A leading election monitoring group said yesterday it would take up with Elections Chief Dayananda Dissanayake and Police Chief Mahinda Balasuriya the alleged attack on one of its officials by supporters of a United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) candidate.

A Center for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) spokesman alleged that the UPFA supporter had grabbed the official’s camera. The spokesman said the UPFA candidate had promised to look into the matter and take action against the supporter. He said the CMEV would make an official complaint to the Elections Chief and the Police Chief if the police in the area failed to take action and carry out a speedy and impartial investigation into the incident.

Meanwhile another monitoring group -- the Campaign for Free and Fair Election (CaFFÉ) had complained to Mr. Dissanayake and IGP Balasuriya about an alleged attack against one of its officials. CaFFÉ spokesman Keerthi Tennakoon alleged that a UNP supporter had assaulted one of their officials having mistaken him to be a supporter of a UPFA candidate contesting in the Kurunegala district. (Read More)

Foreign monitors including members from the European Union (EU) have been left out of the election monitoring process amidst allegations by the main opposition UNP that the Commissioner of Elections has failed to forward the invitations in time.

The Elections Department yesterday confirmed that no foreign monitors had been invited for the monitoring process. European Union Ambassador Bernard Savage told the Sunday Times the EU had not received an invitation to send monitors for the April 8 poll.

“We were made to understand that as there was no unanimity among the political parties an invitation was not extended,” he said. Deputy Elections Commissioner A.W. Sumanasiri told The Sunday Times that political parties had shown little interest in getting the EU monitors and their request to invite EU monitors came at the last moment.

A spokesman for the department said that during the Presidential elections though an Asian monitoring group was invited, this time they too were not being invited. He also claimed political parties did not show any interest in getting foreign monitors. (read more)

“Absolutely nothing is being done about this. The police are not doing their job, in fact in some parts of the country the assistants from the Elections Commissioner’s Department and the Police Department are actually helping the culprits. We therefore cannot expect anything from these people,” declared Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE) Spokesman, Keerthi Tennekoon.

The most flagrant and visible violations of this country’s election laws are of course the illegal cutouts, posters and banners that now cover a large portion of this country.  However the most serious breaches of the laws that are, at least in principle, meant to regulate our election process involve the heavy misuse of state resources by politicians in their personal campaigns.(Read more)

Election monitors say intra-party clashes among candidates fighting for preferential votes have seen a drastic increase compared to earlier elections, election monitors told The Sunday Leader.

According to independent election monitors, more than 80 percent of reported cases of violence are clashes among candidates of the same party. As a result, for the first time in the country’s election history the ‘home and home’ battles have surpassed clashes between candidates from rival parties.

Spokesperson for the Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE), Keerthi Tennakoon however told The Sunday Leader that it was the UPFA that has been worst affected due to the intra party violence.

“The reasons for this unhealthy situation is that the district leaders want to come first in their respective lists while cross-over candidates are also trying to win UPFA votes.  Further those competing in a general election for the first time are spending lavishly on their campaigns and providing incentives to attract supporters. These are the reasons for the ‘home and home’ clashes. and the ‘preferential battle’ has only affected the ruling UPFA,” Tennakoon said.

The Sunday Leader’s attempts to contact UPFA General Secretary and Education Minister Susil Premjayantha for a comment on this matter failed. (read more)

Main Opposition Party General Secretary Tissa Attanayake in his application sought an interim order on the Commissioner of Elections to inform Court of any person or institution that refuses to obey and respect guidelines, measures and systems formulated and approved.

UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake in his writ application also expressed his apprehension and dismay that from the conduct of the Elections Commissioner and his contradictory statements that have been made by him from time to time has made him the laughing stock in the public eye.

In his petition filed through Attorney-at-Law K. Kaneshayoyan, he cited the Elections Commissioner and the Attorney General as Respondents.  (Read More)

Election Monitors yesterday demanded permission from Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake to monitor the election counting centres at the upcoming General Elections which they said should be under strict observation.

CMEV (Centre for Monitoring Election Violence) spokesman D.M Dissanayake told the Daily Mirror that he had recently given approval to appoint election observers in each district centre where the results were issued and not the counting centres which they said should be under observation as well.

