By Vickramabahu Karunaratne –

Dr. Vickramabahu Karunaratne

The voter turnout at the recent PC elections was less than 65 per cent, according to the Elections Department. Voter apathy prevailed mainly in Sinhala areas as the election was marked by an all-time low voter turnout in recent times. Only in the bogus election conducted under the façade of a referendum, that polling went down to such a low figure. Election observers in the East report that Tamils and Muslims voted enthusiastically, but even there the turnout by the Sinhala had been lukewarm. However, election results for the Sabaragamuwa and North Central Provinces show a clean sweep for UPFA. In fact their vote has gone up compared to the PC elections 2008. On the other hand, over 10 % of voters have kept away from this election and almost all of them could be counted as anti government voters. In all regions UNP and the left was affected by this apathy of voters. In fact the political struggle has crept in to the ranks of the government, as displayed by the competition for preferences. In many areas clash for preferences has taken a violent form. Government claims that this is a victory for their development programme. Obviously their infrastructure development programmes create temporary job opportunities and short term market for some goods and services. Irrespective of any long-term benefits from these projects, local people may get attracted to the work done. However that cannot explain the depreciation in the election activity of the people.

The government campaign was conducted smashing all election laws governing undue influence of voters. Election commissioner had to conduct a mini civil war against the election machine of the Mahinda regime, even up to the day of election. State power was misused to influence the voter by distribution of goods, jobs and services. State owned media was monopolized and others were pressed to fall in line. State terror was used abundantly. Even on the day of election a total of 64 election violence had been reported. The number includes seven incidents of assault and threat, 15 cases of pressurizing voters, two cases of trying to influence officials at polling booths, three instances of chasing away officials at polling booths, 30 cases of illegal publicity activities in and around polling booths, a case of transporting voters through the illegal use of state vehicles, and the biased and partial conduct of the police. According to the same report, opposition party representatives at the polling booths in Rathnapura in the Sabaragamuwa Province and Akkaraipattu in the Eastern Province had been chased away. It also stated that a few supporters of the SLMC had been assaulted at Akkaraipattu in the Ampara district in addition to similar attacks on JVP activists at Lahugala in the Polonnaruwa district.
We cannot accept this as a fair election. No way! Infact this is an example of a fraudulent election, done trampling the authority of the election commissioner. Mahinda had shown the world how to misconduct an election when there is no independent election commission, but there is a dictatorial presidency empowered by the 18th amendment. People who abstained from voting give the message to the opposition, that lame conservative electioneering is no answer to this corrupt regime. We are requested not to be mere actors playing the assigned roles in an election matrix of Mahinda, the master of trickery. It is true that the opposition is divided on political perspectives. That is to be expected. But all those who oppose the chauvinist pro imperialist policies of Mahinda today, should be prepared at least to tread the path of Mahinda when he was the activist par excellence of the opposition. Vipaksaye Virodhaya, the protest of the opposition, had the correct idea. But it was too slow and less organised to meet the challenge. It should develop in to a movement to mobilize all sections dissatisfied with Mahinda regime.