An Election that defeated and resisted violence with the active participation of the people.

Compared to the scale of violence we witnessed during the Pre Election period there was a low level of violence on the day of the North Central and Sabaragamuwa Provincial Council Elections. This did not happen automatically. We believe that the response of the people against violence and the manner in which various sections of the community reacted to the atrocious pre-election situation created a situation which prevented violence and violations. We observe that this situation did not arise due to the good behaviour of the candidates representing the government or other political parties. Today, we have seen the victory of people who actively intervened, resisted and expressed their desire to end election violence. Even the actions of people outside the two provinces have partially contributed to this achievement.

The mere absence of violence on the day of election is not an indicator that the election was free and fair. This process began 6 months ago when Elections were held in the Eastern Province. The massive media campaign launched by the government gripped the whole country. The government did not allow the public to freely and independently make a decision. The government used state media and state resources, government ministers and personnel in its election campaign. Therefore, the initiation of a campaign which was neither free nor fair, launched 6 months ago, cannot be removed by maintaining LAW and ORDER only on the day of the election. This fact alone cannot guarantee justice and fair play. CaFFE has emphasized this principle from the very beginning.  In a country where the rule of law has deteriorated we emphasized that the election will not be held in a lawful manner.

As the people in the North Central and Sabaragamuwa sensed the danger of heightened violence, a public opinion was created against the use of violence. We are happy to note the manner in which public opinion grew around this issue. Furthermore, we called upon the people to reject the cycle of violence and counter violence being perpetrated by political parties. State power and the power of weapons could not rule the day. This created a new expectation among the people.

We appeal to political parties and all organizations to come together to establish a people’s forum to protect democracy, the rule of law and peace. Let us converge to establish a social movement towards this cause.        

This is an Election that defeated and resisted violence with the active participation of the people. The movement of people for a free and fair election has just begun.

Table 1.0 Display’s a Categorized List of Incidents on Election Day