to go to achieve democracy.
On the other hand, the President also received minority electoral support that was not insignificant and demonstrated willingness to re-engage with the political mainstream after years of war. One of the important challenges for President Rajapaksa will be to address the sense of alienation of the ethnic minorities and provide a political solution for their problems and grievances by way of devolution of power. During most of the election campaign both major candidates gave considerable attention to the issue of inter-ethnic harmony and reconciliation. Unfortunately during the latter stages, the allegation that the opposition candidate had a secret agreement with the major Tamil party that could divide the country led to the rousing of communal sentiments.
President Rajapaksa has said he called for early Presidential Elections because he wanted a mandate from the people of the North and East who were unable to vote at previous elections due to intimidation by the LTTE Following his victory he has said that the participation of Tamil voters in the election is a triumph of democracy to which he is committed. The National Peace Council welcomes this sentiment of the President despite the aforesaid obstacles to their voting and we express our fervent hope that he will uphold other democratic practices including the freedom of expression and choice, the Rule of Law and prevent any abductions and extra judicial killings as happened so often in his previous term of office. We wish the President well in his second term and commit ourselves to work to achieve sustainable peace and reconciliation.
The National Peace Council is an independent and non partisan organisation that works towards a negotiated political solution to the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka.
10 Comments
Do you think that election results are true. The election was disreputable. Ruling party enormously violated election rules which include mis using govt assets, threatening to Election Officers and stopping their duties, mass scale vote rigging, thuggery , bribery, murdering opposition supporters, and Keeping Opposition leaders in house arrest during counting votes. Election commissioner’s speech after the election confirms them. In other words there should be a question about legitimacy of the election of the President.
To National peace council,
No point discussing post election because evry body knows the actual fraud and damage done by the government to get 1.8 million. SF won by 2 million votes. Actual figures amended by government officers. Because there is no computerise ballot paper. So these people manually countered and given the figures to govt. officers and these officers change the figures and given it to feed to the computers & to announce thru Media. Those people who countered were shoked to hear the results.(for example 6000 votes for MR announce as 46,000 votes) True storey shared with me by a actual counting officer. It was very sad how people use power & money to abuse whole Sri Lanka. It's shame to be a Sri lankan. How can you correct this type of abuse? fraud? I observed all the articles related to election and how they try to cover up the fraud.If people can cheat election how can you believe other issues?
The TNA being a democratic party which recently contested the Northern Provincial Council, has the right to forge political alliances with main stream parties. In the absence of any proof and faced with denials by both the UNF and TNA, the playing of communal politics by JNP and JHU lead to a sharp division along ethnic lines. This is deplorable at a time when the country needs to reconcile and reunite.
The prevention of voting in the North by not delivering polling cards, denying transport facilities and scare tactics also serves to destroy any credibility held by the minorities as to the attitude of the government.
How typical of Jehan and the NPC to have omitted to mention that the first charges of a secret pact were made by the JVP and pertained to an alleged agreement between Mahinda Rajapkse and Douglas Devananda on a ten point plan which included " self rule".
If the opposition is so certain of fraud (i.e. 1.4 miioln win against 1.8 million loss = 3.2 million fraud) and have the evidence, let them prove it in courts rather than lamenting in newspapers and try to destabilise the country.
It is the consensus that the alleged electoral malpractices would not materially alter the ultimate result.
Request to all including NPC to respect the peoples' verdict which military men might find it difficult to accept, though political leaders like Ranil W were quick to acknowledge.
Allegations about election tactics and wrong-doings are part and parcel of democratic elections througout the world including in the most decent of democracies, the American system. It is only natural for the winners to feel euphoric and the losers to feel dejected. It is the job of the winning candidate to reach out to all of the people - and especially make the losers also feel like equal stakeholders. While there have been some bland statements made in this regard, the President needs to more forcefully reach out to those who did not support him to make the defeated feel more inclusive and secure. A visit to the Northeast perhaps would be lot more beneficial at this hour than a visit to Russia.
ELECTION COMMISNOR PROVIDES THE BEST EVIDENCE THAT THE ELECTION WAS RIGGED AND MANUPULATED IN HIS SUMMING UP SPEECH.WHAT IS FUNNY IS PRES; RAJAPAKSHA BAGS ON 57% IN 40 BYEARS IN POLITICS AND GEN; FONSEKA COULD GET 40% ON 40 DAYS IN POLITICS.
No one in this world should expect that any good will happen to the people of Sri Lanka so far as President Percy Mahendra Rajapakse stays in power. Every one should know that President Percy Mahendra Rajapakse is a born greedy person and his main aim to be in power is to amass wealth.Everyone knows how Percy Mahendra Rajapakse tried to rob the aid given to help the tsunami victims in the Hambantota area by depositing that money in his Sister's Bank Account in the Hatton National Bank,Gampaha Branch in December,2004. The Chairmen of the Hatton National Bank then was Mr.Rienzie Wijetilleka and he has the details of this famous 'Helping Hambantota' episode.Being a Lawyer in his profession Percy Mahendra Rajapakse was not a baby to realize that it was fradulent to deposit money meant for public use in a private bank account. Fortunately for Percy Mahenra Rajapakse there was a saviour in the person of the former Chief Justice to safeguard his future at that time, although Percy Mahendra Rajapakse never cared to be grateful to Mr.Sarath Silva for that inestimable rescue operation.Helping Hambantota was the start for Percy Mahendra Rajapakse in the race to make money.
