Whilst Sri Lanka’s largest Tamil party, reflecting popular discontent with Sinhala political leaders, is staying neutral in the country’s forthcoming Presidential elections, a paramilitary ally of the ruling party is throwing its weight behind Premier Mahinda Rajapakse – the arch-Sinhala nationalist of the two leading contenders.
The Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) announced this week they will back Rajapakse, and urged all Tamil speakers to vote for the Premier whose campaigning kicked off with electoral pacts with hardline Sinhala parties ruling out power-sharing to resolve the island’s ethnic conflict.
“Premier Mahinda is the best option available to the Tamil-speaking people to resolve their problems non-violently and build a secure future to achieve their cherished goals of a federal constitution,” EPDP Leader and Minister Douglas Devananda was quoted by ColomboPage as saying.
However, Tamil newspapers and parliamentarians have sharply criticized Rajapakse for rejecting the notion of self-determination as well as crucial steps in the peace process, including the Post-Tsunami Operations Management Structure (P-TOMS) – an agreement on sharing tsunami related aid which has been frozen by Sri Lanka’s supreme court.
Power-sharing, particularly federalism, emerged as a likely solution to the protracted conflict in peace talks between the previous Sri Lankan government and the LTTE, and have generally been backed by the international community as the groundwork for a lasting peace.
An editorial in Uthayan, the popular Jaffna daily, last week slammed Rajapakse for having “joined the extreme nationalists rejecting all agreed instruments of reconciliation.”
The LTTE-backed Tamil Nationalist Alliance (TNA), which polled over 600,000 votes from the Northeast in April 2004, winning it 22 members in parliament, has refused to back either Rajapakse or United National Party (UNP) candidate Ranil Wickramesinghe.
“None of the candidates are representing Tamil aspirations and we find it difficult to support any of the presidential candidates,” M. Raviraj, Jaffna District TNA MP was quoted by ColomboPage as saying.
He said both Rajapakse’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the UNP have used the Tamil question to their advantage while offering nothing to the Tamil minority in return.
TNA parliamentarians at last Saturday’s Tamil Resurgence rally in Trincomalee accused the Sinhalese candidates of trying to get Tamil votes without intending to address their concerns.
Rajapakse is backed by a coalition of Sinhala nationalist forces, raising questions about the rationale behind the paramilitary EPDP’s backing, though the Premier’s hostility to the LTTE is clearly a point in common.
Rajapakse, who secured the backing of the stridently Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) parties early in the campaign process, has vowed to defend Sri Lanka’s unitary status.
He pointedly signed his agreements with the hardline parties in front of the Buddhist Temple of the Tooth, a cultural icon symbolizing Sinhalese power.
The EPDP has, meanwhile, begun campaigning in the Northeast, starting with a barely-attended meeting for volunteers in Jaffna. The paramilitary group has also tried to entice Tamil teachers to help during elections by offering permanent appointments, but TamilNet reported only a handful attended.
The EPDP was reported as saying participating in elections were difficult in the political climate of Jaffna.
The EPDP has asked Election Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake to relax election laws in the Northeast so they can better campaign in these regions.
Citing ‘security concerns’, the Army-backed group claims it is unable to campaign at the ground level, and is thus asking for permission for more airtime and to put up posters.
Analysts say the peace process would probably progress further under Wickremesinghe’s leadership than his archrival, though Tamil commentators point to a string of unfulfilled promises which prompted the LTTE to suspend its participation it the Norwegian-brokered talks.
They also say that the minority vote will play a decisive role in the neck-and-neck race for the Presidency, to be decided on November 17.
EPDP: examining an alternative [Oct 19, 2005]
The Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) announced this week they will back Rajapakse, and urged all Tamil speakers to vote for the Premier whose campaigning kicked off with electoral pacts with hardline Sinhala parties ruling out power-sharing to resolve the island’s ethnic conflict.
“Premier Mahinda is the best option available to the Tamil-speaking people to resolve their problems non-violently and build a secure future to achieve their cherished goals of a federal constitution,” EPDP Leader and Minister Douglas Devananda was quoted by ColomboPage as saying.
However, Tamil newspapers and parliamentarians have sharply criticized Rajapakse for rejecting the notion of self-determination as well as crucial steps in the peace process, including the Post-Tsunami Operations Management Structure (P-TOMS) – an agreement on sharing tsunami related aid which has been frozen by Sri Lanka’s supreme court.
Power-sharing, particularly federalism, emerged as a likely solution to the protracted conflict in peace talks between the previous Sri Lankan government and the LTTE, and have generally been backed by the international community as the groundwork for a lasting peace.
An editorial in Uthayan, the popular Jaffna daily, last week slammed Rajapakse for having “joined the extreme nationalists rejecting all agreed instruments of reconciliation.”
The LTTE-backed Tamil Nationalist Alliance (TNA), which polled over 600,000 votes from the Northeast in April 2004, winning it 22 members in parliament, has refused to back either Rajapakse or United National Party (UNP) candidate Ranil Wickramesinghe.
“None of the candidates are representing Tamil aspirations and we find it difficult to support any of the presidential candidates,” M. Raviraj, Jaffna District TNA MP was quoted by ColomboPage as saying.
He said both Rajapakse’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the UNP have used the Tamil question to their advantage while offering nothing to the Tamil minority in return.
TNA parliamentarians at last Saturday’s Tamil Resurgence rally in Trincomalee accused the Sinhalese candidates of trying to get Tamil votes without intending to address their concerns.
Rajapakse is backed by a coalition of Sinhala nationalist forces, raising questions about the rationale behind the paramilitary EPDP’s backing, though the Premier’s hostility to the LTTE is clearly a point in common.
Rajapakse, who secured the backing of the stridently Sinhala nationalist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) parties early in the campaign process, has vowed to defend Sri Lanka’s unitary status.
He pointedly signed his agreements with the hardline parties in front of the Buddhist Temple of the Tooth, a cultural icon symbolizing Sinhalese power.
The EPDP has, meanwhile, begun campaigning in the Northeast, starting with a barely-attended meeting for volunteers in Jaffna. The paramilitary group has also tried to entice Tamil teachers to help during elections by offering permanent appointments, but TamilNet reported only a handful attended.
The EPDP was reported as saying participating in elections were difficult in the political climate of Jaffna.
The EPDP has asked Election Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake to relax election laws in the Northeast so they can better campaign in these regions.
Citing ‘security concerns’, the Army-backed group claims it is unable to campaign at the ground level, and is thus asking for permission for more airtime and to put up posters.
Analysts say the peace process would probably progress further under Wickremesinghe’s leadership than his archrival, though Tamil commentators point to a string of unfulfilled promises which prompted the LTTE to suspend its participation it the Norwegian-brokered talks.
They also say that the minority vote will play a decisive role in the neck-and-neck race for the Presidency, to be decided on November 17.
EPDP: examining an alternative [Oct 19, 2005]
