By P.K. Balachandran, IANS
Colombo : US ambassador Robert O. Blake Wednesday expressed doubts if the upcoming local elections in Sri Lanka’s eastern Tamil-speaking district of Batticaloa would be free and fair.
“The US does not believe that free and fair elections can be held if some (political) parties are armed,” Blake said in Batticaloa at a function organised by USAID.
He further said that if “paramilitary” groups carrying arms illegally were allowed to intimidate others, it would hamper private investment that is so much needed to develop war-affected Batticaloa.
The US believes that groups like the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Puligal (TMVP), headed by breakaway LTTE leaders Karuna and Pillayan, should not be permitted to bear arms while fighting elections.
Elections to nine local bodies in Batticaloa district are to be held in March, and nominations are being filed now.
The pro-LTTE Tamil National Alliance (TNA), which has been “banned” in Batticaloa by the TMVP, had filed a case in the Supreme Court seeking to put off the elections in view of the intimidation.
But the court refused to oblige saying it was not good to cancel elections.
The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), which is contesting in five councils, has also been complaining about harassment and violence by the TMVP.
The Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP), led by cabinet minister Douglas Devananda, has asked the government to disarm the TMVP.
The EPDP call came after a bid to form a Tamil alliance failed due to the TMVP’s decision to go it alone in the elections.