By Thava Sajitharan
No major incidents of violence relating to the upcoming local polls have been reported from Jaffna so far. However, oppositional parties claim that there is an atmosphere of fear and people have distanced themselves from election activities.
“Jaffna was liberated from the LTTE in 1998 but a group has since been allowed to usurp its (LTTE’s) place” remarked V. Anandasangaree, mayoral aspirant and leader of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), on the situation in Jaffna.
Speaking from the peninsula, Mr. Anandasangaree observed: “People have kept aloof from attending election meetings because they fear there is this armed group that can do harm to them”.
“If not for this reason, I wouldn’t have had to contest this election” said the TULF leader.
“I did not intend to contest this election. But the circumstances left me with no other options because I found that all those who had earlier agreed to be TULF’s candidates were unwilling to contest later on.”
He alleged that “the government is all out to help one group financially.”
Anandasangaree, nonetheless, admitted that none of their electoral activities in Jaffna had been obstructed by anybody.
Anandasangaree also affirmed that the purported members of the TULF in Vavuniya who had endorsed the EPDP and offered support to them had nothing to do with the TULF.
TNA’s main candidate said people “including our relatives and friends” are scared to open their mouths.
“People are threatened by the government” he said.
Despite allegations from the opposition, hopes of securing a landslide victory at the local polls are running high among the members of the Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) – the main ally in the ruling SLFP coalition.
Dismissal
Dismissing the allegations leveled against his party with disdain, EPDP’s chief candidate, Kailasapillai Theventhiran (54) described the opposition parties’ criticisms as “false propaganda that lacked substance”.
“We need not engage in any unnecessary extraordinary acts when victory is at our doorstep,” he said.
The EPDP mayoral candidate who was coincidentally born on the same day (26. 11. 1954) as LTTE leader V. Prabhakaran, said he was committed to serve a “constructive cause” in his political career.
“The process has been smooth and extremely peaceful. Our leader has strictly instructed us to stick to a non-violent stance,” Theventhiran noted.
Theventhiran, who has worked as a school teacher and the district coordinator of EPDP leader Douglas Devananda’s ministry, said the opposition parties are spreading malicious rumours in an attempt to “evoke sympathy”.
“There has been no report of violence,” he pointed out.
“You might take my views as being politically motivated. But you can speak to the public and find out.”
Public mood
The outcomes of an opinion poll conducted by the Centre for Policy Alternatives among “880 randomly selected voters in all 23 wards in the Jaffna municipal council” reveals that nearly 80% of those who answered the survey questions have not participated in “political meetings and discussions” in connection to the upcoming elections while 83% of them have said that they intend to cast their vote in the polls.
These observations are available in a report released by the think tank with regard to the survey titled “Views from Jaffna – Social Indicator Survey,” last week.
When asked, “If the election was to be held today, which party would you vote for”, 23.8% have had answered in favour of the SLFP/EPDP while the TNA and the TULF had been favoured by 7.3% and 1% respectively.
(LAKBIMAnEWS - 02. 08. 2009)
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