It is true, it is the head strong attitude of Percy Mahenra Rajapakse that paved the way for Sri Lankans to defeat the notorious terrorists and win peace for Sri Lanka after 30 years or more of real agony.But is it the prerogative of Percy Madenra Rajapakse to cheat the people of Sri Lanka and make money just because he won a war against the terrorists for the people of Sri Lanka.If not for this dangerous mania of swindling the country and nepotism Percy Mahendra Rajapakse would have been a God sent for the people of Sri Lanka.It is a known fact that every second some poor person in Sri Lanka commits suicide due to abject poverty and knowing this fact it is right for a head of state to swindle the country of it's finances.The whole world knows with what ease President Percy Mahendra Rajapakse creates Ministerial Posts and throws thamashes at the Presidential Palaces and at Temple Trees to buy votes. People know how President Percy Mahendra Rajapakse bestows valuable gifts and government properties to his favoured supporters.All this is favoured treatment to buy supporters to be in power by all means.Can Sri Lankans expect a person of this nature to solve their problems. President Percy Mahendra Rajapakse is not solving the tamil problem because he knows he can make money so long as he has tamils suffering in the north and east. The foreign countries are pouring billions of dollars as aid and soft loans for the welfare of these suffering tamils but these monies are used for nafarious purposes. Electioneering propaganda itself would have devoured billions of dollars. So fanning ethnic dissention and appointing All Party Commissions is the hobby of President Percy Mahendra Rajapakse to keep the money spinning problems burning foe ever.Supporters of Percy Mahenrda Rajapakse dug an eternal grave for Sri Lanka and God knows who could save Sri Lanka from this war of getting rid of this dangerous Rajapakse clan. Will the Sri Lankans who were having a Happy Go Lucky Life now have to get forget the past and get use to living under the threat of the Gun as in the tyrannical well known dictatorial regimes.
Once again the disengenous Jehan Perera needs to pontificate. OK, here is the urban legend he, and others will spread on behalf of the UNP; they will claim the election was fraudulent and Tamils did not vote.
Take a step back in time. The worst Presidential election in SL history was 1988. All the South and NCP districts that went to Mrs. B were declared with less than 50 % polling. In Matara Dist polling was 29% with seats like Kamburupitiya polling ONLY 4.7% SHOCKING? SHOCKING? go read the data on it. So the run up to that election saw the JVP and UNP indulging in unprecedented terror. This election was relatively peaceful and don't forget out of the 6 who died, 4 were UFPA or Govt. MR supporters.. Queer FACT Jehan will NOT tell you.
Now when votes are counted, all parties have representatives including Top MPs of their parties who observe the count. They watch the count, they record it and when the final count is done, it is recorded and reported, signed and a copy given to all party representative who are there. THERE IS NO WAY IN HELL 6,000 votes can be counted as 46,000 unless you say the UNP representatives and SF reps were either drunk, deaf and blind or bribed. SO if that were the case, the party needs to investigate their own people. AFTER The COPY of EACH Counting center is given to ALL Parties, it is transmitted. SO If the count that is "declared" on the computer does not match the physical count that was GIVEN to the candidate, they can raise a hue and cry and even demand a recount. The paper ballots are physically available and the paper trail is very visible. This sort of sour grapes happen because MR blitzed the Jehan Pereras and the other anti Sinhala Buddhist Intellectuals were shell shocked. PROVE IT rather than spreading Urban Legends please. YOU CANNOT fake 1.8 million; to do so that means you need 3.6 million fake ballots. Sure there were irregularities like all other elections. I am sure a few dead voted(like in American elections)and a few voted often, but then how do you explain SF's massive margins in Colombo, Tamil Areas and Estate Tamil areas ? Estate Tamil leaders were with MR and to curry favour they too could have cast fraudulent votes. SO why are you not raising that? Hmm maybe Colombo Central went to SF because the UNP rigged it?
All this focus on the secret pacts, etc., ignore one good thing that has happened. With or without TNA's support, two head war criminals have fallen out and are now accusing each other of plotting their assassinations. In the same way the deus-ex-machina of Karuna revolt opened the way for eventual fall fo the LTTE, this falling out among war criminals will lead to their self-destruction. Those of us sworn to focus relentlessly on war crimes can take some comfort from the fact that the wheels of natural justice grind in mysterious ways. If TNA's alliance with the opposition unwittingly aided and hastened that process, why should we regret it? Especially when alternative positions by the TNA would have done nothing to materially change the lives of the people, especially the war victims.