Mr. Dissanayake said the Elections Commissioner must allow the election monitors to observe the counting centres as well.  He said appointing observers at the district counting centres was not adequate to ensure transparency in the counting of votes and the final results.

“Election observers must be appointed in each counting centre in the island.  Otherwise it is not that purposeful. The Elections Commissioner must ensure there are observers for all the counting centres,” he said.

He said CMEV has and still continues to make requests from the Elections Commissioner to allow the monitors to observe all the counting centres in the country although they have not received a proper response from him.

He said when requests were made, CMEV was told by the Elections Commissioner that there was not enough space in the counting centres - as they were too small - for election observers.

“This is a ridiculous statement because each counting centre has five representatives from political parties but they do not seem to have enough space for a single election observer. It is absurd,” Mr. Dissanayake said.

He said the Elections Commissioner must make arrangements to have an election observer at each counting centre but appointing observers at each district centre was a start to a direction in the right path to a free and fair election.

The Elections Commissioner has only approved election monitors - CMEV and PAFFREL - to observe the district result issuing centres.

PAFFREL Director Rohana Hettiarachchi said as opposed to the last election - where at each district’s result issuing centre, results were displayed on a notice board - at the upcoming election the results would be displayed on a multimedia projector or overhead projector.

“It will be set up so that the results can be seen by everyone,” he said.  He said one monitor will be appointed for each 22 district results issuing centres. 

There will be more than 1,100 counting centres in the whole island.

Magistrate Ms. Lanka Jayaratne also ordered the police to present in Court the police bail bonds obtained from the 16 suspects who were earlier arrested over the mob attack on the media institution and later released.

The Magistrate made this order, when Slave Island police submitted a B report in connection with the attack on the MBC/MTV head office and the magisterial inquiry into the matter was fixed for April 1.

Lodging a complaint with Slave Island police the Corporate Director of the Capital Maharaja Group Suranga Bandara Jayalath said that while he was at the MBC/MTV head office on the evening of Monday 22, staff members informed him that they had learned that a bus carrying a group of people were approaching the office. (Read More)

The removal of illegal propaganda cutouts, posters and banners has not been done satisfactorily with the situation in some districts being even worse, an election monitoring group said yesterday.

“Election cutouts, posters and banners are still to be seen prominently displayed in Kegalle, Matale, Ratnapura, Trincomalee, Polonnaruwa and in nearly the whole of the Southern province,” Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE) spokesman Keerthi Tennekoon said.

He blamed the police and the assistant elections commissioners of the districts for having failed to remove these illegal cutouts, posters and banners despite the Elections Chief Dayananda Dissanayake’s order for their removal.

Mr. Tennekoon said election laws were being blatantly violated in most parts of Sri Lanka.

“The opposition is not being allowed to conduct its election campaign peacefully and without hindrance,” he said and added that in Dambulla and Laggala even the police officers were seen taking part in campaigning for UPFA candidates.  Mr. Tennekoon said however the situation in Ampara was quite satisfactory with all concerned upholding election laws to a satisfactory level.

“All election propaganda material has been removed in Ampara with the election violations reported to be at a minimum level,” he said. 

People’s Action for Free and Fair Election (PAFFREL) spokesman Rohana Hettiarachchi said the police  could not be blamed alone as political parties too should act responsibly and ethically.

Dr Vickramabahu Karunarathan told CaFFE that LEFT LIBERATION FRONT's  campaign at Zoysapura flats RATMALANA, on 22 monda 5 pm, was confronted by a gang of the government supporters. Around 50 thugs came and surrounded us abusing and threatening us. They said in filthy language that we have no right to campaign in that
area as we are supporting Tamil liberation.

The leader of the gang pointed at Mr. Vickramabahu and said that he is paid by the LTTE to campaign against the Mahinda regime. His attempt to arouse general mob violence failed as we did not disperse. Some started pelting and hooting. We continued to explain with arguments against their idiotic accusations. Though we telephoned the police they did not turn up even after 40 minutes. (Read More)