SRI LANKA: Island Faces Key Test in Upcoming Elections

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IPS Correspondents

COLOMBO, Jul 16 2009 (IPS) - Elections in early August for local administrative bodies in Jaffna and Vavuniya, two Tamil-dominated northern towns, would be the first litmus test for the Sri Lankan government to restore normalcy in a region devastated by nearly three decades of war.

This would be the first time the predominantly Tamil population in the war ravaged north goes to vote after the government defeated the separatist movement led by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in May.

The two towns lie at the northern and southern edges of the Vanni region, the swath of land that witnessed the final battles between the Sri Lankan government forces and the Tamil Tigers. Government forces finally boxed the rebels into a tiny sliver of land along the eastern shore, eventually killing their leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, on May 19.

Under the Tamil Tigers, who were averse to any political settlement with the government on power sharing, the Tamil community in the war-torn north was bereft of any alternate political leadership. These elections, some observers say, are an opportunity to restore democratic pluralism in the region.

“In the past, the powers were with the military or with the LTTE and not with the people of the north,” says Vinayagamurthi Muralitharan, popular as ‘Col.’ Karuna, the former Tiger eastern military commander who broke away from Prabhakaran in 2004. Muralitharan is now a member of parliament in president Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party.

“This election can change that, it can give the people a voice, like what happened in the east,” he told IPS.

The government held similar provincial elections in the east in 2008 after flushing out the Tigers from the region.

Despite initial criticism on the conduct of the elections, the elected bodies dominated by Muralitharan’s supporters have managed to get the local government in running mode. Muralitharan firmly believes the success of the east can be replicated in the north.

“When elections were held in the east after many years, there were many who thought it wasn’t practically possible,” he said. “There were many who questioned the election process as well. But today the people in the east are enjoying democracy.”

“Similarly, the government is trying to bring democracy in the north as well,” he added. “People have to accept it whether they like it or not. They will definitely not regret it. Like the people in the east, the people in the north too will come to realize that this is the best way forward.”

Politicians who are contesting admit that elections, in whatever form, is preferable to leaving Tamils without a say about who represents them.

“As far as the people are concerned, this election would be a test for them. This is the first time in many years that they are taking part in the polls without the LTTE. The interference of the LTTE has been there during elections for many years,” Dharmalingam Sidarthan, the leader of the People’s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) told IPS.

But Sidarthan says that despite the election contest heating up between politicians, the voter reaction appears to be lukewarm.

“People do not seem to show much interest at the moment,” he said. “We have had several pocket meetings. People have attended them and are continuing to do so. But, they do not seem to be interested.”

Some Tamil politicians say that though Jaffna and Vavuniya did not witness any fighting in the last 18 months, their proximity to the Vanni meant that the population was affected by the immediacy of the war.

“Even though these two places were not directly affected during the final stages of the war, people had lost many of their kith and kin,” Sidarthan said. “Therefore, we had asked the government to hold the elections until the people were mentally stable.”

Over 290,000 civilians have been displaced by the fighting and a majority of them remain in ‘welfare villages’ in the two districts of Vavuniya and Jaffna. Human rights groups say these ‘welfare villages’, where living conditions are sub-human, bear the look of military internment camps.

Sidarthan’s party had requested the government to postpone elections until the situation stabilised, but that request was turned down.

“These elections do not mean anything to the people. The people are undergoing total agony. Every house has a relative who is missing, killed, injured or in IDP camps,” said V Anandasangaree, the leader of the Tamil Liberation Front.

“How can they think of anything else when they do not know the whereabouts of their kith and kin? They are not at all interested in the elections. This is not the right time [to hold them].”

“This election is unwanted and untimely. The environment is not conducive to hold them,” said Suresh Premachandran of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA). “There is a fear psychosis among the people. They are scared to go out for any meetings. Many of them fear for their lives, thinking that something might happen to them if they go for political meetings. They do not want to be identified with any political party due to fear.”

TNA has the largest Tamil representation in parliament with 22 out of 225 members. This party has decided to field candidates in the election even though they think it is ill-timed.

However, some other Tamil politicians are of the view that that if elections can be successfully held, it will lay the groundwork for rebuilding trust of Tamils in this divided nation.

“People are facing problems. No one is denying that,” said Douglas Devananda, the leader of Eelam People’s Democratic Party, who is a minister in the Rajapaksa government. “But we cannot wait until problems are solved. Steps have to be taken the same time problems prevail. No point waiting for the problems to be over. This election should not be looked as one that is limited to the local governments. It should be looked beyond these limits.”